My main field rigs, an Elecraft KX3 and an Elecraft KX2, and previously a K2, all have with built-in antenna tuners, and all are all-band HF rigs, covering 80m through 10m. (The KX3 also covers 6m, and the KX3 and K2 also cover 160m.) It is my goal to find an easy-to-deploy yet effective 80-10m antenna for use during my field operations.

Because I began this quest to find an easy-to-deploy yet effective 80-10m field antenna while I was using an Index Labs QRP Plus, in places this page may still refer to my QRP Station in a Bag.

The following descriptions are not necessarily presented in chronological order because my experiments antennas tend to overlap in time.

Originally, I carried single-band dipoles for 20 and 40 meters. These dipoles were built with plexiglass center insulators and button end insulators, and each dipole has an integral thirty-foot RG-174 feedline. While these dipoles don't require the use of a tuner, the pair only cover the two bands, and both antennas have to be hung to operate on the two bands. (photos: 1 | 2)

These dipoles were originally built for use with my first Heathkit HW-8.

W3EDP

In my quest to find an easy-to-deploy all-band antenna, I have experimented extensively with the W3EDP wire antenna. The W3EDP, a variation of a true Zepp, is an interesting antenna and was described in Practical Wire Antennas by John D. Heys, G3BDQ; additional information on the W3EDP can be found in my Archives and Articles; in the article The FFD Antenna: A Field-Friendly Doublet, with Notes on Related Designs by Charlie Lofgren, W6JJZ; and in the article W3EDP Antenna by Nick Toparcean, AE5VV.

The W3EDP consists of an 85' wire and a 17' wire that's sometimes called a "counterpoise". The counterpoise isn't connected for 80m or for 10m, but is connected for 15m, 20m, and 40m. The W3EDP is very easy to deploy; it can be hung with only one elevated support, doesn't need a separate feedline, and packs up really small.

My initial trials of the W3EDP were using an MFJ-901B antenna tuner and Heathkit HM-9 SWR bridge. I was able to successfully use the the W3EDP on 20m and 40m over the year that I experimented with it, on several operating events as well as on two trips away from home. Following the recommendations (article) of Charlie Lofgren, W6JJZ, I tried configuring my W3EDP such that the 17' wire was half of a parallel feedline, using 0.75" x 1.5" sheet styrene pieces as separators. However, when I tried this arrangement as an Inverted-L (using a sliding "button" insulator on the radiating element) from a cabin on Presque Isle, Michigan, I had trouble getting a good match on 20 and 80 meters. On subsequent trials with the 17' counterpoise lying on the ground it tuned easily on 20 and 40 meters, but I couldn't get a match on 80 meters. Clearly, the W3EDP/MFJ-901B antenna system was not the ideal all-band antenna system.

The arrival of the LDG Z-11 QRP autotuner changed everything. The Z-11 easily tunes the W3EDP on 10, 15, 20, 40, and 80m through a homebrew 4:1 balun. I used this antenna from my billet at Rickenbacker Air National Guard Base (KLCK) during the month of June, 2003, suspending the 85' portion of the antenna between my third-floor window and the outside staircase of the neighboring building, allowing the 17' component to hang out the window. The tuner with balun easily tuned the antenna on all bands tried and QSOs were successfully made on 40m. I have also used the W3EDP/Z-11/balun combination in the field. I operated the 2003 E-PA QRP "TAC" Contest with the W3EDP/Z-11 antenna system, this time with the 85' portion extended in an inverted-L arrangement between two trees and the 17' component lying on the ground beneath the radiator. Again, the tuner easily tuned the antenna on all the bands tested and QSOs were successfully made on 20m and 40m despite poor band conditions. The W3EDP/Z-11 antenna system is a viable all-band antenna system. It's easy to deploy, tunes easily, and covers all the bands of interest.

My current version of the W3EDP has the 85' end-fed wire wound onto an inexpensive plastic camping-style clothesline reel (photo).

Following Charlie Lofgren's recommendation to keep the 17' wire off the ground to improve efficiency, I plan to make plexiglass feedline-insulators to enable me to easily configure the 17' wire as half of a parallel-feedline.

UPDATE 1: I've retired the LDG Z11 QRP Autotuner in my K2 Travel Kit in favor of the K2's internal autotuner (KAT2). At the 2012 QRP ARCI Fall QSO Party at Mount Gilead State Park I verified that the KAT2 will match the W3EDP on all bands, 10m through 80m, inclusive; for 40m, the KAT2's "ALT" mode was required to achieve a match on 40m.

