You're correct. The losses in the paper clip itself would be huge, due
to the resistance of the conductor in conjunction with the huge amount
of current which would flow for a given amount of applied power.

That web page has some factual information, but unfortunately it's
interspersed with a nearly equal amount of misinformation. Readers of
web pages should use caution in believing what they see.

Roy Lewallen, W7EL

Jayson Davis wrote:

I came across this web site (http://k9erg.tripod.com/theory.htm) and he
says that if properly matched, you could load up a paperclip on 160
meters and it would work. I'm not so certain, since this thing should
be so full of capacitive reactance that the losses in the matching
network should be astronomical.

Any thoughts?