Wire Antennas that WORK! A collection of details and descriptions of antennas
based on Spiderbeam fiberglass poles,as described in greater detail on DJ0IP’s Web Page:
WWW.DJ0IP.DE
The antennas described in this booklet were designed to be efficient, yet simple enough for the
average ham to build, using common hand tools. Several of these antennas are used regularly by DX‐peditions to all corners of the world. All of these antennas have been built and tested by at least one
of the Spiderbeam Team members: DF4SA / DF9GR / DJ0IP / DL9USA / DO5PNS / W4PA.
First Edition, June 2016 ‐ © Spiderbeam GmbH
2€
Antennas that work on the beach and also in your own back yard!
“Affordable” DX‐Antennas
Fee
dp
oin
t 5
0 O
hm
Co
ax
RF
-Ch
oke
Re
com
me
nd
ed
Ra
dia
tor W
ire
1m
m (A
WG
-18
)
10
.1m
(33
ft.) Lon
g
10
to 2
0 R
ad
ials
(5 to
10
m lo
ng
)
(16
to 3
4 ft.)
12
m (4
0 ft.) S
pid
erb
ea
m
Fib
erg
lass S
pid
erp
ole
40
m V
ertica
l
7m
’
Gu
ys O
ptio
na
l
In S
tron
g W
ind
s
Gu
y H
ER
E
Fee
dp
oin
t
De
tails
16
turn
s RG
-14
2
on
FT
-24
0-6
1
to ra
dia
ls to
ve
rtical w
ire
No
tes:
•R
ad
ials sh
ou
ld b
e 6
to 1
0m
lon
g.
•It w
orks g
rea
t with
just 8
rad
ials.
•1
6 o
r mo
re ra
dia
ls is a little
be
tter.
•S
pa
ce ra
dia
ls sym
me
trically
aro
un
d th
e p
ole
.
40
m V
ertica
l on
12
m P
ole
(Gro
un
d R
ad
ials)
http
://ww
w.D
J0IP
.de
/ve
rtica
l-an
ten
na
s/
Op
tion
al R
F-C
ho
ke
80m Vertical Antenna On a Spiderbeam 12m HD Fiberglass Spiderpole
L1
L2
L3L3
L1 = 13m (43 ft.) CQ‐532 wireL2 = 35m (115’ ) CQ‐534 wire1
L3 = 12 to 20m (40 to 66 ft.)L4 = 35 to 50m (115 to 165 ft.)2L5 = >10m (>33 ft.)L6 = depends on stake3
160m Inv‐L on 12m Spiderpole
4x Guy Ropes(2mm Kevlar)
8 ‐ 20 Radials
L5
8 or 10 turnsSpaced 5cm (2”)PVDF Monofil
Stake for diagonal wire
L3
Note: Spiral the radiator wire down the pole about one turn per meter. Near the bottom, wrap about 8 or 10 turns closer together, such that the end of the wire mates with the feedpoint.
Use 1mm Kevlar between the doubleinsulators, NOT PVDF Monofil.
If possible, raise the diagonal wire as highas possible, by tying to a tree oranother mast. Tying to the ground as shown, works, butIs a worst case scenario.
Use 2 Spiderbeaminsulators.
L4
Total Height: 12m (40 ft.)
L6
GuyStake
CQ‐534Wire
CQ‐532Wire
3m
DANGER HIGH VOLTAGE!
1Adjust length for resonance.2Adjust such that end of L2 is at least 3m high.3Adjust as necessary.
*Not critical. Wire length will be adjusted for resonance.
CMC Choke
300 to 500 pF, 5KV*50Ω Coax
Feed‐point
DJ0IP
11m
(not used)
80m Vertical using the 18m Fiberglass Pole
RADIATOR:
• Use 1mm to 2mm diameter wire
(AWG12 – AWG18)
• Length = 20m
• For lowest losses when running high
power, use 10m of 2mm wire on the
bottom and 10m of 1mm wire on the top
• Prune radiator at the bottom for
resonance
RADIALS:
• Use 0.4mm to 0.7mm diameter wire
(AWG21 – AWG26 works well)
• Use 8 radials (better 16)
• Length = anything >10m (Note: they do
NOT have to be 20m long!)
