What type of wire for hf antennas?

[ka7yru]

Hello all, I am new to the forum. I have been out of the radio activities for almost 10 years. I am thinking of getting back into full swing on as many bands as possible. I dusted off a couple radios and have found a really good antenna tuner.

I was thinking of just starting by throwing a wire on that tuner.

My question is what type/gauge wire do you buy for these antennas? And what's the best place to get the wire cheap?

Thank you

Kevin

 

[Captain Kilowatt]

Copper is best as it is easy to work with, commonly available, and is easy to solder. Almost any gauge will do as long as it is strong enough to support itself and be able to stay up in the wind and ice/snow without breaking. Commonly used gauge is 14 ga. Do not use solid wire as it tends to weaken if flexed too much. Some folks have used electric fencing wire which is cheap and strong but almost impossible to solder too. You can get wire almost anywhere so look around.

 

[W5LZ]

What he said above.
I once bought a spool of electric fence wire. Something like 18ga, 1/4 mile of it. Figured that should last me for quite a while, and it will! While it's no impossible to use, it definitely has a few characteristics that are not very common. Such as it's stiff, tends to hold any shape it's bent into, really likes to 'kink', and it's a fairly good idea to wear gloves when using it. The one antenna I made from it worked very well, or at least as well as any antenna of the same type ever did. Would I recommend using it? Not really, just depends, sort of. I don't plan on throwing it away, but seriously doubt if I buy any more for making antennas.
- 'Doc

(Besides, wire with pink insulation works better.)

 

[RickC.]

Yep, that fence wire is tough, but I don't think I'd want to use it on just anything! Certainly has a mind of its own.

A few questions-- Is this going to be an end fed wire? Horizontal or vertical? If horizontal, will it be bearing its own weight (supported in the middle somewhere)? Will it be a stealth antenna? In this case the physical strength of the wire can be just as important as anything.

If you can give us an idea of what you have in mind that would help.


Rick

 

[ka7yru]

Thank you for the responses. I was initially just going to throw a long wire on my tuner for hf. I am renting and I am really not suppose to put up any permanent antennas outside. I have a house with a pretty good size back yard.

I think for my current situation I would want a portable hf antenna. One I could take down fast and put up fast.

I have looked at some plans for making a j-pole but but for a band as low as 40 meters it seems way too big for my use.

 

[RickC.]

Wow, yeah-- a jpole for 40 would be nearly 100' tall.... I had one for 20 for a while and it worked really well. But portable at HF they ain't!

 

[cordova lucky 13]

KA7 YRU alot of the old timers that helped me along the way were retired military men,they all said it was possible to load-up on nearly anything.(fence,spool of wire,evetrough etc They all had some impressive stelth antennas,most hooked up with a quick connect to a twin leed to the shack,all seamed to keep it simple. I myself have used a 18 ga; insulated wire which came from a local electrician, ends of spools sold of for scrap$$$. all the best ,good to hear your reterning to the air. Bob.A.

 

[ka7yru]

KA7 YRU alot of the old timers that helped me along the way were retired military men,they all said it was possible to load-up on nearly anything.(fence,spool of wire,evetrough etc They all had some impressive stelth antennas,most hooked up with a quick connect to a twin leed to the shack,all seamed to keep it simple. I myself have used a 18 ga; insulated wire which came from a local electrician, ends of spools sold of for scrap$$$. all the best ,good to hear your reterning to the air. Bob.A.

Thank you. Yes I have had the same. Way back when I had an old ham take me under his wing and actually 'lent' me some gear to get started. So very helpful.

I think I have enough now to get plugged in but the antenna is going to be the most difficult item to get hooked up. In different circumstances I'd just throw up a dipole and get going. I just don't have the room right now.

 

[W5LZ]

This isn't anything new, and you've probably already thought about it, but it's something to keep in mind anyway.
Any antenna fed from one end is going to require a good ground system, or something to 'work' against. 'Planting' wire is something you can do while waiting for other stuff to happen (Yeah, I know, but it's a justification for doing something I hate doing anyway, so makes a fair excuse, you know?). It helps if that 'system' is sort of symmetrical, but that's not an absolute necessity, just 'plant' lots of metal. It depends on what you have available to work with too. Sometimes you just can't for whatever reason (lazy doesn't count!). In situations like that, it's just a good idea to use an antenna that doesn't require an 'RF ground', a 'balanced' antenna of some sort. There are lots of possibilities. The only 'trick' is figuring out which 'fits' your particular situation the 'best'.
I honestly can't say I've ever had a really 'perfect' antenna for anything. They have all been compromises in some way. That hasn't stopped me from using those 'imperfect' antennas, and in most cases they dang sure worked well enough. It also meant that there was always room for improvement, that you could try different things to see if there was any improvement, and that's a big part of having all the fun associated with this sort of thingy.
- 'Doc

(and that tuner will be handier than probably anything else you could have!)

 

[ka7yru]

Ya, Over the years I have gotten very lazy. However, saw my gear in some boxes after 2 moves and 7 years, I wanted to get some kind of station going again.

 

[Beetle]

"What TYPE of wire?"

I'd go with "conductive".