Genius Idea! I'm always looking for new ways to make antennas and you provide a wealth of ideas and things to try. We have a lot in common. I've been a working musician for 40 years. I played in a few bands that did well (punk and thrash metal) and then fell in love with Jazz. While I still play with the punk bands, I learned how to play Jazz guitar (old school - Wes Montgomery, Joe Pass, etc) and like Jazz more that punk and thrash metal (my band mates roll their eyes). Thanks for a great channel. I heard you on the 20M band a few weeks ago but couldn't tunnel through the pile up to make a QSO.
Hugh, OMG what a fantastic story mate. Speaking of jazz guitarists.... have you got into Django Reinhardt? He was the bridge between my wife's jazz tastes and mine. I also love Joe Pass, a true giant. Thanks for watching buddy, and leaving a comment. I'll be looking for ya on the bands my friend. Cheers!
@@thehamjazz Every time I was having difficulty trying to stretch my pinkie finger out to hit that distant not, I'd think "well, Django did more with two fingers than I'm doing with four." I still can get over how fast he could play, not to mention his style of jazz is simply brilliant! I hope to run into you on the bands in the near future.
Another great antenna design made largely from scrap parts from your home, garage, or workshop. Depending on the state of your "junk box", you could almost make this antenna for free. All I need now is some PVC pipe! Aloha de Russ (KH6JRM).
G'day Russ, so great to hear from you mate. I tell ya - this tape measure pun intended, does measure up, but all kidding aside, it never ceases to amaze me at how well it works. It's my absolute favourite of all of my antennas. I just love it. Happy building mate, and keep me posted on how it goes. Cheers Russ
Hello from Nova Scotia! Im working on my Ham certificate, i can't wait to get on the air. I'll be looking for you when I do. I'm listening a lot to 80m and 40m most nights while I'm prepping for the exam. That tape measure looks slick! Did you have to clean any coating off of the tape at the different measurements for the different bands or is the coating conductive enough?
G'day mate, that's awesome you're studying for your ham licence.... good luck with it mate. If you can get 80% or better I think it is, you get the "Basic with Honours" which means you will get full HF privileges. Are you in Halifax? My buddy Steve VE1SK lives there, and would be a great contact for you. As for the tape measure mate, funnily enough I didn't have to scrape any of the paint off of the tape - it was conductive enough. A great test is when you turn the radio on, and have it all set up, as soon as you touch the clip onto the tape measure, you'll hear a huge jump in noise. If you don't get this, then you might have some scraping or sand papering of the paint to be done. Keep me posted mate, and looking forward to hearing the great news that you passed your exam! Cheers mate.
@@thehamjazz I work in Halifax and live about 40 min out of town. I took the course from the Annapolis Valley amateur radio club and finished that March 24. I am going through it a second time because he offers it free for the next go round in case someone wants to refresh. I am getting steady 75-78 on the practice exams so I just keep on taking them to really get it all to sink in. I really need that 80 so I have access to all the bands. I want to see how far I can get with my little uSDX+ QRP with my clothes line 😉 I'm itching to get a call sign to start transmitting.
@@thehamjazz Now I'll be listening for your buddy... I wonder if he does the daily 2m wake up net. I listen every morning on my way into work with the mobile in the vehicle.
GigaParts used to give out tape measures (maybe they sell them now) that not only has inches and feet marked on it but also bold black marks for every quarter wave for all the bands.
As always, really enjoyed the build and excitement, Hell of a pile up there. Was able to catch some of your "Let's Surf the Grey Line" stream and the VOD of Ape's Live Stream. What a great time, I really do appreciate all of the time and effort you guys put in to making this hobby more interesting and FUN! Thank you.
Hey buddy, thanks so much for your kind words. the CaHR guys are just the greatest! Wooohooo cheers my friend. Thanks again for dropping by and hope to hear ya on the air very soon! Cheers and beers
G'day Roly, great to hear from you mate. I've posted a couple of pictures of the Terminal Block, centre conductor connection on the Community Board mate. I'll email them to you as well. hope this helps - happy DX my friend!
