Building Low Budget Antennas - DIY Magnetic Loop Antenna for 20 (14Mhz) - 6 (50 Mhz) Meters (Part 1)

I continue with the series of low budget antenna "builds".   In the series I will be looking into building antennas that is:

• Highly Portable
• Cheap to Build
• Easy to build (Novice and Experienced builders)
• Use readily available material from the local hardware store
• Needs minimal tools to construct
• Needs only a SWR Meter to do some final tuning and adjustments.  However if you do have an antenna analyzer, that will be a bonus.
• Highly affective with possible gain.
• Light weight and easy to install or to dismantle
• Fun to build and play around with.            

Please note that none of the antennas that I will be constructing is my personal designs.  Credit will be given and links provided where you can find more information about the antennas.

I trust that new, novice and experienced radio amateurs that will be building some of these antennas  will find them of great use and enjoyment.  Isn't this what amateur radio is all about?

Now lets look at a short explanation of  "What is a small transmitting magnetic loop antenna?"

A small transmitting magnetic loop antenna is a compact, resonating antenna made of a conductive loop with a high-voltage capacitor. It is designed for use in situations with limited space, such as in amateur radio, and can provide good performance when carefully constructed to minimize losses. The antenna operates by using the magnetic fields of radio waves and has a unique, doughnut-shaped radiation pattern with nulls at right angles to the loop's plane. 

How it works

• Loop as an inductor: The main loop acts as a large inductor in a tuned circuit.
• Capacitor for resonance: A variable capacitor is placed in the loop's break to form an LC circuit that resonates at a specific frequency.
• High-Q circuit: This high-Q parallel-tuned circuit results in a narrow bandwidth but high efficiency, making it excellent for receiving weak signals and transmitting.
• Coupling loop: A smaller, secondary loop (the "feed loop" or "coupling loop") is placed near the main loop to transfer the radio frequency energy from the transceiver to the antenna.

Characteristics

• Small size: Its circumference is typically less than one wavelength, making it ideal for portable use or areas with antenna restrictions.
• Directional pattern: It has a doughnut-shaped radiation pattern, with the signal being strongest in the plane of the loop and weakest at the points perpendicular to it.
• High efficiency: Despite being small, its design can achieve high performance, especially in the HF bands, with careful construction that minimizes resistive losses.
• High voltage: The voltages across the tuning capacitor can be very high, so it's important to use high-quality components and to be careful not to touch the antenna while transmitting.

Common uses

• Amateur Radio: Its compact size makes it popular for portable operations, like Field Day, and for home use where outdoor antennas are not permitted.
• Military applications: Its small size and high performance make it suitable for military use.
  

In any project one needs a plan, diagram, guidelines and information.  At least that is my way of constructing any DIY Project.  I research the project thoroughly before I start any work.  I did exactly this before I started on this project.

Now the Internet is your friend but can also by your enemy if you just jump in and start constructing the first plan you find.  I was looking for the dimensions of  DIY Magnetic Loop Antennas and ran into a Small Transmitting Loop Antenna Calculator at 66pacific.com

Small transmitting loop antennas, commonly called "magnetic loops" or "mag loops," can give surprisingly good performance when they are carefully designed and constructed. Although this online calculator is intended to assist with designing and building homemade, ham radio loop antennas for use in the HF bands, magnetic antennas have been constructed that function in the VHF or even the UHF frequencies. This calculator enables you to test the design of an octagonal loop antenna and to answer "what if" questions until you arrive at a design that meets your needs without a lot of experience in electronics.