UPDATE 2: I used the W3EDP with the Elecraft KX3 and its built-in KXAT3 automatic tuner for the 2014 Arizona ScQRPions "Freeze Your B___ Off" contest. I verified the KXAT3 easily and quickly tunes the W3EDP with the 4:1 balun on all bands 10m through 80m, inclusive; the 17' counterpoise wire was left connected for all bands.

W3EDP Jr.

Based on an article by VA3PCJ (link), in early 2018, I built a half-size version of the W3EDP, a W3EDP Jr., using speaker wire and inexpensive 300Ω TV-twinlead. I tested this antenna during Freeze Your B___ Off 2018 and found that when the W3EDP Jr was fed through a 4:1 balun, the KX3's internal ATU could quickly find matches on 10m, 12m, 17m, 30m, and 40m but it couldn't find a good match on 80m. I've since built a 4:1 unun for use with this antenna based on articles by IW7EHC (link) and WB3GCK (link).

I took the W3EDP Jr. to Florida in late 2018 to serve as a back-up antenna for a series of planned Parks on the Air (POTA) activations. I deployed the W3EDP Jr at Lovers Key State Park, in close proximity to salt water, on my last full day in Florida, in the form of an inverted-L supported by the roof of a gazebo and a 20' Black Widow fishing pole, and fed through the new 4:1 unun. The W3EDP Jr in this arrangement worked very well netting numerous contacts on 20m, 30m, and 40m, and the KX3's internal ATU easily found good matches on these bands. Unfortunately, I neglected to test for a match on 80m at this activation.

My first W3EDP Jr. didn't survive storage very well. In early 2022, when I retrieved the antenna to test it again, I found that the inexpensive TV twinlead had broken in several places just from being wound on a piece of card. I built a new version of the W3EDP Jr., this time with one continuous length of 18AWG speaker wire. I have tested this antenna, fed through a 4:1 unun, during Parks on the Air activations with my ATU-equipped Elecraft KX3 and the antenna works well but it does place RF on my key.

Off Center End Fed Dipole

I have built the KE4PT "Off Center End Fed Dipole for Portable Operation on 40 to 6 Meters" as described in March 2015 QST and Spring 2012 The QRP Quarterly (link), an antenna which I had hoped would be an easy-to-deploy, well-performing antenna. However, my first field test of this antenna during The 2015 Flight of the Bumblebees indicated this antenna doesn't perform as well on 20m or 40m as does a 28' end-fed wire. I will continue to test the KE4PT antenna.

End-Fed Random Wire (EFRW)

Since 2016, when I participated in ARRL-sponsored National Parks on the Air (NPOTA), my go-to field antenna has been a 28½' end-fed random wire (EFRW) with (usually) three 17' counterpoise wires placed directly on the ground. This antenna is fed through a binding-post adapter or, more commonly, through a 4:1 unun, and the can be used on 80-10m with a wide-range tuner. The 28½' wire can be deployed as a vertical, as a sloper, or as an inverted-vee, depending on the operating spot and available supports. The 28½' EFRW has become the primary antenna in the Enhanced KX3 Travel Kit.

Note to Self: Here is a useful table of easy-to-match random wire antenna lengths calculated by VE3EED (SK): The "Best" Random Wire Antenna Lengths. (Here's another, similar resource: K7MEM Single Wire / Endfed Antenna.)

At Hamvention 2023, Joshua, N5FY, gave me (via K4SWL) the unexpected and unsolicted gift of a Tufteln (link) End-Fed Random Wire (EFRW) antenna and common-mode choke. The EFRW includes a tiny 9:1 transformer, 35' of #26 Poly-Stealth wire for the radiator, 17' of Poly-Stealth wire for the counterpoise, and a clever arrangement to allow for quick-disconnect of the wires and strain-relief. The antenna deploys easily and the KX3's and KX2's internal ATUs easily find a match on all bands of interest. In July of 2023, I bought from Joshua a Tufteln Antenna Counterpoise Add-On Kit which allows the EFRW to be deployed with three 17' counterpoise wires instead of just a single counterpoise wire. Because the Tufteln EFRW and Counterpoise Add-On Kit pack so small, this antenna has become the primary antenna in the KX2 Mini Travel Kit.

End-Fed Halfwave (EFHW)

For field use with transcievers that lack internal antenna tuners, I have been experimenting with End-Fed Halfwave antennas using a VK3IL matching unit (info) and a QRPGuys Portable No Tune End Fed Half Wave Antenna (info). I have built both antennas for 40m.