@@John_Ai9D Fantastic John. So a suggestion, that occurred to me after looking at this thing for months and wondering how I could 'get' enough tape (17'4") up the pole for 20 meters, hahaha just make the PVC in the centre longer hahaha. So instead of 5 feet like I have, just make the PVC a 6 foot piece hahaha. Ideally you want 18ft of vertical 'space' so you have no problems with maxing out the tape to get 20 meters, if that makes sense? Happy building buddy.
Awesome video! How about building a chalk line antenna? I’ve seen it done on a couple of times but didn’t get enough info to build my own. They did look pretty awesome! Thanx again!
G'day John, thanks for swinging by and leaving a comment mate. I'm definitely going to look into - thanks so much for the suggestion - sounds like a great idea. Love it! Thanks mate and I'll look into it. Cheers
woo hoo.. great show and entertainment Simon… always a pleasure to test the ears on those antennas hitting you with 500mW from Iowa.. Had to hop on the pedal power bike and the xiegu G90 to 20w to break the 20m pileup.. great fun.. Keep up the great work. !!!
Kevin! You're the greatest mate. Did you hear the horn at the end of the video????? hahahaha. What a fabulous group of mates this is. Love your work buddy. Cheers mate and speak on the air SOON! Wooohooo. Cheers from your pal up north
@@thehamjazz I did .. I heard it.. Honk Honk, LOL... i also liked your visit on Ape's show.. I'm about half thru the replay and will finish it soon.. Great job.. You're the best !!!
Thanks so much mate. I take the "C" as an absolute complement, as my building skills are rough to terrible at best, hahahaha. Thanks so much mate for dropping by and leaving a comment. Cheers!
I was going to get a 40' Spiderbeam pole, and put a pulley on top and tape measure on the bottom. Then an actual fishing reel as the pulley line tractor... I could see feeding the tape through a conductive sweeper that you could clamp to so as change the length w/o having to re-clamp an alligator clip. That counterpoise array looked pretty sweet. Did you use a balun, or what what the impedance of your lead line?
Hey buddy, thanks for watching. I use a choke at the feedpoint for any RFI - I never really have any issues with that which is fortunate mate. It is resonant and works great. Hey - keep me posted on your exciting build mate. Cheers!
Thanks so much buddy... this antenna is truly magical mate. Let me know if you have any questions if you build it - Wooohooo. Happy building mate. Cheers
Mike buddy, hope you're doing great. Thanks for your kinds words and keep your great videos coming! Cheers and beers from your Aussie mate on the 'other side' of the continent!
Do I need any balun or unun between tape and radio? or clip goes straight from center of coax to the tape. Any specific length of the groundplane wires needed ? Really cool idea. Can't wait to try it.
Hey there buddy, there is no unun or balun - the antenna is resonant. So the centre of the coax, goes basically into the terminal block, and then in turn clips straight onto the tape measure. The radial lengths are 8 ft 9 inches. That seems to be the number that works great on all bands mate. You can even tune this thing for 40 meters! I would definitely suggest elevating the radials rather than lying them on the ground. Happy building mate. Keep me posted on how it goes! Tape to tape woohooo! Cheers
Uncle Guenter!!! Wie Gehts? Wooohoooo always so great to hear from you my great friend. What's shaking mate? Any plans for the summer!??! Cheers and beers mate.