• For easy installation of radiators, use the
Radial Connection Plate
www.spiderbeam.com/products_info.php?i
nfo=p246
Note: m = ’ ”
R a d i a l s
Optional Radial Connection Plate
Wire Radiator
Optional
www.DJ0IP.de/vertical-antennas
Note: sp
iral (co
il) the ra
diator w
ire down
the p
ole a
bout 1 tu
rn per m
eter o
f the
pole. A
bout 2
m above th
e botto
m, w
rap
10 tu
rns p
er m
eter o
f pole. A
DJUST
spacin
g of tu
rns su
ch that th
e end o
f the
wire ju
st reaches th
e connectio
n plate
2x S
piderbeam
Insulators
2x S
piderbeam
Insulators
CAUTION
HIGH V
OLTA
GE
CAUTION
HIGH V
OLTA
GE
Feedpoint Details
17 turns RG-142
on FT-240-43 (2x Cores for 1KW)
Antenna Details: http://www.dj0ip.de/vertical-antennas/
Choke Details: http://www.dj0ip.de/vertical-antennas/rf-cmc-choke/
www.DJ0IP.de and click on:
• Antennas
• Vertical-Antennas
• Inverted-L-Ant
(or)
• RF CMC Choke
Simple 160m Inverted-L Antenna
on an 18m Spiderbeam Fiberglass Pole
Height: 16m ’
Height: 18m ’
TX
ca. 22m ’
Wire: AWG-26 (CQ-534)
ca. 25m ’
8 to 16 ground mounted radials, each 25 to 40m long.
’ to ’
18m ’ of wire AWG-18 (CQ-532)
Height: 2m ~ ’
(Drawing not to scale)
1m ”
Insert RF Choke here:
160m Vertical
on a Spiderbeam
26m Fiberglass Pole
4x Top-Hat Wires, 1mm, 7m long. ( CQ-534 26 AWG Copperweld )
26m
24m
PVDF Monfil Line
PVDF Monfil Line
PVDF Monfil Line
8 to 16 Radials, 20 to 40m long.
7m 7m
7m
7m
MUST use 2x very
lightweight insulators
for each top-hat wire.
24m 26m
19m
12m
7m
15m 25m
Guying Info
minimum distance
2mm Kevlar
PVDF Monfil Line
• Spiral vertical wire about one turn per meter
down the pole until the bottom of segment 2.
• Wrap the wire around segment 1 with a
winding space of about 10cm. Adjust as
Necessary such that the wire terminates
about 10 to 15cm from the bottom of the pole.
• Secure end of wire to pole using a wire-tie.
27m Radiator Wire:
• Top 8m: 1mm diameter
• Middle 9m: 2mm diameter
• Bottom 10m: 3mm diameter
Top hat wire Feedpoint
Details
17 turns RG-142
on FT-240-43
to radials to vertical wire
Note: drawing not to scale !
• 4 levels
• 4 directions
(For simplicity, the guy ropes are not shown above.)
18
m
10
.1m
80
m ra
dia
tor id
en
tical
to ra
dia
tor o
f the
80
m
Ve
rtical o
n 1
8m
Po
le.
40
m ra
dia
tor
DU
AL –
BA
ND
VE
RT
ICA
L
80
m / 4
0m
Use
8 to
16
gro
un
d ra
dia
ls
(or m
ore
), 12
to 2
0m
lon
g.
Sp
ace
rad
ials sy
mm
etrica
lly
aro
un
d th
e p
ole
.
Fee
d w
ith 5
0Ω C
oa
x.
Use
op
tion
al C
MC
Ch
oke
(pre
ferre
d).
Fe
ed
po
int ~
5-1
0cm
ab
ove
gro
un
d.
12
m
Ra
dia
tor w
ires a
re C
Q-5
32
(AW
G-1
8).
Fo
r 1K
W o
r mo
re o
n 8
0m
, use
2m
m
wire
(AW
G-1
2) o
n th
e b
otto
m h
alf
of th
e 8
0m
rad
iato
r (or d
ou
ble
the
CQ
-53
2). (N
ot re
qu
ired
on
40
m).
Gu
y ro
pe
s are
2m
m K
ev
lar.
Use
ligh
twe
igh
t insu
lato
rs!
Fee
dp
oin
t
Sp
ace
first insu
lato
r ab
ou
t on
e
me
ter a
wa
y fro
m th
e p
ole
. Th
e
40
m ra
dia
tor p
asse
s thro
ug
h th
e
Bo
ttom
ho
le; d
o n
ot fa
sten
. Th
is
en
ab
les a
dju
sting
the
ten
sion
.
