Wire Loop Antennas

[KD4IFB]

Just curious about them. And would like to know from a users point of view about their performance on any band you use them on..For a future project... Thanks to all..

[kj3n]

Two thumbs up! http://www.qrz.com/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/wink.gif

I use a full wave 40m loop on several bands. My best results are on 40m and 20m. Worked HC2FN tonight on 20m with 100 watts. Report was 5/9+.

Waiting for the sunspots to return to test it out on 15m and 10m. http://www.qrz.com/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/wink.gif

[ka0gkt]

Loops are great! go for a halfwave horizontal loop and feed it with ladderline. it is slightly directional in the direction opposite the fed side.

73 DE KAØGKT/7

--Steve

[N4AUD]

I use a 160 meter full wave loop fed with ladderline. I can operate with a tuner from 160 meters through 6 meters with it. I love it.

[KE7NMS]

Roughly a 250 foot wire loop that turns into home made ladder line to my tuner.. Works great even with the high tension power lines next to me. But, the only thing I have to compare it to is a single random wire.

[KD4IFB]

Approx. how high are they off the ground? are you having to run ladder line or could you run coax?

[N2RJ]

Gonna put up a full size 160m loop soon. I already have it...

[N4AUD]

Quote[/b] (KD4IFB @ July 29 2007,23:59)]Approx. how high are they off the ground? are you having to run ladder line or could you run coax?
I use homebrew ladder line. The antenna height varies since it's up in a forest. I've got it up as high as I can get it, which is what I do with all my wire antennas.

[kj3n]

Quote[/b] (KD4IFB @ July 29 2007,23:59)]Approx. how high are they off the ground?
My 40m loop is about 35 feet in the air.

Quote[/b] ]are you having to run ladder line or could you run coax?

Because loops typically have impedances over 100 ohms (usually 150-200 ohms), feeding with coax is not recommended.

In my case, EZNEC says my 40m loop has an impedance of roughly 180 ohms, so I feed it with ladder line and a 4:1 balun. My SWR is under 1.3:1 across the entire 40m band.

Obviously, YMMV.

[KD4IFB]

Quote[/b] (kj3n @ July 29 2007,21:05)]Quote[/b] (KD4IFB @ July 29 2007,23:59)]Approx. how high are they off the ground?
My 40m loop is about 35 feet in the air.

Quote[/b] ]are you having to run ladder line or could you run coax?

Because loops typically have impedances over 100 ohms (usually 150-200 ohms), feeding with coax is not recommended.

In my case, EZNEC says my 40m loop has an impedance of roughly 180 ohms, so I feed it with ladder line and a 4:1 balun. My SWR is under 1.3:1 across the entire 40m band.

Obviously, YMMV.
And this is without a external tuner?

[kj3n]

Quote[/b] (KD4IFB @ July 30 2007,00:13)]Quote[/b] (kj3n @ July 29 2007,21:05)]Quote[/b] (KD4IFB @ July 29 2007,23:59)]Approx. how high are they off the ground?
My 40m loop is about 35 feet in the air.

Quote[/b] ]are you having to run ladder line or could you run coax?

Because loops typically have impedances over 100 ohms (usually 150-200 ohms), feeding with coax is not recommended.

In my case, EZNEC says my 40m loop has an impedance of roughly 180 ohms, so I feed it with ladder line and a 4:1 balun. My SWR is under 1.3:1 across the entire 40m band.

Obviously, YMMV.
And this is without a external tuner?
Yes. No tuner.

[n6yg]

Quote[/b] (kj3n @ July 29 2007,21:05)]Quote[/b] (KD4IFB @ July 29 2007,23:59)]Approx. how high are they off the ground?
My 40m loop is about 35 feet in the air.

Quote[/b] ]are you having to run ladder line or could you run coax?

Because loops typically have impedances over 100 ohms (usually 150-200 ohms), feeding with coax is not recommended.

