2m Halo Homebrew Antenna

Hi All,

Hope you're all keeping well and enjoying everything radio.  


Due to the success of repairing the old Yaesu FT290r I was donated I've started exploring the 2m band a bit more.

Soon found out that I'll probably have more luck with a horizontally polarised antenna....so set about building one.




Didn't take long, made of bits & bobs I had laying about in my workshop.

Total cost :- Bugger all. A cost that suits me admirably!

Copper pipe was donated some years ago by a friend, everything else was sitting in my workshop & shack. If you had to count all the bits up buying from new then it's probably cheaper to buy a commercial square Halo or something.....but where's the fun in that?!


Suitably impressed when I hooked it up to my MFJ antenna analyser - 1:1.1 SWR @145MHz, 50 ohm. Right off the bat!!  
(Was never more than 1:1.4 at either end of the band too.)

Temporarily hooked it up to the FT290 and scanned the band.....nothing?
OK, lets have a slower tune around the band - didn't take long and I had a definite tone received, followed by warbles and then the morse announcement of GB3VHF at 144.430MHz the VHF propagation beacon in Fairseat, Kent. (Maybe 65-70 miles from me.)


That might not sound too impressive, (compared to HF distances), but for VHF holding precariously to a homebrew antenna in my shack and a 40 year old radio I thought that was quite good going! (Couldn't hear it at all on my vertical I use for repeater work.)


Now I have to find a volunteer that can stick it in my loft for me and start playing with 2m SSB.
(First Tuesday of every month is alive on 2m SSB, or simply call out whenever you can and hopefully someone calls back.)



If you don't enjoy a bit of my waffle then you can stop reading now.
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Now - the crux of the matter.....

This antenna was fairly easy to construct and worked straight away - not much to do with my 'skills' but down to the guy that provided details for it. Unfortunately not in the 'public domain' but in an old issue of Radcom, Vol. 92, May 2016 to be precise, authored by John Adams G3ZSE.
I was just lucky to have kept an old copy given to me by a friend and all these years later digging it out for my FT290 forays.

You can gain access to the article online too.....by joining the RSGB.

I can't give you the article details.....due to copyright law.

So if you're penniless and utterly broke, (like crippled old me), then "yah-boo-sucks-being-you".
Unless you too have an old copy of Radcom mentioned.

Now, there's multiple reasons for all this, G3ZSE deserves credit, Radcom costs money to produce and the RSGB are an organisation protecting their own interests. I fully appreciate and understand all these points willingly adhering to the laws and principles.

But it's all a bit of a downer if you're interested in constructing your own antennas with little resources.....

So if you fancy a bit of homebrew construction, you can very easily be parted from your money.....or dig around for old articles, magazines, archives and such as well as gratefully accept every piece of apparent 'junk' any friend or acquaintance offers you.


After all, I just made an excellent antenna from a bit of wood and old copper pipe!  


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End of waffle...


Got your own Homebrew, home constructed, bodged together but all works piece of radio kit?
Then why not share it here on Charlie Tango......

....I for one would be very interested and applaud such interests.


All my very best to you all,
Victor

Nice, simple and straightforward - a classic from the 'dark magic' days

Well it and other designs, and there were some weird and wonderful stuff as obscurely only practised on VHF/UHF as there were some equally obscurely only practised on HF.

But part of the old v/u dark magic was seeing what you could get away with, given that on v/u/s and ultra high frequency, you're deep into disproportionate effective bandwidth for a design as the frequency increases, so an antenna design that had say 2Mhz bandwidth would be more like 2khz up towards high UHF into SHF. The 30 MHz boundary leads to some interesting variation and quirks and why some designs definitely see remarkable efficiency at VHF upwards and are a right can of worms to make effective even at 11/10m.

But the benefit to those with constraining limits, of any nature, is the upwards of 30 MHz, size and siting makes construction and testing way easier in the average UK postage stamp garden or (on flats/terraces) your microscope bit of gutter access for raised mounting.

Now I will say, to close, that if you're mobility limited or have difficulties and do want to limited venture with a portable setup, antennas such as halos, STL's, quads and even reduced beams gets a damn sight easier to move, setup and repack when you can break it down to a carrier bag size and many VHF/UHF portable scope designs easily fit. I'm mobility limited, but even limited stuff like a set of monoband sleeve dipoles for the front socket of the FT is highly practical when you can carry the lot shoulder slung in a tent pole sling bag worst case - and that's talking 11m band upwards a set.

So stick with it, and remember there's a lot of fun to be had with minimalist setups. Whilst my gear isn't, antennas have to be, so I use my stuff with minimalism in mind, which is good practice as it's necessary to make the best of bugger all to enjoy QRP and limited site ops.

Just imagine the fun you'll have with hybrid designs to come, when curiosity kicks in bad ...

Hi Christopher,

Cheers buddy, much appreciated.  


I must admit I've been having a lot of fun discovering VHF and going beyond the typical repeater work. The antennas are as you say so small and manageable!

I'm already down that rabbit-hole discovering other wonders after discovering that you can 'stack' such Halo antennas. I think a beam may be my next adventure once I figure out how to build a suitable rotator.


Luckily I managed to snaffle a volunteer today and being all immunised up they were only happy to help. (Something I couldn't have contemplated even a mere few months ago!) All installed high up in the attic eves it seems to be doing the job. The GB3VHF beacon is booming through and I'm also picking up some FT8 but need to figure out how to hook it all up via my previously made interface for the FT757gx. (The FT290 doesn't have VOX.)

It's all more fun that my ol' ticker can handle.

Again, really appreciate it.


All the best,
Victor