Buther Boy schrieb:


I use an Icom 706MKIIG in the car with a Wilson Antenna (can't
remember the specs here). The Icom has been modified for 11 meters,
of course, but it goes many, many more places. However, I am blocked
by the fact that I only have an 11 meter antenna.

This is a nice TRX.
I'm dreaming on a Yaesu FT897.....


Any how, the setup is great when I use it, which is not very much.
Someday, maybe soon, I would like to figure out how to make an antenna
work in my attic...or get permission to erect an outdoor one.

How much better or worse does your attic antenna work as compared to
an outdoor antenna?

I can't really compare on my site.
My antenna setup is somewhat directional and not vertikal. But it works
surprisingly good. One leg of my FD4 is cut to work on 11mtrs.
I live in a noisy environment as there is a hospital with lots of
electronics spreading QRN just a few meters away....
But I can reach almost all stations within 30miles or 50kilometers wich
covers the whole city of Berlin and surrounding areas.
But it is hardly possible to work DX. There are some rare catches from
UK and Italy in the last decade.

When I go to another place outside just two miles away using a vertkal
1/2L-Antenna I just double or triple the reach of the groundwave. DXing
is no problem then whenever conditions are good.
I can tell you that there is a *big* difference using a whip on the car
or just erect a 20ft mast with a 1/2L or a 5/8L antenna on it. Even
though you might receive in same quality your own signal will rise up to
3 S-units at the other station. I made this experience using the FGT-6
Firestick antenna on the car compared with a 1/2L antenna on a 15ft mast.

So if you ever have a chance to put an antenna on the roof top, get
this chance.
In very most cases any short whip outside the building mounted at the
same height will outperform any other antenna in the attic.
A 1/4L carbon fibre antenna (i.e.DV27L) on the roof top with 2or 3
hidden radials down in the attic will be nearly unvisible.