"Jackie" wrote:

Yeah-- Diet Coke all the way! Beer is
better in bottles- no, scratch that, it's
best out of the tap...


Sorry, couldn't resist. :-)


I think anything metallic is fair game for
an attempt to load it up for better
reception. I have been more conventional
when it comes to antennas used for
transmitting, though.


When I'm bored, I'm not much more conventional with tx antennas. One lazy
afternoon, with some coax already in hand from another project, I loaded up
an aluminum walking crutch taped to an aluminum pole in the backyard. The
adjustable tip to adapt the crutch height to different people allowed for
easy tuning, not unlike a tuning tip on a regular antenna. The end result
worked fairly well on both two and six meters. Of course, since I needed the
crutch to walk any distance (broken foot), it didn't stay up long enough to
really make a comparison to other antennas.

Dwight Stewart