Smokin Ape Brother! Wooohoooo - thanks so much mate. Getting my stuff together for our livestream tonight buddy, can't wait. It's going to be an Antenna Madness, hahaha. Thanks to watching Ape and for all of your support buddy, so appreciate it! Cheers and Beers (and even Miller Lite ;-)
Hey Simon- you didn’t mention what power you would be willing to put through, and sit by, the tape measure. Going to make one of these. I can only hope I have half of the success you have achieved!!! Catch you on the radio😃 73
Hey buddy, you gotta build this! I LOVE my tape measure antenna, she's a beauty! Wooohooo. I always run 100W through it, unless I play some QRP with our buddy Kevin, K0KLB. As far as running 100W through the tape measure.... make sure you're in AM mode when you key up with the radio, and then find the 'length' that it's 1:1, then you'll be totally fine running 100W through it, as there is no heat loss per se. Happy building Mate. Keep me posted on how it goes. Can't wait to have a "Tape to Tape" QSO woohooo !
Wooohoooo thank so much for swinging by and subscribing buddy, much appreciated! New antenna experimentation in the works mate, hahahaha. Never ending madness! Cheers my friend and thanks again!
Thanks Bruce buddy, I love the tape measure antenna mate. It never let's me down and it consistently performs for me. Cheers mate and hope to hear you on the airwaves soon.
Hey Terry, the clip is on wire coming out of the feedpoint which is a terminal block.... the clip is a battery terminal clip as you don't want the 'teeth' per se as they will eventually tear the tape measure, instead flat and curved clips work the best I've discovered. I definitely do use a choke mate. I have the choke made by Palomar Engineers - it's great! Cheers buddy and happy building
David buddy, that's a brilliant idea! I love it. The only thing is you would need at least 35 ft or 10 meters. Fantastic idea mate. I had a great time down in VK land mate - Hope to hear you on the air soon mate. Thanks so much for leaving a comment mate. Cheers!
@@thehamjazz I have been listening out for you. But on your livestream I can only hear American's calling back to you but not you, when you are operational in Canada. Ok about the dog leed, just a idea. It wouldn't make your kit any smaller. DX Commander, Cal is doing a 10 meter FM livestream 20th March at 1pm British summer time.
Wow that's a brilliant idea mate.... Wow you've got me thinking. hahaha! Thanks so much for the inspiration. Cheers and thanks for dropping by. By the way, I love the "C" for implementation. My builds are terrible at best, so a C is awesome. Cheers mate!
Hey buddy, I use this antenna every week on my Wednesday livestreams, on all bands 10-20 meters running 100 watts! It's a fabulous antenna mate, and you can't be the price as well as the performance! Happy building mate. Thanks for watching
Hey buddy, not sure.... it is definitely a mystery to me. The fish tape I used yesterday that was only 1/8th wide, was very "Low Q" and almost covered the whole 20 meter band. Who knows hahaha. The wonderful mystery and beauty of our fabulous hobby eh? Thanks so much for dropping by and watching mate. Cheers!
Genius Idea! I'm always looking for new ways to make antennas and you provide a wealth of ideas and things to try. We have a lot in common. I've been a working musician for 40 years. I played in a few bands that did well (punk and thrash metal) and then fell in love with Jazz. While I still play with the punk bands, I learned how to play Jazz guitar (old school - Wes Montgomery, Joe Pass, etc) and like Jazz more that punk and thrash metal (my band mates roll their eyes). Thanks for a great channel. I heard you on the 20M band a few weeks ago but couldn't tunnel through the pile up to make a QSO.
Hugh, OMG what a fantastic story mate. Speaking of jazz guitarists.... have you got into Django Reinhardt? He was the bridge between my wife's jazz tastes and mine. I also love Joe Pass, a true giant. Thanks for watching buddy, and leaving a comment. I'll be looking for ya on the bands my friend. Cheers!
@@thehamjazz Every time I was having difficulty trying to stretch my pinkie finger out to hit that distant not, I'd think "well, Django did more with two fingers than I'm doing with four." I still can get over how fast he could play, not to mention his style of jazz is simply brilliant! I hope to run into you on the bands in the near future.
Another great antenna design made largely from scrap parts from your home, garage, or workshop. Depending on the state of your "junk box", you could almost make this antenna for free. All I need now is some PVC pipe! Aloha de Russ (KH6JRM).
