UK Radio Scanning Forum

I have recently re-arranged my random wire antenna up to about 20 feet high and in 3 different directions. I live in a bungalow so no high windows or trees. I have fabricated 20 foot poles from 30mm galvanised handrail tubing with inserted joints and also I welded them which was the cheapest way to do it, very heavy but they are strong. It was a bit of a struggle for a 76 year old but they are up there. The antenna wire goes into an unun and into my ATU and Tecsun S2000. I received many stations eastwards from my 20 which is in Lydd-Kent. The farthest was Radio Free Asia from Tinian Island on 13755 kHz. Also many other stations including a station from Botswana. I received Radio Brasil on 6000 kHz. Radio Brasil was about the only station to the west which is south west from me. Radio Habana Cuba which I usually receive quite well was very faint. Is the reason for only one clear station from the west due to my wire needing to go in a different direction, or just part of the conditions on the day. I only have a small garden about 35 feet by about 20 feet and an awkward shape so I have to string wire up where I can get it, out of the way of the washing line and all that stuff. Would it be feasible to add on extra wire where I can get it, sort of a leg off here and there. Thanks for any help. Mike.

mike43 wrote: Is the reason for only one clear station from the west due to my wire needing to go in a different direction, or just part of the conditions on the day.

Could be either. I remember one morning when working a really busy special event station, we saw very clear evidence in the log book of conditions at one point giving us North/South contacts & later East/West.


Only time will tell if it's conditions or antenna. But it's most probably conditions.

mike43 wrote: I received many stations eastwards from my 20 which is in Lydd-Kent..... I only have a small garden about 35 feet by about 20 feet and an awkward shape so I have to string wire up where I can get it, out of the way of the washing line and all that stuff. Would it be feasible to add on extra wire where I can get it, sort of a leg off here and there. Thanks for any help. Mike.

Experimenting with antennas is never wasted time. There are lots of ideas available via a google search. I too live in a space restricted QTHR & like you one of the antennas I use is one cut for 20 meters. It is a off centre fed dipole, Windom, that is zig zagged around the loft & it works surprisingly well. 20 meters is a reasonably long antenna to use, especially with a RX like the Tecsun S2000 which is designed to work on a small telescopic whip.

Thanks for that Alan. If the Tecsun 2000 is designed for a whip antenna why has it got a 500 ohm shortwave antenna input-a 50 ohm shortwave antenna input and a 50 FM input.

mike43 wrote:Thanks for that Alan. If the Tecsun 2000 is designed for a whip antenna why has it got a 500 ohm shortwave antenna input-a 50 ohm shortwave antenna input and a 50 FM input.

Because that gives you options. My Trio QR666 has a whip & is capable of 12 volt operation. but it is mainly intended to be mains & external antenna & works poorly on the whip. My Eton on the other hand is designed to run on batteries & it's whip, but has the capability to run on mains & it has a socket for an external antenna.

The Tescun is probably designed with more a 50/50 spilt. But I cannot imagine it has the filtering & circuitry that a full base radio has, but probably is better, that is less likely to overload, than a normal portable radio on an external antenna.