In my case, EZNEC says my 40m loop has an impedance of roughly 180 ohms, so I feed it with ladder line and a 4:1 balun. My SWR is under 1.3:1 across the entire 40m band.

Obviously, YMMV.
Is the apex at 35 feet ?? or is that the botom ??

This has peaked my interest on loops again. I was thinking about building a 40 meter loop. I can only use one support so it would have to be a diamond shaped loop with the apex at about 45 to 50 feet, and fed at the bottom. Anyone have any experience with a vertical diamond shaped 40 meter loop?

[kj3n]

Quote[/b] (n6yg @ July 30 2007,04:40)]Quote[/b] (kj3n @ July 29 2007,21:05)]Quote[/b] (KD4IFB @ July 29 2007,23:59)]Approx. how high are they off the ground?
My 40m loop is about 35 feet in the air.

Quote[/b] ]are you having to run ladder line or could you run coax?

Because loops typically have impedances over 100 ohms (usually 150-200 ohms), feeding with coax is not recommended.

In my case, EZNEC says my 40m loop has an impedance of roughly 180 ohms, so I feed it with ladder line and a 4:1 balun. My SWR is under 1.3:1 across the entire 40m band.

Obviously, YMMV.
Is the apex at 35 feet ?? or is that the botom ??
It's a horizontal loop. I have a lot of trees. http://www.qrz.com/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/wink.gif

[K6UEY]

If you have the room to put a one lambda #loop at minimum of ½wave length at the lowest frequency ,above ground you might have a reasonable antenna . You of course will be stuck with horizontal polarization. Any thing less that a ½wave length above the surrounding terrain will operate in the NVIS mode.

On the other hand a vertical loop at ½ wave length above ground, can be fed vertical or horizontal polarization giving you a low angle of radiation if you choose to work beyond the city limits.

Unless you specifically want the close in advantage of a NVIS cloud warmer, a horizontal loop is not worth the time to stretch the wire out.

There are other antennas that can be placed in the same allotted space and perform much better than the Horizontal cloud warmer.

The secret to any HF wire antenna is to get it in the air.For instance for the 75/80 meter band a dipole should be minimum of 45 feet above ground to work. At 60 to 70 feet it works much better, at about 90' you have reached the maximum to retain the omni directional ground reflection effects of a dipole. Beyond 90' the ground reflections begin to get in phase with the incident radiation and the minor lobes disappear and the typical figure 8 pattern begins to evolve.

I would suggest if you have minimum experience in designing and building antennas you look at the antenna modeling software on the EZNEC webb site.Roy W7EL supplies a downloadable sample that is limited to simple antennas, but it is much easier than putting up and taking down antennas looking for one that works correctly.

With Roy's "EZNEC " program and an antenna Hand book to back you up you will expand your knowledge of antennas far beyond the average Ham in little or no time at all.

Lots of Luck, antennas can be fun and challenging at the same time,but always remember the station begins and ends at the antenna . # #http://www.qrz.com/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/smile.gif

POST EDIT:
If you are going to use it for multiple bands it is almost impreative you will have to have an external antenna tuner.In that case you will want to feed it with balanced line to a 4:1 Balun just outside the window then a short (under 15') length of coax to the tuner.

If you are going to use it single band then coax can be used. The radiation resistance will be in the order of 100 to 150 ohms, so the balun can be fed with a ¼wave section of 75 ohm coax to the 50 ohm coax. The ¼wave section transforms the 100 ohms to 50 ohms. You will also learn how to use a ¼wave section of ladder line as a switch,to open the loop for use on 160 and it looks closed on 80. As mentioned Antennas can be fun if you take the time to learn how the perform...... #Bst DX es 73, #ORV

[n4kz]

I've had 3 horizontal loop antennas up at my last 3 homes. It's the best wire antenna I've ever used since getting my ticket in the '60s. All 3 were full-wave horizontal loops for 80m and fed with 450-ohm twinlead which makes them multi-band. I have worked 160 all the way up to 6 meters with my loops. My best 6m SSB DX ever, Guam, was worked with an 80m loop.

