As you can see, it is not the sexiest antenna in the world, and I have to admit to being a bit of a commercial-product-addict in past years. But since becoming a "ham" I have enjoyed tinkering around with homebrew antennas using bits of recycled timber and old radios. There is also the added enjoyment that, when you do receive a nice signal, it is done so on something you have put together by your own hands. Now I'm getting older, I enjoy that feeling!
On the above loop, I heard Paris Orly NDB "ORW" on 402.0khz this morning, my first signal from the French capital.
I have also ordered Edward Noll's book "25 Simple MW and Tropical Band Antennas" as I loved that series of Mr Nol's books as a youngster. So I might try my hand at a tropical band antenna next.
I also quite fancy having a bash at a larger LF loop. My experiments with HF loops have shown me that the size is not at all critical, and I have come down from 1m diamater to barely 40cm diameter with no noticeable loss of received signal. But my instinct tells me a larger LF loop might make all the difference in pulling in these very weak NDB signals from around NW Europe.
Sounds interesting. Its something I'd consider even if it didn't work out for me in the end. I need something to do with my time.
ReplyDeleteBTW, I tried to subscribe and I keep getting a white screen that shows what I assume are your posts with other characters in with it.