Tun
e 8
0m
rad
iato
r by
sho
rten
ing
at th
e b
otto
m. 4
0m
is tun
ed
by
Ad
justin
g th
e le
ng
th. A
lwa
ys
tun
e 8
0m
first, the
n 4
0m
.
1m
Gro
un
d ra
dia
ls
are
req
uire
d.
info
@sp
ide
rbe
am
.com
Bu
ilt on
a S
pid
erb
ea
m
18
m F
ibe
rgla
ss Po
le
L1
L2
L2
L2
16
0m
/ 80
m D
ua
l-Ba
nd
Ve
rtical o
n S
pid
erb
ea
m 1
8m
Po
le
L1 =
16
to1
7m
(NO
T m
ore
)
L2 =
Ab
ou
t 12
.5m
(Cu
t 15
m, fo
ld b
ack
exce
ss)
L3 =
2M
L4 =
25
m (if p
ossib
le)
*L5
= 2
0m
~o
40
m
L6 =
14
.5m
L7 =
1,0
m
L8 =
6m
(cut 7
m, fo
ld b
ack
exce
ss)
Sta
rt with
L1 =
18
m a
nd
trim to
ad
just fre
qu
en
cy.
Fee
dp
oin
t: L4
T
o g
rou
nd
stak
e.
• Ra
dia
tor W
ire (L1
): AW
G-1
8 (C
Q-5
32
)
• Top
Ha
t Wire
s (L2): A
WG
-26
(CQ
-53
4)
• 80
m R
ad
iato
r Wire
s (L6 +
L8): C
Q-5
32
L3 1
8m
Sp
ide
rbe
am
Po
le
Ra
dia
ls no
t sho
wn
.
18
m
16
m
L6
L8
L7
Co
mm
en
ts:
•T
he
16
0m
an
ten
na
is bu
ilt exa
ctly like
the
S
pid
erb
ea
m 1
60
-18
-4W
TH
.
•T
he
80
m ra
dia
tor is cu
t for a
tota
l len
gth
of
a
bo
ut o
ne
me
ter lo
ng
er th
an
¼ w
ave
len
gth
.
T
he
exce
ss is fold
ed
ba
ck (n
ot cu
t).
•Tu
nin
g is a
ccom
plish
ed
by
ad
justin
g L8
.
•L7
is siply rope to the i
sulator.
L4
To
gro
un
d sta
ke
.
ww
w.D
J0IP
.de
/v
ertic
al-a
nte
nn
as
(for m
ore
de
tails
)
16
0m
Ra
dia
tor
80
m
Ra
dia
tor
Feeding Low Band Verticals (Especially 160m)
Common Mode Current Choke
The choke is placed at the feedpoint of the Vertical. The drawing above shows how you can simply
wrap coax on the toroid. Use RG-58 for a few hundred watts. For 1KW use RG-142 (Teflon Coax).
For 1.5KW use 2x Toroids glued together. On the right you see a choke/balun usable for 40m
and above. My choke looks similar to this, but has more windings in order to cover 160m.
It is not necessary to cross-wind the coax, but sometimes it is more convenient.
Feedpoint
Details
17 turns RG-142
on FT-240-43
to radials to vertical wire
A Hairpin Match (Shunt Match)
I’ e used the shu t at h for early 50 years. It is a heap a d si ple ea s of raisi g the feedpoint impedance from a low value (i.e. ~10Ω) to something closer to 50Ω. This is a great
ay to i pro e a lo a d erti al’s at h. Use thi k soft-drawn copper wire or thin copper
tubing. I wound about 10 turns onto a wine bottle. Tune by pushing the turns closer together
or pulling them farther apart. My choke and Hairpin Match are shown on the right. (DJ0IP)
Hairpin
Match 50Ω Coax
Quarter-Wave Vertical
HAIRPIN MATCH (Shunt Match)
The Coil: Wind thick wire or thin copper tubing
On a round object, such as a glass jar:
TUNING:
• Measure and record the SWR.
• Push the turns of the coil closer together and see if the SWR improves or gets worse.
• Pull the turns farther apart and check if the SWR gets worse or improves.
• Adjust for best SWR.
• Note: if spread too far apart and still not perfect, remove 1 or 2 windings from the coil.