Personally, I would never feed a horizontal loop with coax. Too much loss and it would be difficult, at best, to make it an effective multiband antenna.

My current loop is up 50 feet and hangs from trees on the edge of a very steep dropoff. A wavelength in front of the antenna, the ground has dropped off 100-150 feet. This makes the antenna perform as if it were much higher. I work DX easily with it on 80, 60, 40 and 30 meters. On 160, I feed just one side of the twinlead and use it as an inverted L with some radials. I work into Europe on 160 CW without difficulty.

It's a very versatile antenna. Remember, horizontal loops make good multiband antennas while vertical loops are excellent but only work really well on the band for which they are cut.

73, N4KZ

[kj3n]

Quote[/b] (K6UEY @ July 30 2007,07:11)]Unless you specifically want the close in advantage of a NVIS cloud warmer, a horizontal loop is not worth the time to stretch the wire out.
Unless you're using it on higher bands as well. Hint: Model a 40m horizontal loop that's 35 feet in the air (and fed in the middle of one side) on the 20m, 15m, and 10m bands. http://www.qrz.com/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/wink.gif

Quote[/b] ]There are other antennas that can be placed in the same allotted space and perform much better than the Horizontal cloud warmer.

Well, I already have a full size 40m 1/4 wave wire vertical hanging from a 50 foot tree limb and a 135 foot doublet @ 60 feet. I think I'm covered. http://www.qrz.com/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/wink.gif

Quote[/b] ]POST EDIT:
If you are going to use it for multiple bands it is almost imperative you will have to have an external antenna tuner.In that case you will want to feed it with balanced line to a 4:1 Balun just outside the window then a short (under 15') length of coax to the tuner.

Oh, trust me, there's a tuner involved. I just don't need it on 40m for the loop. http://www.qrz.com/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/wink.gif

[KD4IFB]

This is real good advice, and is on something alot of hams are interested in, but have either no way of being able to consruct or have fully understood them.. thnx gentlemen! and keep it coming if you think of anything else..Hopefully we'll get a few more hams as well to share their feelings as well on the loops.. http://www.qrz.com/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/smile.gif

[n3ixq]

I use a 80 meter loop here at my house. Height changes on each corner.. http://www.qrz.com/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/biggrin.gif Highest is 55 feet, lowest is 30 foot. I have the ladder line connected closest to my home where it comes in a window. It is by far the best antenna I ever used. and I tried em all..

(Next year it will be higher as the trees grow!!

[K5RCD]

A horizontal loop is about as good a multi band wire antenna as you can hope for. Make it as long and high as possible, feed it with 450 ohm ladder line and use a tuner. I have posted construction information on my website at:

http://www.k5rcd.org/hor%20loop%20instruct.htm

[KA4DPO]

If you don't have room for a full wave loop you can put up a loop in whatever space you have available. As long as all sides are equal length it should load on several bands with a tuner. Ladder line or open wire feeders should be used. Give it a try and see what you can do. A loop that is 16 feet on each side will work very well on 40, 20, and 10 meters using a tuner with a balanced input.

[KD4IFB]

Quote[/b] (k5rcd @ July 30 2007,09:56)]A horizontal loop is about as good a multi band wire antenna as you can hope for. Make it as long and high as possible, feed it with 450 ohm ladder line and use a tuner. I have posted construction information on my website at:

http://www.k5rcd.org/hor%20loop%20instruct.htm
Great web site, thnx for all the input on this everyone. http://www.qrz.com/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/biggrin.gif

[nq3x]

As has been written above, loops can be fed with coaxial cable, with a transformer section of 75-ohm coax between the antenna's feedpoint and the 50-ohm coax going into the shack.

I don't know if this has been brought up, so I thought I'd mention it. (If it's been covered and I missed it, sorry for duplicating effort!)