The small transmitting loop antenna calculator was fed with the following data:

Length of Conductor (Antenna "Circumference")  =  1.360 meters

Diameter of Conductor = 2.5 centimeters

Frequency = 50.2

Transmitter Power = 5 Watts

After calculating the following information were provided:

Antenna efficiency: 94% (-0.3 dB below 100%)
Antenna bandwidth: 209 kHz
Tuning Capacitance: 13 pF

Capacitor voltage: 545 volts RMS
Resonant circulating current: 2.20 A
Radiation resistance: 0.484 ohms
Loss Resistance: 0.032 ohms
Inductance: 0.785 microhenrys
Inductive Reactance: 248 ohms
Quality Factor (Q): 240
Distributed capacity: 4 pF

Antenna "circumference": 1.360 meters

Side length: 0.170 meters

Antenna diameter: 0.4 meters

Comments:
The specified conductor length of 1.360 meters is OK.

Conductor length should be between 0.725 and 1.45 meters at the specified frequency of 50.2 MHz.

For highest efficiency, the conductor length for a small transmitting loop antenna should be greater than 1/8 wavelength (greater than about 0.725 meters at the specified frequency of 50.2 MHz).

To avoid self-resonance, the conductor length for a small transmitting loop antenna should be less than 1/4 wavelength (less than about 1.45 meters at the specified frequency of 50.2 MHz).

Input Values:
Length of conductor: 1.360 meters
Diameter of conductor: 2.5 centimeters
Frequency: 50.2 MHz
Transmitter power: 5 watts

The transmitting loop I decided to construct was inspired by Peter VK3YE and he calls the antenna, "The SummerLoop II" a pedestrian mobile magnetic loop for 20 to 6 Meters. Here are the links to some of his videos where he explains and demonstrates the antenna.

The SummerLoop II 14 - 50 MHz pedestrian mobile magnetic loop 

Tiny loop works 'Magic Band' DX on 50 MHz

With all the information now on paper I was ready to move onto the next phase and that was to gather all the materials I was going to need.

Materials that I used:

1 x 25mm x 3mm x 3m  Aluminium Flat Bar

1 x 25 - 50 pF Beehive Trimmer Capacitor

1 x 25mm x 80mm x 2mm Single Side PCB (Must be single sided to lessen capacitance)

1 x 16 mm x 1820mm Wooden Dowel 

2 x 80mm x 80mm x 4mm Plastic Cutting Board 

1 x SO239 Connector (Optional)

1 x Electrical Eye Lug (Terminal)

1 x 205mm x 2mm Brazing Rod or Stiff Copper Wire

2 x 35mm x 4mm Stainless Steel Bolts + Washer + Lock Nut and Wing Nuts

1 x 12mm x 4mm Stainless Steel Bolts and Lock Nut

2 x 15mm x 3mm Stainless Steel Bolts and Lock Nuts

Odds and Sods:

Cable Ties

Hot Glue Sticks

Self Amalgamating Tape

Solder

Solder Paste

Coax Cable (RG58CU Mil Spec) 50 ohm

Marine Silicone Sealant

 

Tools:

 

Metal Punch

Drill

Drill Bits 4mm + 3mm

Hack Saw 

Hot Glue Gun

Soldering Iron

Screw Driver (Small flat)

DIY 135 Degrees Bender to form Hexagon (See image and description)

 

Test Equipment:

 

SWR Meter

Antenna Analyzer (If you have one but not compulsory)

Amateur Radio Tranceiver

Coax Patch Leads

Mast (Non conductive)

Coax feed line cable  5 m  RG58CU 50 ohm

Power Supply for Radio 

Soundcard Interface

WSJT-X Software

 

Building the Antenna:

I am not going to go into detail how I constructed my version of the antenna. I will however describe my findings in constructing and testing the antenna.  The images below provide good detail of how I constructed the loop.

Image:  Peter VK3YE  (Click on image for larger view.)

More information on the build and use of the antenna available at:

 

Website Peter VK3YE (Click to view website) 

My build observations and findings:

 

Now how did I bent the hexagon figure of the antenna?  I decided to construct a jig to assist me to bend the 135 Degrees needed to turn the aluminium flat bar into a hexagon configuration aka Loop Antenna.

I uses stainless steel bar and scrap that I had lying around in the workshop.   See images below.

Now the bending process is quite simple as illustrated in the images below.