As VK3IL suggests, his matching unit and a 40m ½λ wire provides acceptable SWR on 40, 20, 15, and 10m. This antenna is currently the primary antenna in the FT-817 Travel Kit.

In contrast, the QRPGuys matching unit, when paired with a 40m ½λ wire, provides good SWR only on 40m, regardless of how the 40m wire is trimmed. Since the circuit appears to be identical to VK3IL's, I don't understand why this is the case. The QRP Guys antenna will be a good match for mono-band transceivers such as the QCX-Mini.

After reading the article Antennas and the QRP Operator by Jim Thompson, W4THU, in Low Power Communications, Volume 2 (edited by Rich Arland, K7YHA), I built a 20m Extended Double Zepp. This is an 86' foot doublet and is fed with balanced line. W4THU claims the 20m EDZ will provide 4dB gain over a 1/2-wave dipole on 20m, performance similar to a dipole cut for 40m and 80m on those bands, and useful gain over a dipole on 10m and 15m. I built my first version with lightweight hookup wire for the elements, using military buttons for the center and end insulators, and fed it with Radio Shack "Ultra Low Loss" 300Ω TV twinlead. During the 1998 QRP ARCI Fall QSO Party this antenna worked very well on 15, 20, and 40m, and also tuned easily on 10m and 80m. After the event, I "ruggedized" the EDZ with a 35mm film-canister center insulator.

After using both the portable 20m EDZ and another installed permanently at home, I decided the 20m EDZ provides nodes that are too narrow for general use and that the QRP Station in a Bag needs an antenna with more omni-directional coverage. Towards that end, in preparation for the 1999 Arizona ScQRPions "Freeze Your B___ Off", I changed the 20m EDZ (now fed with 300Ω windowline) into a 70' doublet. I chose the 70' length based on the chart of "lengths to avoid" in Practical Wire Antennas. Unfortunately, at FYBO, I found that the antenna could be tuned only on 40m with the MFJ-901B, so I cut about three feet off of both ends which allowed the antenna to tune well on 15, 40, and 80m, but it still wouldn't tune on 20m. (It is quite possible I misinterpreted the "lengths to avoid" chart.)

Ron Wiesen, WD8PNL, described a field-portable doublet antenna in this email to me. His doublet is made with clear-insulation speaker wire which his tests have shown to have very low loss when used as a feedline. Ron has reported good results with this flexible and inexpensive antenna.

Doug Hendricks, KI6DS, and Howard Zehr, N9AHQ, describe similar field-portable 44' doublets that are light enough to be supported by a 20-foot "Black Widow" fishing pole. Their designs use computer ribbon-cable and are described in these articles:

NorCal Doublet by Doug Hendricks, KI6DS, at NorCal
Crappie Portable Antenna by Howard Zehr, N9AHQ, at AmQRP
Crappie Portable Antenna by Howard Zehr, N9AHQ, at NorCal

In an email to me, KI6DS wrote that the first 150 QSOs with his doublet at 20' included forty-four states and six DX countries. Tests conducted to determine the loss-qualities of ribbon-cable when used as feedline showed that it is, in his words, "lossy, but not too". His doublet was rugged enough to stay up at his home QTH for a couple of years before falling down. (For a different view on zip cord feedline, here is an article by KK6MC/5 describing zip cord feedline losses.)

I had intended to build a doublet this type, using either ribbon-cable or zip-cord as the feedline and elements, but upon looking through my wire-box, I found that I didn't have a enough of either material on hand. I did find, however, a marvelous military-surplus "Hughes Aircraft MK-911 Dipole Fixture #1540368" which included 30' of excellent low-loss 72Ω military twinlead, so I built a doublet using this 72Ω twinlead as the feedline, two 22' pieces of ribbon-cable as the legs, a film canister for the center-insulator, a fishing-swivel to hang the thing, and military "BDU" buttons as end-insulators. The "Dipole Fixture" itself was designed to serve as a center-insulator, center support, strain-relief, and wire reel for a doublet/dipole but is far too heavy to hang from a "Black Widow" 20' fiberglass fishing pole. However, it serves beautifully as a tangle-free spool for transport of the doublet elements and feedline.

Here are photos of the completed 44' doublet:

The "Dipole Fixture", with elements and feedline wrapped on it
The factory-insulated plugs on the radio-end of the feedline
The film-canister center-insulator
The button end-insulators

I've erected this antenna, supporting it in the center with the Black Widow, and verified that the Z-11 will tune it on all the MF/HF bands. (I don't expect this 44' antenna to radiate well on 160m, but it seems the rig will be happy to pump RF into it!) I used this antenna during the 2005 Freeze Your B___ Off contest. It worked very well on 20m and 40m. No activity was heard on 80m during this daytime contest, so I don't know yet how the doublet works on 80m.

