https://stream.echo6.co/videos/watch/7aebb8ae-ab8e-4d8a-8611-e0829053a3dc A look at two 1 metre diameter magnetic loop antennas for 40 metres pedestrian mobile. FIRST LOOP The first loop uses RG213 braid for both main and transmitter loops (encased in flexible ribbed tubing) and a large variable capacitor. Important values: main loop - 3 metres RG213, small loop 60 cm RG213, tuning capacitor up to 150 or 200pF. With these values the loop should cover at least 7 to 18 MHz, with 21 and 24 MHz available if you're lucky. The loop tunes sharply and works well but was found too heavy for serious pedestrian mobile operating. It's also bulky to carry - it can't be folded down. Not as good as a loop made from solid copper but it's a good compromise and contacts have been made with it indoors. SECOND LOOP The second loop is made from 3 core extension cord (wires soldered together) with similar dimensions to above loop. It's also mounted on a broom stick but has bamboo rods to steady the lighter cord. A 5 - 50pF beehive trimmer capacitor is used to tune it to frequency. 100pF is wired in parallel for 40 metres - leave it off if you want 20 metres. Usable bandwidth approx 50-80 kHz - wide for a magnetic loop due to its low Q and efficiency. The second loop (in particular) breaks all the rules of sound magnetic loop design. However it meets its design objective of being a lightweight pedestrian mobile antenna superior to the small whip used previously. This exercise shows that even a greatly compromised magnetic loop will beat a small whip for HF pedestrian mobile work. On-air tests show that the second loop is sufficient to produce interstate contacts on 40m. A future version will be electrically the same as this but foldable. The loop is described fully in the WIA's 'Amateur Radio' magazine, July 2012 pages 34 - 37. MEASURED TESTS (loops used indoors compared to full-sized outdoor antenna - WSPR to VK7DIK) First loop: -17 to 20dB Second loop: -26 to 28dB Contents 0:00 Introduction 0:32 Loop attempt 1 1:33 Loop attempt 2 2:36 Pedestrian mobile contacts from park and beach Part 2 follows. PS: If you liked this video please consider supporting Amateur Radio VK3YE by: Subscribing on YouTube, Checking my books page at https://books.vk3ye.com ​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​, Shopping on Amazon via: https://amzn.to/3iiDQXv​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​ , or, Shopping on eBay via: https://ebay.us/i9DuWP (then if you buy something I'll get a small commission at no cost to you) Sat, 09 May 2026 09:23:44 GMT https://validator.w3.org/feed/docs/rss2.html PeerTube - https://stream.echo6.co https://stream.echo6.co/client/assets/images/icons/icon-512x512.png https://stream.echo6.co/videos/watch/7aebb8ae-ab8e-4d8a-8611-e0829053a3dc All rights reserved, unless otherwise specified in the terms specified at https://stream.echo6.co/about and potential licenses granted by each content's rightholder.