 

 

The measurement at the open end of the loop is 85mm - 85mm = 170mm.  To provide space for the capacitor and PCB cut 10mm of each side making each side 75mm.  The PCB with the capacitor will now fit comfortable in the cut out space.  See images below:

I used a 25 pF Beehive Capacitor as this is all that I had on hand. According to the calculator I only need 13 pF for 6m operation.  The 25 pF also allow for 10 and 11 meter operating. 

The  Beehive trimmer is mounted on a 25mm x 80mm x 2mm piece of single side fiberglass printed circuit board. This must be single sided copper to lessen capacitance. I used a hacksaw to separate the copper into two large pads, each connected to a terminal of the capacitor.

Screws hold as much of each pad as possible against each end of the flat aluminium loop. Sand the facing surfaces to lessen resistance. If the loop is to be used permanently outside as a courtyard or balcony antenna, consider the risk of reaction between dissimilar metals and waterproof accordingly.  I intend to change the above arrangement.  An update will follow in this regard.

I used 2 x 35mm x 4mm Stainless Steel Bolts + Washer + Lock Nut and Wing Nuts to hold the loop ends to the circuit board. Install so their heads are pointing down. They should be long enough for there to be about 20mm thread protruding from the nut. The reason for this is mentioned later.

2 x 80mm x 80mm x 4mm Plastic Cutting Kitchen Board material adds rigidity to the top and bottom of the loop and lessens stress on the circuit board. Two 16mm holes allow a snug fit with the 16mm vertical dowel that comprises the antenna's handle.

An insulated knob on the capacitor lessens hand-capacitance and makes adjustment easier. I used an old fibre pen casing as an isolation knob. The one end happened to fit snugly onto the rotating section of the trimmer capacitor.

Feed Arrangement:

 

Image:  Test feed arrangement

My feed arrangement measurements differ from that of VK3YE.  I also used the gamma-style feed. I tried the measurements of VK3YE but the SWR was above what I wanted. I decided to extend the feed by another 40mm of copper wire.  The SWR came down but was still not ideal. I added another 70mm and played around with the position.  Well this extension lowered the SWR to 1.15 on 28.1200 Mhz to 1.53 on 50.2400 Mhz.  Good enough for me.  I then constructed the final gamma-style feed using brass brazing rod.  The brass rod is very sturdy and works fine.

Now what about the other bands?  20m, 17m, 15m and 12m.  For the project that I intend to use the loop with, I currently do not need the other bands.  However others might need more bands.  Firstly you will need to add more capacitance.  This is achieved by adding a fixed capacitance across the trimmer. Peter used a 68pF polystyrene capacitor that serendipitously allowed coverage of 14 MHz with the trimmer nearly meshed and 18 MHz with it nearly open.

A 630 volt capacitor is adequate for five watts. If you only have lower voltage rated capacitors, then two or more wired in series relieves voltage across each one. 120 and 150 pF in series will provide close to the required 68 pF.

Though desirable for low resistance, a soldered connection is impractical as the capacitor must be removed for higher band coverage. Peter mounted it on a piece of chopping board. It has two banana sockets which mate with the 4mm bolts that hold the beehive trimmer.   See images by clicking on the link above.

I have a 470pf  750 volt fixed capacitor but as yet have not tried it.  I will use a wing-nut arrangement to fix this cap to the beehive capacitor.  An update will follow in this regard.

