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I built a QRPGuys vertical antenna kit. It is a wire antenna for the 40-30-20 meter bands. The kit is economical and easy to build. I will put links for the antenna and mast at the end of this document.
The antenna requires four 4' radials each which are left on the ground in a cross configuration. The vertical element of the antenna is a wire 17' long. I used 16 AWG wire.
To raise the wire I used a carbon fibre telescopic mast from Sotabeams which is 6 meters long. To hold the mast up I used a short length of 1/2" PVC pipe with a foot long stainless steel rod attached with hose clamps.
Setup is quick and easy. Drive the PVC with the rod into the ground, insert the telescopic mast into it, clip the end of the antenna wire to the mast and pull out and lock each section. Then, attach the four radials to the ground lug of the kit and spread them out in a cross. Finally, I run a 5 meter length of coax to the radio.
No tuner is required. If you follow the calibration instructions int he manual you should get a SWR less than 2:1. If you want a lower SWR you can use a tuner. Maximum power is 10W.
I made a few CW contacts with POTA stations in the U.S. and one POTA station in Spain. Power was 5W from my elecraft KX3 with 8 internal AA batteries. I did not make any SSB contacts this time but have worked stations on phone before with no trouble.
As this antenna is a vertical it transmits and recieves on 360°. This is very practical for portable operations because you don't have to move the antenna in any particular direction. Using the PVC support and the telescopic mast no trees are needed. If you don't have a mast the antenna can me suspended vertically from a branch with nylon line.
The kit installed and ready to go
