Some Macs have an emulator that WILL run Windows apps. Kinda cool!

Does your antenna really HAVE to be a G5RV? I agree with the other gents that any advantages this antenna has will be lost indoors (near wiring and plumbing), AND being bent several times. Further, there are guys in my club who have made G5RVs and some have complained that they can be a little finicky to tune.

Have you thought about a slinky dipole??? It's a real simple antenna and an easy way to get a bunch of wire in the attic in a limited space. Use a balun, feed it with coax, connect it all to a tuner and you might be just fine. I'd bet you this will be a lot less expensive than what some people are selling the G5RV for, too.

Short of this, another option might be a magnetic loop antenna. MFJ makes a magnetic loop tuner that supposedly works pretty well, and they also make a couple of magnetic loop antennas that perform pretty well, too. I have the 10-30 MHz model. A magnetic loop also has the advantage of filtering out a lot of noise, while really minimizing RFI to TVs and stereos, smoke detectors, etc.

Lastly, another simple and inexpensive way to go might be a Hustler mobile antenna system in your back yard. If you can provide it with enough radials, you might really be surprised what you can achieve, especially on the higher bands (20 meters and up).

Good Luck!

Pete AA8GK

Howdy!

Yeah, afraid there's no gettin' around the laws of physics. Having been in similar circumstances myself, I'd suggest you put as many radials in your limited area as you can. It won't be ideal by a long shot, but you might be surprised by what you can achieve. Just make as many radials as you can and as LONG as you can. I'm leaning toward ditching the mag mount, too.

I'd try to keep the feedpoint as high off of the ground as possible given your limited area for radials; ground losses might really be severe (not that they're great now). I've seen some installations where the vertical is mounted on an outdoor patio table (metal, the kind that usually holds an umbrella in the center of it). Insulate this table from the ground, directly mounting the antenna onto the table (no mag mount, maybe a ball mount or equivelant), and add some radials to the table. This won't be pretty, but I'll bet you'd work some fine dx, especially on the higher bands.

Please keep me posted; I'd bee really interested in seeing what you come up with. My e-mail is AA8GK@yahoo.com

Gd Lk n gd dx!
Pete, AA8GK

Ahhhh, Grasshopper, you've asked the ultimate question!

I've had the Hamsticks, the Hustler, and the Hi-Q (a little like a screwdriver, but not). Hands down, the frequency agility and MUCH higher efficiency of the Hi-Q are worth the extra cost and installation effort.

The simplicity of the Hamsticks and Hustler system can't be ignored, and are a huge plus for casual mobile work. But, being stuck to a very narrow portion of a band can be frustrating, especially when there's a DX station OUTSIDE of it! I've also noticed a big difference in signal strength (in and out) between my Hi-Q and the other systems. However, I have worked a heck of a lot of DX with the Hamsticks, too!

I guess it all gets down to what kind of operating are you going to do? Whatever you decide, remember the three 'G's of mobile operating: Grounding, Grounding, Grounding!!!!

73,
Pete AA8GK (20 WPM Extra)

I own the Hi-Q 4/80 antenna (with 5 foot whip) and have had great success with it in the past, I mean GREAT DX. However, I've recently run into a problem with it: I'm no longer able to tune any band above 20 meters. Using the MFJ analyzer, I'm getting huge dips in SWR around 16 MHz, regardless of the antennas current setting. I'm not using any tuning network at the base (never needed one), and I've just replaced the coax and double checked ground connections from the coax. Any thoughts?

Thanks in advance,
Pete AA8GK

Hi, Bruce!

I think you just gotta bite the bullet here and give the antenna a really solid base and great ground. A way to do this is to install a trailer hitch onto your car (very easy to do yourself and not so expensive). You don't actually need one that can pull a trailer, just one to mount a bicycle carrier onto the back of your car. Then, have a mounting plate welded onto the bicycle carrier. Run grounding braid from the feedpoint onto the bicycle carrier, then to the frame of your car.

I completely agree with those who discourage you from going the magmount way.

Best of luck to you!!! Hope to hear you on the air soon!

Pete, AA8GK