Tiny HF antennas

[w1guh]

Maybe this belongs over on the technical BB.   

I'm going to be home next week and in my new place I'll have some room to start experimenting with indoor and "not groady" looking (well, not too groady) hf antennas.  Noise isn't all that much of a problem but signals are weak & it'd be nice to see the S metter get above 3 once in a while.  It'd also be nice to hear more than 10% of the stations in the AM window.

Or am I foolish to even think I can improve at all over seeing how much wire I can hook up to the coupler?

Any ideas on where to start?

Paul

[WB3JOK]

How about a Mag-Loop?
My 8' loop performs well on 40m and reasonably on 75m, and I have a 4' loop on a PVC-pipe stand that I use for 20m.
-Charles

[WA1GFZ]

Where is your new home located OM

[Steve - WB3HUZ]

Some advice from Radio Morania.

http://www.amwindow.org/misc/av/rmadvice.mp3

[w1guh]

Steve -           (Was looking for the devil thingie...not here.     BTW, what's 26-100?

I moved all of 50 feet, from 147 to 155 on the Big Eight-Five (85th st) (NYC). The thing is the new building (well, new to me - it's a renovated pre-war) is in a slightly better spot with less concrete and steel in the immediate vicinity and I'm on the top floor, so listening is a little bit bit better. I've got next week off & I'm going to get a bunch of wire including some magnet wire I can invisibly hang out the window.  Also going to try some sort of loop.  Anyway, trying to get as good a match as I can.

[Steve - WB3HUZ]

Not sure the size of your place. But I've used a loop of wire hung around the perimeter of the space. If you have 30 feet on a side, that will give you 120 feet of wire. That, some ladder line and a tuner will get you on the air.

I remember working someone in NYC years ago. He used a wire hung off his balcony downward for 100 or so feet. It worked real well.

Hope you can get something going!


26-100?

[W2JBL]

dropping the wire off the balcony works quite well. i have used it for hotel room portable for years. indoor wires don't really make it on 75 and 40. you hear lots of them on the Marconi net, if you can dig them out of the noise.

[w1guh]

Thanks. 

Steve, the loop idea is something I'm going to try, is seems the best bet for pulling in the signals.

The pity is that this is receive only.  I've often been tempted to fire up the TR-4 but the fact is I'll work every electronic device around.  Not sure I want to bring on that neighborly relations hassle.