Here are a few basic formulae:

1. To calculate the total wire length of the loop in feet - 1005/frequency in MHz; i.e., 1005/3.8 = 264.47 feet. You can divide this in a variety of ways to design your desired loop. For example, a four-sided ("quad") loop for the above frequency would be 66.12 feet per side. A three-sided ("delta") loop would be 88.16 feet per side.

2. The transformer section must be 1/4-wave electrically, not physically. First figure the physical length using the classic formula to find a quarter-wave - 234/fMHz - then multiply the result by the velocity factor of the coax you've chosen. For example, a common VF for CATV coax is 66%. Thus, using 3.8MHz as our design frequency, 234/3.8 = 61.58 feet. 61.58 * 0.66 = 40.64 feet for an electrical quarter-wave.

Many amateurs perceive excellent results using the loop in the shape of a triangle. There are several methods of feeding these loops:

http://w5sdc.net/loopolr.jpg
(Linked in from http://w5sdc.net)

For a low angle of vertically-polarized radiation - e.g., for DX work - D is the best choice. Generally speaking, the practical height of the antenna is somewhat toward the apex from the horizontal (hypotenuse?), when fed at the points pictured at A, B and C; for example, the practical height of the antenna pictured at B would be a certain percentage up from the bottom wire. Conversely, the practical height of the antenna pictured at C would be a certain percentage down from the top wire.

The handy thing about the Delta Loop pictured at A, B, and D above is that only one vertical support - a tree, mast, tower, etc. - is necessary, unlike the two supports needed by a dipole-type antenna. A pal of mine has a Delta loop cut for 40m and fed with 450-ohm "ladder line" which works well on the design frequency and very well on the bands above 40.

It should be noted that using a loop on a frequency lower than the design frequency (i.e., using a 40m loop on 80m) will, regardless of feed method, generally give poor performance when compared to a resonant antenna such as a dipole or doublet. (Well, this has been this amateur's experience, anyway. http://www.qrz.com/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/wink.gif )

[AG3Y]

I've mentioned the loop I am currently experimenting with. It is a vertical square with the corners arranged in an open diamond pattern. It is a full wave on 20 meters, and is fed with RG 8X to a 1:1 balun, and then to a half-wave 400 ohm ladder line between the balun and the loop feedpoint. The antenna also acts as a half-wave loop on 40 meters, with a quarter wavelength ladder line impedance transformer. You can figure out how the antenna will also work rather well on 10 meters as a two wavelength loop with a full wavelength ladder line ( all the same antenna ! )

The antenna seems to be working rather well, as I am often able to recover SSTV video from DX stations that are not showing up on the webcams !

I could wish that I had a bit more power, or that the antenna was a bit higher off the ground ( currently only at about 25 feet to the center of the square ) but considering the limitations, I think it is doing quite well! 40 meter broadcasters come in at full scale on my S-meter at night which is adjusted to require a very strong signal to do that !

[K6UEY]

Very good post by BOB NQ3X,
If I may expand on it slightly.

The most efficient configuration for a vertical loop is the round ,or circle of one lambda length.This configuration however is a nightmare from the mechanical stand point.

The next down the ladder is the "Square " or equal sides loop,commomly called a "Quad Loop".This configuration would include the "Diamond Shape" as part of the distorted Square configuration

The next configuration is the one featured by BOB or the "Delta " Configuration. As BOB depicted the "Delta" can be in either Apex up or Apex down configuration .The most efficient would be the Apex down configuration. Here again the mechanical details do get more complicated.

All the afore mentioned configurations of the vertical loop can be fed in the Horizontal or Vertical polarization depending on the planned usuage.

To attain Horizontal polarization the loop needs to be fed from the top center or the bottom center.
In this configuration it can be looked at as 2 dipoles stacked in the vertical plane with the voltage points bent 90°, one being fed the other a parasitic.

To achieve Vertical polarization the loop needs to be fed
¼ wave down the side (left or right) from the top dead center of the antenna.