• Note: if squeezed tightly together and still not perfect, add 1 or 2 windings to the coil.
http://www.DJ0IP.de/vertical-antennas/hairpin-match/
A quick and easy way to obtain
a better SWR for short low-band
Vertical Antennas. Radials
Simple Multi‐Band HF Vertical Dipole
ByDJ IP,November Page
0,85 m 1,70 m
2,55 m
3,63 m
1,08 m
1,70 m
0,85 m
1,08 m
2,55 m
3,63 m
Feedpoint Impedance = 100 Ω
Insert @ 15m Feedpoint
= 2 : 1 BALUN
Loop Lengths:
• L20 = 20,55 m
• L15 = 14,43 m
• L10 = 9,60 m
Spiderbeam 3 – Band
Single - Loop
Portable Quad
20 m 15 m 10 m
10
15
20
9/07/2012
450 Ohm Windowline [WIREMANN]
Special Feedline
851 mm 1084 mm
Special Feedline
Attach balun to 15m Feedpoint
Feedline Details
BALUN
Wire = CQ-534
300 Ω or 450 Ω
Openwire
Matchbox
Mono – Loop Quad A Vertically Oriented, Horizontally Polarized Loop
*Jumper
Spiderbeam
12m Fiberglass Mast
7 – Band Portable Antenna
*Jumper Band
In 20, 17, 15, 12m
Out 40, 30, 10*m
~5m ~5m
~5m ~5m
Up to 500w:
• AWG-26 Wire (CQ-534)
• 300 Ohm or 450 Ohm Feedline
Over 500w:
• AWG-18 Wire (CQ-532)
• 450 Ohm Feedline
*Also works o with ju per i
NOTE: Use Symmetrical Matchbox or Asymmetrical Matchbox with 1:1 or 4:1 Current Balun.
Spiderbeam
Quad Kit
---- 12m High
8m High ---
4m High -----
L=4m
L=4
m
• Secure the feedline to the pole near the
feedpoint to provide strain-relief .
• The feedli e a e al ost a
length as long as it is long enough
to reach from the antenna to the
shack.
• See text for more info.
DESCRIPTION:
A vertically polarized full wavelength loop, with more or less Omni-directional radiation (due to the low
height, requiring NO RADIALS. NOTE: though good for DX, stations within 500 miles may be stronger on a
simple dipole.
CONSTRUCTION DETAILS:
• The pole should e a out high i i u . ’ ” to 36’ . Highe is ette , ut the ou ill have to re-adjust the total length for resonance.
• The feedpoint is located in either diagonal side near one corner of the antenna, enabling vertical
polarization. This makes the antenna an excellent DX antenna.
• The length of the diagonal is not very critical and may be adjusted to help find a better fit in the space
available, but the distance from the feedpoint to the top should be one quarter wavelength.
• The e a t total le gth ill a depe di g o g ou d o ditio s at ou QTH. Begi ith . ’ ” a d the sho te the ho izo tal leg to i g the eso a e up to the desi ed f e ue .
• Adjust total length by adjusting the length of the horizontal wire. (Easiest way).
• The ho izo tal leg of the a te a o the otto should e to high ’ ” to ’ ” high e ough fo humans and animals to walk under. Changes to the height will require adjusting overall length.
• The insulator shown directly on the pole at the 2m level is for mechanical reasons. Secure the insulator
to the pole, and then pass the horizontal leg through the insulator, reducing sag in the horizontal leg.
• The insulator in the horizontal leg near the left is an option for convenience. It enables easy adjustment
for resonance by removing or adding wire. For disassembly, disconnect one side from the insulator and
then roll the antenna as a single wire. Each time I changed my QTH, I had to re-adjust the length of the
jumper. I just let the jumper wire hang down. For permanent use, you may leave this out.
• The a te a ill ha e a i peda e et ee Ω a d Ω. A ua te a ele gth at hi g stu of Oh oa ill p o ide a good at h to Ω. RG-59 is good enough for about 500w. If you want to
run more power, use RG-11.
c TX
40m Delta-Mono-Loop Height: 11m ’
Height: 2.0m ’ ” Jumper (See Text)
2.20m ’ ”
(about) 17.20 ’ ”
TOTAL
~42.20m ’ ”
9.0m ’ ”
RG-59
6.85m ’ ”
RG-213
Insulator
Insulator
A Vertically Polarized
DX-Antenna
Total Horizontal Length
DJ0IP; Original source: CQDL article by DL1BU, April, 1979, page 154.