The Black Widow supports the doublet as an inverted-vee without problem, but there is significant bowing at the top of the pole. I am curious as to whether a NorCal Doublet (built with one continuous length of computer ribbon-cable and no center-insulator) would cause less bowing of the Black Widow. I also remain curious about the feedline-loss of antennas made of ribbon-cable. Eventually, I hope to run some tests on ribbon cable as a feedline and possibly make a NorCal Doublet to test. In the meantime, the doublet, as constructed, remains a viable field-portable antenna.

In the summer of 2009 I acquired an MFJ-1910 33' telescoping fiberglass mast (link) that I hope will be useful in field operations. This mast is very much like a larger version of the 20' Black Widow I have been using. Reviews of this mast (link) indicate that it is fragile so I will use it to support only very lightweight wire antennas and will support these antennas at the second-from-the-top section to reduce mast bowing. I used this mast to support a an 88' doublet (see below) during the 2010 2010 Arizona ScQRPions "Freeze Your B___ Off" event and the mast did a yeoman job of supporting this antenna with only insignificant bowing (photo). To support this mast, I have re-engineered a retired roof-top TV antenna tripod. (Note: replacement elements for the MFJ-1910 mast are available from MFJ but they are no longer just $5 each.)

In order to use the 44' doublet with the 33' MFJ mast, I made a 30' feedline-extension from a second piece military 72Ω twinlead. (Alas—I have lost this feedline-extension; any ideas where I might find more of this nice twinlead?)

For improved performance on 80m, I made a lightweight 88' doublet to be supported by the 33' MFJ-1910 mast; it is constructed of 24AWG speaker wire and light-duty 300Ω TV-type twinlead, a film-canister center-insulator, and military "BDU" button end-insulators.

According to L.B. Cebik, W4RNL (SK), who called both the 44' and the 88' antennas "Broadside Doublets", both antennas should provide a broad directional pattern on the bands they're designed for. My original 44' doublet should work well on 10, 12, 15, 17, 20, 30, and 40m. The 88' doublet should work well on 20, 30, 40, 60, and 80m. (Read L.B.'s article, "My Top 5 Backyard Multiband Wire Antennas", in the Fall, 2009 "QRP Quarterly". The article is available online here in PDF format.)

Myron Schaffer, WV0H, has performed an interesting and insightful Smith Chart analysis of the 88' doublet (link).

I tested my 88' doublet during the 2010 Arizona ScQRPions "Freeze Your B___ Off" event and found that the LDG Z-11 matched the 88' doublet easily on 20 and 40m but the best the Z-11 could do on 80m was about 2.5:1. This antenna worked well during the 2010 ARCI Fall QSO Party, and it even allowed me to make a two-way QRP QSO with Hawaii on 15m, a band it's not supposed to work well on. As during the previous event, the best match I could achieve on 80m was about 2.5:1. It's likely a slightly different feedline length would allow a better match on 80m.

UPDATE 1: After using the 88' doublet suspended as an inverted-vee on the 33' mast for the 2011 Arizona ScQRPions "Freeze Your B___ Off" event I have begun to re-think this antenna's usefulness. Propogation was very poor the day of this event and very few stations were heard on 20m. In fact, I heard only three FYBO stations on 20m, and all were located in Florida. I later learned that K8RAT, just 150 miles or so north of me, heard many stations on 20m with his 98' doublet suspended horizontally at 40' and worked FYBO stations all over the country on 20m. I have verified that the 88' doublet is neither open nor shorted at the center insulator, the feedline and legs aren't open, and the balun is properly constructed and performing as it should. I am left with the conclusion that either the doublet is too directive on 20m--it's effectively an Extended Double Zepp on 20m--or that it was close enough to the ground when supported as inverted-vee from the 33' mast that the take-off angle was high enough I simply wasn't able to hear most of the stations on the band. The problem may be, in fact, a combination of both of these.

UPDATE 2: I used the 88' doublet suspended as an inverted-vee on the 33' mast the week of July 11, 2011 while in Lexington, Kentucky. The primary goal was to make daily contacts with K8RAT in north-central Ohio on 80m and, as such, the low height of this antenna would be expected to provide good NVIS performance, and it did. However, even with an unmeasured length of 300Ω twinlead added to the feedline to reach the operating position the LDG Z-11 could not achieve a match of better than about 2:1. Despite the high SWR, daily contacts were made with K8RAT although 9-watts was the most the K2 would generate without complaining. The Z-11 easily matched this antenna on 15, 20, and 40m although no operating occurred on these bands.