I hope this bit of info adds to your Loop experience.

[AG3Y]

"To attain Horizontal polarization the loop needs to be fed from the top center or the bottom center.
In this configuration it can be looked at as 2 dipoles stacked in the vertical plane with the voltage points bent 90°, one being fed the other a parasitic."

Actually, Orv, both halves of the loop can be considered as being activly "driven". Think of the antenna as two "C" or half squares attached to one another, either at the ends of each half square or the tips of the "C" . The half with the feedpoint is current driven, and the other half is driven by the voltage points halfway up the sides, 90 degrees ( electrically as well as physically ) away from the feedpoints.

73, Jim

[M0JMO]

My wire loop is about 140 feet long and is fed with 75ohm power lead (twin).

1:1 SWR on 10m... #My tuner hasn't arrived in the post yet to try it on other bands.

<table border="0" align="center" width="95%" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0"><tr><td>Code Sample </td></tr><tr><td id="CODE">
I (feed point)
I
I--------I (back of house)
I # # # # #I
I # # # # #I (garden)
I # # # # #I
I # # # # #I (trees holding up each end and a tree in the middle)
\ # #/\ #/ # (bit of a V going on at the end of the garden)
#\ / # \/

(end of garden)
[/QUOTE]

Works really well on 10m... Had contacts into France, Italy and Sardinia over the past couple of days with it.

[K6UEY]

AG3Y,
Jim you are correct,one dipole is current fed the other is voltage fed.
Maybe I was a little TOO simplistic in my example. What I was trying to say the quad loop in essance is no more than if you had stacked 2 dipoles one above the other.

The top one with the voltage points extending down, and the bottom with them extending up. Either the top or the bottom dipole can be fed,the other being the parasitic.

There are all kinds of imaginative definitions floating around, I was just trying to break it down to the basics for some to be able to visualize it better.

It is like trying to explain Co-Linear sections,you insert the impedance matching stub and people get confused. An excellent example is Louis Varney's "G5RV" antenna,the section of balanced line has ONE purpose only that is to match the feed point (20meters) impedance to the coaxial transmission line. However you hear things like it is part of the antenna to resonate it on 80 meters.It is OLE Wives tales like that are what keeps some new people confused!! #Take care Jim keep up the good work...73, #ORV

[n7bui]

deleted

[K6UEY]

N7BUI,
Sorry you brought that fiasco up !!
Art read a book about a bunch of Rhombics,so he decide to build an antenna. Not knowing the difference between a traveling wave antenna and a resonant loop he built both as one. The mistakes made in that fiasco are too numerous to list. The amount of money wasted in it's construction would make Congress blush !! # http://www.qrz.com/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/sad.gif

[AG3Y]

Gee, Orv, I'm sorry that BUI didn't keep his post on here! I would have loved to know what "fiasco" he was talking about !

Thanks for your fine work here on the "zed" too! I always enjoy hearing your informative comments, reinforced from years of experience!

73, Jim

[n9dsj]

Quote[/b] (KD4IFB @ July 29 2007,20:41)]Just curious about them. And would like to know from a users point of view about their performance on any band you use them on..For a future project... Thanks to all..
Have 3 at two different homes. 2 are 285 ft at about 55 ft; the other 570 ft at 50 ft, all fed with ladderline to remote tuners then short runs of coax to the house. Very quiet on receive but overall the best "swiss army knife" antennas I have. Problem on higher bands is a blessed curse. If in a power lobe it is great, as good as the beam at times (rare)...if not in the lobe it is far down from the dipole at that freq. Still very functional as a general use antenna and very good for NVIS on the 1005/freq band. Overall a great switch-to-this-and see-antenna on all other bands....alot of bang for the cost.

