Friday, March 20, 2020
Book Review: W1FB’s Antenna Notebook
Like most fledgling hams, the ARRL Handbook and the ARRL Antenna books were both high on my “purchase-ASAP” list when I was getting my Novice ticket. Both are chock full of excellent projects and information.
But being “chock full” of info is also both books’ main drawback. As a result, I don’t recommend them to new hams who are looking for easy-to-read and build antenna projects.
The book I DO highly recommend is out of print, but its one of my favorites — “W1FB’s Antenna Notebook,” 130 pages published in 1989 by the ARRL.
W1FB — Doug DeMaw — was one of the most prolific writers who worked with the ARRL.
Doug joined the ARRL staff in 1965. In 1968, he was promoted to Handbook Editor and Laboratory Supvr and in 1970 he succeeded the late George Grammar, W1DF, as Senior technical Editor and technical Department Manager. During this time, DeMaw produced and wrote several books for the ARRL. Some say they were the best ever written on the technical side of amateur radio.
He earned several patents for his research work and practically invented the concept of QRP construction. He had a great love for low power HF band amateur radio and his many articles were largely responsible for popularizing QRP radio with home made equipment.
He was also the founder of Oak Hills Research, the famous QRP manufacturer founded when he retired and returned to his family’s Michigan farm.
ANTENNA NOTEBOOK. DeMaw’s Antenna Notebook is 130 pages of simple but well-written and moderately technical articles arranged by topic. The book begins with an overview of antenna theory and grounding discussion.
From there, it moves into a discussion of a variety of antennas — long wires, dipoles, Zepps, etc. And yes, it also includes the often-chided G5RV antenna.
But more importantly to me, the book doesn’t suggest the reader BUY a wire antenna — the who book is aimed at encouraging new hams to build their own wire antenna.
The book covers the advantages of disadvantages of trap antennas versus full-size antennas. It also covers ways to use a single antenna on multiple bands, including the antenna I’ve used at 4 QTHs with great success — the full-size 80 meter dipole fed with balanced feedline.
Of course, there are other antennas DeMaw covers in his straightforward, no-nonsense manner. He tells you the good and bad of a variety of designs, including trap dipoles and using loading coils to “lengthen” an antenna.
The book also covers theory of the various types of antennas, and doesn’t overlook the care and feeding of verticals. Nothing is overly technical; in other words, the book is written for the average ham — and newbie to read and understand.
My gripe about the ARRL Handbook is that tends to be overly technical. DeMaw’s book is more down-to-earth with antenna projects anyone could tackle.
Unfortunately, the book is out of print. You can find used copies on Amazon, and if you are an elmer for new hams, I would recommend you buy a copy for your local new hams. Its a great welcome gift to ham radio because it also encourages building your own antenna.
In fact, I found several Adobe pdf versions of the book available for free download (apparently not a problem since its out of print). To download the pdf of W1FB’s Antenna Notebook, click here.
POWER ISSUE?? Last night I tried to check in on my 80 meter CW net and every time I hit the key, my Yaesu FT-950 shut off. Huh??
I thought perhaps it was too much stray RF or a tremendous SWR mismatch; my handy-dandy MFJ analyzer made it clear the SWR was not an issue. And nothing had changed to create an RF issue.
After thinking about it, I figured it had to be a power cord issue — and it was. The damn PowerPole connector wasn’t making solid contact. Ugh! I had to work over the contact, but have it snugly connected now and working properly.
Tomorrow, my son and I are going to assemble some shelves — two sets — that I plan to use for storage in the basement. I need a dry, safe place for storage of my goodies! Stay tuned.