G'day Russ, so great to hear from you mate. I tell ya - this tape measure pun intended, does measure up, but all kidding aside, it never ceases to amaze me at how well it works. It's my absolute favourite of all of my antennas. I just love it. Happy building mate, and keep me posted on how it goes. Cheers Russ
Hello from Nova Scotia! Im working on my Ham certificate, i can't wait to get on the air. I'll be looking for you when I do. I'm listening a lot to 80m and 40m most nights while I'm prepping for the exam. That tape measure looks slick! Did you have to clean any coating off of the tape at the different measurements for the different bands or is the coating conductive enough?
G'day mate, that's awesome you're studying for your ham licence.... good luck with it mate. If you can get 80% or better I think it is, you get the "Basic with Honours" which means you will get full HF privileges. Are you in Halifax? My buddy Steve VE1SK lives there, and would be a great contact for you. As for the tape measure mate, funnily enough I didn't have to scrape any of the paint off of the tape - it was conductive enough. A great test is when you turn the radio on, and have it all set up, as soon as you touch the clip onto the tape measure, you'll hear a huge jump in noise. If you don't get this, then you might have some scraping or sand papering of the paint to be done. Keep me posted mate, and looking forward to hearing the great news that you passed your exam! Cheers mate.
@@thehamjazz I work in Halifax and live about 40 min out of town. I took the course from the Annapolis Valley amateur radio club and finished that March 24. I am going through it a second time because he offers it free for the next go round in case someone wants to refresh. I am getting steady 75-78 on the practice exams so I just keep on taking them to really get it all to sink in. I really need that 80 so I have access to all the bands. I want to see how far I can get with my little uSDX+ QRP with my clothes line 😉 I'm itching to get a call sign to start transmitting.
@@thehamjazz Now I'll be listening for your buddy... I wonder if he does the daily 2m wake up net. I listen every morning on my way into work with the mobile in the vehicle.
@@patthesoundguy wooohoooo you got this buddy!!! Keep me posted on how it goes for ya! Looking forward to hearing you on the air mate. 👍👍
I really need to build one of these . thanks for the fun video .
GigaParts used to give out tape measures (maybe they sell them now) that not only has inches and feet marked on it but also bold black marks for every quarter wave for all the bands.
hahaha OMG I want one. that's awesome. Thanks for watching buddy. Cheers!
As always, really enjoyed the build and excitement, Hell of a pile up there. Was able to catch some of your "Let's Surf the Grey Line" stream and the VOD of Ape's Live Stream. What a great time, I really do appreciate all of the time and effort you guys put in to making this hobby more interesting and FUN! Thank you.
Hey buddy, thanks so much for your kind words. the CaHR guys are just the greatest! Wooohooo cheers my friend. Thanks again for dropping by and hope to hear ya on the air very soon! Cheers and beers
Thanks Simon
How do you physically connect the centre conductor of your coax to the tape measure?
G'day Roly, great to hear from you mate. I've posted a couple of pictures of the Terminal Block, centre conductor connection on the Community Board mate. I'll email them to you as well. hope this helps - happy DX my friend!
Great video Simon just added a tape measure to my go box. It’s a great device great fun and very useful Simon dropped in my faraday box. Wooohooo
Had a tape measure in mine, but of all things I used it only for measuring. Now I'm adding a second one! And a fishing pole, too.
@@John_Ai9D Fantastic John. So a suggestion, that occurred to me after looking at this thing for months and wondering how I could 'get' enough tape (17'4") up the pole for 20 meters, hahaha just make the PVC in the centre longer hahaha. So instead of 5 feet like I have, just make the PVC a 6 foot piece hahaha. Ideally you want 18ft of vertical 'space' so you have no problems with maxing out the tape to get 20 meters, if that makes sense? Happy building buddy.