73

Bill N9DSJ

[K6UEY]

AG3Y,
Jim, I don't know why N7BUI deleted his post. He brought up the infamous Loop that rambles over the desert #of Art Bell W6OBB in Pahrump Nevada.It started as a 70 foot high loop around his immediate property then grew like Topsy, as he bought adjacent property and encompassed it with the loop. Then he followed that with a second loop a few feet under the first.He then added screen mesh to decrease the electrical height under the loop.Theres more but it is too lengthy to go into the whole thing. Maybe Art now that he has retired for the 4th or 5th time may write a book called "The Lord of the Loop".He could explain how all these ideas came into being,maybe they came in a dream after eating a spicy Pizza?
http://www.qrz.com/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/rock.gif

[AG3Y]

The most famous "loops" I can remember were the big Rhombic antennas that Don Wallace, W6AM strung out over the tops of telephone poles covering acres of land! It is argued that a good 4 element beam can do as good a job as one of those monsters, but all I know is that Don held 1st place in the DXCC Honor Roll for many years, and was considered to be "unbeatable"!

This link has more of the story : http://www.qsl.net/ne6i/w6am/

Good reading! Enjoy . 73, Jim

[n9dsj]

Quote[/b] (AG3Y @ July 31 2007,20:23)]The most famous "loops" I can remember were the big Rhombic antennas that Don Wallace, W6AM strung out over the tops of telephone poles covering acres of land! #It is argued that a good 4 element beam can do as good a job as one of those monsters, but all I know is that Don held 1st place in the DXCC Honor Roll for many years, and was considered to be "unbeatable"!

This link has more of the story : http://www.qsl.net/ne6i/w6am/

Good reading! #Enjoy . # 73, Jim
Size matters! Especially in the vertical plane..

73,

Bill N9DSJ

[K6UEY]

AG3Y,
Yes Jim it was the book of Don Wallace's life W6AM that Art was reading. He got so impressed with all the rhombics he just had to have one of his own. The catch came a Rohmbic is a Traveling wave antenna much the same as the famous Beverage. Normally horizontal loops are a resonant antenna most usually a complete lambda or multiples of because of their size.

It is my understanding that no actual planning or design went into the antenna, just started building and it turned out like the house that Mrs Winchester built.
http://www.qrz.com/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/rock.gif

[KD4IFB]

Quote[/b] (AG3Y @ July 31 2007,20:23)]The most famous "loops" I can remember were the big Rhombic antennas that Don Wallace, W6AM strung out over the tops of telephone poles covering acres of land! #It is argued that a good 4 element beam can do as good a job as one of those monsters, but all I know is that Don held 1st place in the DXCC Honor Roll for many years, and was considered to be "unbeatable"!

This link has more of the story : http://www.qsl.net/ne6i/w6am/

Good reading! #Enjoy . # 73, Jim
I have to admit thats real Impressive..The rhombic loop is a directional loop..is that correct??? And I do hope everyones checking out all those pictures.. Unreal! To say the least! and thnx for posting them..

[AG3Y]

The radiation pattern of a rhombic is created by the phase addition in major lobes and the phase cancellation in the nulls. # If you remember your theory about a long wire antenna, you can visualize how the radiation pattern becomes a series of lobes and nulls. #If the long wire is laid out in the diamond pattern ( much like the ARRL diamond ! ) the major lobes will reinforce each other, and extend off the "points" of the long dimension of the diamond. #I don't know if Don used radiation in both directions, or put a resistor on one point to create a unidirectional pattern, or maybe a combination of both. # He certainly had enough antennas up to allow for that type of experimentation!

Yup it would be fun to have all that real estate ( and MONEY ) to play with setups like that. # And remember, much of his work was done on AM, too! if I remember correctly. #One look at those transmitters of his is reminder enough of how much "heavy iron" he had sitting around him in his shack!

73, Jim

[n7bui]

Sorry for the deletion, but I wasn't sure if was a forbidden subject as Art has his groupies and haters.

