Ah yes, the 'dummy load' remark. A facetious comparison that doesn't add to the conversation.

Both radials need to be identical cut with band increments.

You'll add a coil, like the Wolf River Sporty Forty or the Chameleon 40M, and link both counterpoises together to create one 40 meter counterpoise. I explain how to do that starting at the 20:00 mark.

@@KB9VBRAntennasThanks…I remember seeing that now. Greg states that in the PDF as well. Thanks for your reply.

Bless your heart

A few loops in your coax, especially if they are somewhat large (over 12 inches in diameter) isn't going to hurt anything. I typically on phone at 50 watts. I've found that this is a good tradeoff between output power and battery life. You are only losing 1/2 S unit while almost doubling your battery's operation length.

The SS25 is strong, I've had it out in winds gusting up to 20mph with no issue (use a sturdy base otherwise the wind load will topple it). The whip does have a lot of flex though, as demonstrated in this video: kzbin.info/www/bejne/nHavm2x-ga2FgNU (fast forward to about 5:45).

I should be there. I've already made the camping reservations.

I don't do VOX, just the handswitch. I'm always afraid that the mic is going to pick up some background noise or me muttering under my breath.

That 20 meter pile up was intense. I did spend about a half hour on 15 meters and that was a lot calmer. But I don't know if you are in my 15m skip zone or not.

I'm not sure of the amount of inductance. I didn't test as it is hard to do a measurement of it in a non destructive manner.

To be more accurate, a ground network is a compromise when compared to elevated tuned radials (Severns, QST March 2010). There was never a doubt about that. But the 'magic carpet' is proven to work as well or better than an equivalent 4 - 8 ground radials. And like you said, that's a big advantage in faster setup and smaller footprint, both items portable operators find necessary in getting on the air. All antennas are compromised. If I want a big signal or DX, I will pick an antenna that delivers that. If I want fast setup for quick, on the go, operation, I will pick an antenna suitable to that. What's important is choosing the right tool for the job, and way too many hams have a terrible time thinking 'outside the box' when it comes to portable operation.

The advantage of isolating the active radiating part of the antenna from the support is that the support element can introduce strange or unwanted activity to the antenna's operation. Common examples would be common mode interference, unusual radiation patterns, elevated SWR. To your point about the CHA hybrid modules, they mount directly to the spike because the mounting side of the hybrid is the ground side of the antenna, not the radiating side. We can then attach the ground network directly to the spike. In my example, I don't want the spike to be a part of the antenna, but to have the RF energy and return ground pass through the externally connected 4:1 transformer, hence the insulator is necessary. Another example: say we want to elevate our MPAS vertical and mount the CHA hybrid on a tripod. I want to use a tuned elevated counterpoise to enhance it's performance. Adding the insulator between the tripod and the module will assure me that the tripod is not part of the antenna's ground system.

@@KB9VBRAntennas Thank you for the thoughtful response - very helpful! I will be trying the tripod approach you mention above at a park today.

Since I used the isolator block between the ground spike and the whip, connecting radials to the spike would do nothing.

@@KB9VBRAntennas Thank you!

I still use the magic carpet, especially when I need a fast setup and teardown. But I like options, too.

That may have to wait til spring when it is warmer out. I don't have the physical space at home to put up a loop antenna, but I know of some other locations where I could make that happen.

That's a good question. I have pulled in a fair amount of DX on 15 meters with this antenna. But admittedly, I am not an expert with ezNEC, so I haven't done any modeling to see what the radiation pattern looks like. I just know it works.

I suppose you could add a Puck Hub if you wanted to add some radials to it.

Awesome! You will love it.

I'm using a trigger switch with my headset. It's in my lap, partially obscured by the computer. Here's the plans on how to build one: kzbin.info/www/bejne/mGa6pmt4odeGfJI

That's a great question. My thought is that you can extend out the wire to just about any length as long as the total is a non resonant radiator. This may take a bit of experimentation, but since the 17 foot whip is stiffer than the 25 foot one it would support longer wire lengths. I bet the if you used 54 feet of horizontal wire and a 9:1 transformer, you'd have an excellent end fed random wire antenna for 10-80m

@@KB9VBRAntennas. I was curious why you wouldn’t use a 9:1 unun on your antenna, Michael, instead of the 4:1. Isn’t it also pretty much a non-resonant, “random” wire?

Normally I don't use the spike, but I was demoing the insulator. That's why they appeared in the video. I typically use my heavy flag base and mirror antenna mount. You can see that combination in this video where I first demonstrated the antenna: kzbin.info/www/bejne/n2K1dX-vbMZjkKM

@@KB9VBRAntennas This is great. Thank you!

I use it as a permanent antenna