Wooohoooo buddy! You're the best! Do you have jewelry wire in your 'go box' yet buddy? hahaha. Cheers and beers my friend
Don’t forget the tarp and a roll of aluminium tape lol and plenty of internet cables
Just enough room for my radio lol
Awesome video!
How about building a chalk line antenna?
I’ve seen it done on a couple of times but didn’t get enough info to build my own. They did look pretty awesome!
Thanx again!
G'day John, thanks for swinging by and leaving a comment mate. I'm definitely going to look into - thanks so much for the suggestion - sounds like a great idea. Love it! Thanks mate and I'll look into it. Cheers
woo hoo.. great show and entertainment Simon… always a pleasure to test the ears on those antennas hitting you with 500mW from Iowa.. Had to hop on the pedal power bike and the xiegu G90 to 20w to break the 20m pileup.. great fun.. Keep up the great work. !!!
Kevin! You're the greatest mate. Did you hear the horn at the end of the video????? hahahaha. What a fabulous group of mates this is. Love your work buddy. Cheers mate and speak on the air SOON! Wooohooo. Cheers from your pal up north
@@thehamjazz I did .. I heard it.. Honk Honk, LOL... i also liked your visit on Ape's show.. I'm about half thru the replay and will finish it soon.. Great job.. You're the best !!!
I would give you and A for innovation and a C for implementation. Thanks for the video.
Thanks so much mate. I take the "C" as an absolute complement, as my building skills are rough to terrible at best, hahahaha. Thanks so much mate for dropping by and leaving a comment. Cheers!
Crocodile clip to tape coax to 3 way terminal block plus radials
Woohooo Nice Experiment!
You have wayyyy too much Fun Simon, Love It! 😂😂
Thanks buddy, fun is the best thing to have!! I LOVE playing radio wooohooo - cheers my friend, see ya on the airwaves
I was going to get a 40' Spiderbeam pole, and put a pulley on top and tape measure on the bottom. Then an actual fishing reel as the pulley line tractor... I could see feeding the tape through a conductive sweeper that you could clamp to so as change the length w/o having to re-clamp an alligator clip. That counterpoise array looked pretty sweet. Did you use a balun, or what what the impedance of your lead line?
Hey buddy, thanks for watching. I use a choke at the feedpoint for any RFI - I never really have any issues with that which is fortunate mate. It is resonant and works great. Hey - keep me posted on your exciting build mate. Cheers!
What an amazingly creative antenna setup! I had no idea that's the way you did it.
Thanks so much buddy... this antenna is truly magical mate. Let me know if you have any questions if you build it - Wooohooo. Happy building mate. Cheers
Awesome stuff. You always give me ideas!
Mike buddy, hope you're doing great. Thanks for your kinds words and keep your great videos coming! Cheers and beers from your Aussie mate on the 'other side' of the continent!
Hamgenuity at its finest! Good stuff Simon!
Your pliers and drill bits might be happier if you use some hardwood or pvc wedges instead of drill bits. Other than that this is amazing.
Do I need any balun or unun between tape and radio? or clip goes straight from center of coax to the tape. Any specific length of the groundplane wires needed ? Really cool idea. Can't wait to try it.
Hey there buddy, there is no unun or balun - the antenna is resonant. So the centre of the coax, goes basically into the terminal block, and then in turn clips straight onto the tape measure. The radial lengths are 8 ft 9 inches. That seems to be the number that works great on all bands mate. You can even tune this thing for 40 meters! I would definitely suggest elevating the radials rather than lying them on the ground. Happy building mate. Keep me posted on how it goes! Tape to tape woohooo! Cheers
@@thehamjazz Thanks for your respond. Definitely will try this project.
Wohooo...happy Humpday Simon. Keep the Wheel spinning... 💯👍🙋♂
Uncle Guenter!!! Wie Gehts? Wooohoooo always so great to hear from you my great friend. What's shaking mate? Any plans for the summer!??! Cheers and beers mate.