But I really wouldn't mind steering the discussion just slightly to what the heck he was trying to accomplish with the second loop below the top one. #Was it a strictly a reflector for the top loop to use it more as a cloud warmer? #Which in my understanding is great for short hop on 160/75 meters. #Or was it co-phased in some way? #

I've seen a few websites that have pics of the antenna, but none really get down to specifics.

When he used to hang out on 3.840 he really had a commanding signal into my area of Oregon.

[KD4IFB]

Im really interested in thr Rhombic loop, Is the formula of 1005 used for figuring out the freq. to be covered? And if so how do you determine the length and width of the diamond?? Thnx Everyone!! http://www.qrz.com/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/smile.gif

[AG3Y]

No, actually 1005 will get you the dimensions for a full-wave loop, but a Rhombic is usually several wavelengths long for the frequency it is being used on . As Orv mentioned, a Rhombic is a special version of a traveling wave antenna ( like a Beverage with gain ! ) so it wouldn't be out of the question to build one with wire lets say 5 wavelengths per segment ( thinking 4 segments arranged in the diamond pattern ) or nearly 10 wavelengths long on the long dimension! It is no wonder that W6AM had hundreds of acres in which to lay his antennas out. Keep in mind that he also used telephone poles to hold his antennas up, and the old rule about getting the thing at least a quarter wavelength in the air ( half-wavelength much better ! ) still applies for rhombics like it does for any other transmitting antenna.

figure 10050 in the formula, or just multiply your dimension by 10 and see what we are talking about here ! Remember, there are critical angles for the wires to be placed at, in order to get that proper phase enforcement and cancellation in the right directions! ( looks like the ARRL emblem )

73, Jim

[K6UEY]

N7BUI,
No the second wire was to in effect change the diameter to length ratio to increase the bandwidth. In equivelent circuitry it would be like doubling the surface area of the first wire.
I have not read the W6AM book, although I would like to do that if I run across a copy. Remember Art was reading the book, and apparently Don added the second wire to his Rhombic so Art added a second wire to his rambling monstrosity. In Art's caes I don't think there was any design philosophy in mind, merely Don did it so it must be good.
BTW the second wire was tied to the first wire at the terminations, so they were fed in paralell.

Yes there are several incidents involving the construction of that Infamous Loop!! I think it would make humorous reading if it were compiled in another Art Bell Novel.
http://www.qrz.com/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/smile.gif
POST EDIT:
Now that Art has returned to the U.S. he has joined the group on 3678, a latenight group who begin around the bewitching hour West Coast Time.He is using the Infamous Loop as he did before.

Art has become known as "The Lord of the Loop,from the Kingdom of Nye".
http://www.qrz.com/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/biggrin.gif

[kl7aj]

Quote[/b] (KD4IFB @ July 29 2007,20:41)]Just curious about them. And would like to know from a users point of view about their performance on any band you use them on..For a future project... Thanks to all..
Workum' good. Heap big smoke signal.

[K0RGR]

I don't know what your computer models say, but my 40 meter full-wave loop (1005/F) measures close to 50 ohms at resonance and at multiples of resonance. I can use it without a tuner on 40 and all harmonics of 7 Mhz.. The apex of the loop is at 30 feet, with the corners a little lower. It is fed with coax through a homebrew coax coil balun (people ask what that Pepsi bottle is doing at the top of my tower).

I have been contemplating some big changes to my antennas, but the loop works so well, I can't abide the idea of taking it down.

On 40, it's better than a worm-warmer - I can easily work the North American continent with it. I don't do much DXing on 40 and that's a good thing because the loop isn't great on that band.

On 20 and above, it has some interesting, if oddly aimed lobes. It must have a wicked lobe on 10 that points at southern Europe/Africa, with tons of gain. I've never heard stations from there that loud before. Unfortunately, the lobes may not be where you want them to be! But it works very well on 20. On all bands, it is extremely quiet, which is a big plus in noisy urban places.

I'm thinking about nesting a second loop for 30 meters in the middle of this one, but I've nearly reached the point where I need to cut down a few antennas so the others can work better.