UPDATE 3: I tested the 88' doublet again during the 2011 Adventure Radio Society "Flight of the Bumblebees". Even though 80m isn't used for this event, I took the opportunity to find a feedline-length that would allow the LDG Z-11 to tune this antenna on 80m. I removed all but two feet of the random length of twinlead I had added in Lexington and the Z-11 tuned this antenna/feedline combination easily. The antenna also tuned easily on 20m and 40m. (Unfortunately, I didn't think to check tuning on the other bands.)

UPDATE 4: I've retired the LDG Z11 QRP Autotuner in my K2 Travel Kit in favor of the K2's internal autotuner (KAT2). At the 2012 QRP ARCI Fall QSO Party at Mount Gilead State Park I verified that the KAT2 can match the 44' doublet with 60' of 72Ω feedline on all bands 10m through 80m, inclusive.

UPDATE 2015-06-07: I finally constructed a 44' doublet and a 1:1 air-core balun (photos: 1 | 2) from 22-gauge speaker wire as suggested by Ron Wiesen, WD8PNL, over a decade ago. (See above.) Instead of tying a knot at the doublet's center, I used a button as a strain-relief/center-insulator. As with my other field antennas, military "BDU" buttons serve as end-insulators. The overall length of the antenna is 76' (22' for each doublet leg plus 54' of feedline) so this antenna should be easy to tune on 10, 15, 20, and 40m. The benefit of this antenna over my existing 44' doublet fed with military 72Ω twinlead is that this antenna is made of continuous lengths of wire with no solder-joints to fail.

I built the 80-10m version of the W6MMA Vertical using a 20' Black Widow telescoping fiberglass crappy pole from Cabelas and Vern Wright's nicely-machined 80m coil kit (photo). I had very high hopes for this 80-10m no-tuner-needed self-supporting vertical antenna. The W6MMA has proven to be very easy to deploy, and requires no supporting mast or tree. I successfully used this antenna in the 1999 E-PA "TAC", the 2000 FYBO, and the 2000 ARRL Field Day.

Initially I used radials made from computer ribbon cable. These ribbon cables store very well and are relatively tangle-free but are fragile. I've since replaced these with radials made from split #18 zip cord--white for easy visibility--and have found these to be flexible enough that tangling hasn't (yet) been a problem.

The only real problem with this antenna is that adjusting it after band changes seems to require two people--one to key the rig and read the SWR bridge, and one to adjust the sliding tap. If I owned an antenna analyzer this wouldn't be so much of a problem.

UPDATE: I acquired an MFJ-249 Antenna Analyzer from the estate of WA8DYD at the Athens Hamfest (April 28, 2013); I plan to start using the W6MMA more often now.

Immediately upon learning of it, I was very intrigued by the MFJ-2286 "Big Stick" (~$100, link) 40m-6m 17' stainless-steel telescoping portable vertical. This vertical would provide all of the utility of the W6MMA Vertical except for coverage of 80m but would be much lighter and would pack into a much smaller package. The MFJ-2286 would be much easier to carry than the W6MMA Vertical on human-powered-transport field operations with my KX3 Travel Kit.

Instead of purchasing an MFJ-2286, I've built my own 80m-6m field vertical using my existing W6MMA 80m coil and base/feedpoint assembly, an MFJ-1979 17' stainless-steel telescoping whip (~$60; link), four pairs of #18 radials, and two 25' RG-58 feedline lengths with BNC connectors. I have engineered and implemented all required changes to the 80m coil and base/feedpoint assembly and am awaiting an opportunity to begin testing the antenna. (Photos: 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7)

In the spring of 2018, I built the N2CX-inspired tri-band field vertical offered by QRP Guys (info). This antenna, which is 17' tall and is easily supported by my 20' Black Widow fishing pole, covers the 20m, 30m, and 40m bands without the need for an antenna tuner.