Always fun.. VE1SK
Safe travels down to NH buddy, have fun down there. Cheers and beers my friend
Very clever Simon, nice work 👍
Smokin Ape Brother! Wooohoooo - thanks so much mate. Getting my stuff together for our livestream tonight buddy, can't wait. It's going to be an Antenna Madness, hahaha. Thanks to watching Ape and for all of your support buddy, so appreciate it! Cheers and Beers (and even Miller Lite ;-)
Hey Simon- you didn’t mention what power you would be willing to put through, and sit by, the tape measure. Going to make one of these. I can only hope I have half of the success you have achieved!!! Catch you on the radio😃 73
Hey buddy, you gotta build this! I LOVE my tape measure antenna, she's a beauty! Wooohooo. I always run 100W through it, unless I play some QRP with our buddy Kevin, K0KLB. As far as running 100W through the tape measure.... make sure you're in AM mode when you key up with the radio, and then find the 'length' that it's 1:1, then you'll be totally fine running 100W through it, as there is no heat loss per se. Happy building Mate. Keep me posted on how it goes. Can't wait to have a "Tape to Tape" QSO woohooo !
CAHR sent me. This is excellent Simon. I just subscribed. Keep building, experimenting and inspiring. 73 OM
Wooohoooo thank so much for swinging by and subscribing buddy, much appreciated! New antenna experimentation in the works mate, hahahaha. Never ending madness! Cheers my friend and thanks again!
Amazing !
Thanks Bruce buddy, I love the tape measure antenna mate. It never let's me down and it consistently performs for me. Cheers mate and hope to hear you on the airwaves soon.
Is the clip on the tape measure? I didn't catch that. Also it appears you mad a choke out of coax?
Hey Terry, the clip is on wire coming out of the feedpoint which is a terminal block.... the clip is a battery terminal clip as you don't want the 'teeth' per se as they will eventually tear the tape measure, instead flat and curved clips work the best I've discovered. I definitely do use a choke mate. I have the choke made by Palomar Engineers - it's great! Cheers buddy and happy building
Hi Simon, instead of using red cord to extend the tape. Try using a dog retractable leed. Hope you enjoyed your stay in Australia. David M0DUU
David buddy, that's a brilliant idea! I love it. The only thing is you would need at least 35 ft or 10 meters. Fantastic idea mate. I had a great time down in VK land mate - Hope to hear you on the air soon mate. Thanks so much for leaving a comment mate. Cheers!
@@thehamjazz I have been listening out for you. But on your livestream I can only hear American's calling back to you but not you, when you are operational in Canada. Ok about the dog leed, just a idea. It wouldn't make your kit any smaller. DX Commander, Cal is doing a 10 meter FM livestream 20th March at 1pm British summer time.
If you extend the end out horizontal for an inverted L you can do all the HF bands.
Wow that's a brilliant idea mate.... Wow you've got me thinking. hahaha! Thanks so much for the inspiration. Cheers and thanks for dropping by. By the way, I love the "C" for implementation. My builds are terrible at best, so a C is awesome. Cheers mate!
Heath Robinson still lives LOL (Rube Goldberg)
Does that antenna handle 100 watts?
Hey buddy, I use this antenna every week on my Wednesday livestreams, on all bands 10-20 meters running 100 watts! It's a fabulous antenna mate, and you can't be the price as well as the performance! Happy building mate. Thanks for watching
Why don't you use tape measures for the radials?
I guess because of skin effect wider less conductive metal might work better than thinner and more conductive material. AG6JU
Hey buddy, not sure.... it is definitely a mystery to me. The fish tape I used yesterday that was only 1/8th wide, was very "Low Q" and almost covered the whole 20 meter band. Who knows hahaha. The wonderful mystery and beauty of our fabulous hobby eh? Thanks so much for dropping by and watching mate. Cheers!
Nice ant and great activation. 73, KF0NNQ.
G'day Bill thanks so much mate. Hope to hear you on the air soon! Cheers