The N2CX-inspired tri-bander, a 20' Black Widow pole, four 10' counterpoise wires, and a 25' length of RG-58 was to be my primary antenna for a series of Parks on the Air activations in Florida in the Fall of 2018. Although the antenna measured well in Ohio, at early activations in Florida the SWR was high on 40m and at later activations it was high on both 20m and 40m. While in Florida, I played with the length of the radiator but, not having an antenna analyzer available, I wasn't able to improve the match on either band much. Back in Ohio, I was able to use my antenna analyzer to restore the radiator to a length that provided a good macth on 20m and this length also produced acceptable matches on 30m and 40m. What changed with the antenna while I was in Florida? I first suspected dirty slide switches but I was unable to confirm this, and if this was the problem, the switches magically cleaned themselves when I got back to Ohio. I later discovered that problem in Florida was simply a failure of the RG-58 feedline I had taken to Florida.

Note to Self: Remember that the N2CX base-assembly can be attached directly to the transceiver if a coax-failure is suspected.

In February of 2023, I ordered an Elecraft AX1 antenna, AXB1 bipod, and AXT1 tripod adapter (link). (And, I waited nearly eight weeks to receive the items. It seems the February AX1 Special was intended to get rid of excess stock of the AX1, but "someone on Youtube" (link) had such success with his AX1 system that Elecraft had to make two production runs to fill the unexpectedly high number of the orders.) At Hamvention 2023, I purchased the AXE1 40m extension. The AX1 antenna system breaks down to very small components and the AX1, AXE1, AXB1 "bipod", AXT1 tripod-adapter, 13' and 33' counterpoise wires, a tabletop tripod, a KE8PTX 3D-printed AX1 support bracket for the KX3, and a Tufteln AX1 Antenna stand (link) all fit very nicely in a Maxpedition Fatty Pocket Organizer for transport. I've performed several Parks on the Air (POTA) activations using the AX1 on 20m and the AX1/AXE1 on 40m and the performance of the system has been nothing short of surprising.

In November of 2023, after reading about AE5X's success with a very inexpensive, Chinese-made, HYS CB walkie-talkie antenna (link), I ordered myself one on Amazon to try on 10m. I used this antenna, with it mounted directly on my KX3, with four 17' counterpoise wires laid directly on the ground, on Saturday of ARRL 10 Meter Contest 2023 while operating portable at Strouds Run State Park (link). I successfully made fifteen QSOs in search-and-pounce mode in just about an hour.

I have had a really difficult time getting string and wire into trees. I've tried using small lead weights and weighted tennis balls, but I've been most successful with half-full disposable water bottles.

Doc, W5TB, sent me an email regarding his version of the N1OLO Throw Bag:

W5TB Throw-Rope

UPDATE 2022-02-04: After several years of me not supporting antennas in trees because of the hassle involved, Thomas Witherspoon, K4SWL, was able to convince me the way to get antennas into trees is simply to use proper arborist tools. His gift to me of 25 meters of 2mm arborist-line prompted me to buy a 12oz Weaver arborist throw-weight. This combination, I hope, will allow me to again support antennas in trees. (Here's a video Thomas recommended on how to throw a line: link.)

I learned pretty quickly during 2016's ARRL-sponsored National Parks on the Air (NPOTA) that the quickest way to get on the air in the field was by supporting the antenna on a quick-to-deploy mast. Nearly all of my NPOTA operations used an MFJ-1910 33' telescoping fiberglass mast supported in a repurposed roof-top tripod staked to the ground. (At locations where I wasn't allowed to drive stakes into the ground, I learned how to strap the tripod to the wheel of my car.)

In 2019, I purchased a 31' Jackite fiberglass telescoping mast and I fashioned a drive-on base out of a piece of wood, a toilet-flange, and two pieces of PVC pipe (photo). This arrangement has been my go-to antenna support for the vast majority of my Parks on the Air (POTA) activations since then. In addition to using the drive-on base, I've also had success strapping the Jackite mast to handy fence- or sign-posts; strapping it to a folding camp-chair, and just leaning the the mast into a tree.

For bicycle- and pedestrian-portable operations, I use a modified Goture Red Fox Super Hard 720 carbon-fiber fishing pole as a mast. This mast is rugged, lightweight, and collapses down to 28" for easy transport by bicycle or foot. The primary modification I've made to the fishing pole is the removal of the top three sections which are far to whippy to be of any use in supporting even a very lightweight wire. I can bungie this mast vertically to my bicycle, turning my bicycle into a tripod; I can bungie this mast to existing posts, picnic tables, or benches; or I can drop the mast into a PVC pipe fitted with a spike. At about 17' in length, the modified fishing pole isn't long enough to support the 28½'; EFRW or the Tufteln 35' ERFW as a vertical, but either antenna can be deployed as, and work well as, a sloper or an inverted vee on this mast.

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