I am quite happy how this antenna turned out but as they say the proof is in the pudding.  I will later provide a performance update but for the time being I would like to share my findings up to now:

• I enjoyed building this antenna and would like to thank  Peter VK3YE for making the information available about this antenna.
• This antenna is very sensitive to tune and also has a very narrow bandwidth.  Loop antennas is highly dependent on being precisely tuned to a specific resonant frequency. For small loop antennas, their size is often less than half a wavelength, making them inherently narrow-band and requiring constant re-tuning if the frequency changes. This characteristic, however, makes them highly selective and good at rejecting unwanted signals and noise, which can be an advantage in certain applications like receiving in crowded radio environments.
• I found that the capacitor and feed arrangement work in "tandem" and in my case I used a 25pf capacitor and had to lengthen the gamma-feed as a result.
• In my humble opinion the antenna I constructed lends it very well to pedestrian mobile operations.  If you live close to sea level then special precautions need to be taken to prevent corrosion even while pedestrian mobile.  Seal areas between the aluminium and PCB with marine silicone to prevent moisture getting in between the two metals. If not sealed properly the performance of this antenna will deteriorate with time.

Preliminary Test Results:

I really did not go into a full out testing and using this antenna.  The only testing I have been doing is with the Nano VNA and a test or two on air RX and TX "excursions" in my shack between four walls and two windows with metal burglar bars.  Surely not the way to test this antenna but in Part 2 I will describe a full "work out" for this antenna.  Images below depict the "Faraday Cage" operations.

Herewith more images regarding the antenna  (Click on images for larger view.)

 

Part 2 to follow soon

What is lately happening on the ZS Link Network in the Southern Cape?

Herewith a short overview of what is lately happening on the ZS Link Network.  

• Repeaters, Links, Hubs, DMR Bridge etc
• "Killing" the use of annoying courtesy tones on the ZS Link Network
• New features to be added to the ZS Link Network 
• Weak Signal Propagation Reporter (WSPR) in the Southern Cape 
• Activity on the ZS Link Network
   

Repeaters, Links, Hubs, DMR Bridge etc: 

All the ZS Link Network repeaters are operational and in a good working condition. For those not familiar, here are the ZS Link Network Group repeaters currently operational over a large part of the Southern Cape.

Aasvoëlkop Repeater:  Albertinia

RF Frequencies = 145.625 Mhz RX, 145.025 Mhz TX 88.5 hz CTCSS

Echolink = ZS1SB-L Node: 123760

Stilbaai Repeater:  Still Bay

RF Frequencies = 145.750 Mhz RX, 145.150 Mhz TX 88.5 hz CTCSS

Echolink = ZS1DRP-R Node: 272595

 

145.725 Mhz Test Repeater: (Currently at Still Bay)

RF Frequencies = 145.725 Mhz RX, 145.125 Mhz TX 88.5 hz CTCSS

 

ZS Link Hub Network:

All the Nodes, Hubs and RF Links are operational and in a good working conditions.

 

Mosselbaai RF Simplex Link:

RF Frequency = 145.550 Mhz RX + TX 88.5 hz CTCSS

Mossel Bay DMR Bridge:

Node: 467652 Talk Group: 65511

 

ZS1I AllStar Hub:

ZS1I AllStar Node: 49355

ZS1I-R Echolink Node: 929614

Mossel Bay Aasvoelkop Direct RF Link:

Radio User (Option 1): Radio Frequencies (Program these frequencies in your HT, Mobile or Base Station radios)

RX = 145.625 Mhz 88.5 Hz CTCSS

TX = 145.025 Mhz 88.5 Hz CTCSS

Radio User (Option 2): Radio Frequencies (Program these frequencies in your HT, Mobile or Base Station radios)

RX = 145.025 Mhz 88.5 Hz CTCSS

TX = 145.625 Mhz 88.5 Hz CTCSS

Note: Option 2 must only be used if you are in reach of the ZS1I QTH / Tower. To setup CTCSS refer to your radio's users manual.

More information about this RF Link available  HERE.

"Killing" the use of annoying courtesy tones on the ZS Link Network

Courtesy tones on any network are short audio signals that indicate the end of a transmission, much like a "roger beep" on a repeater. They serve to let other users know it's their turn to speak, help prevent long-winded transmissions, and allow time for distant nodes to reset timers, making for a more courteous exchange.

Courtesy tones can be a nuisance on the ZS Link / AllStarLink Network. In a small private network courtesy tones seldomly causes problems but in a large network like the ZS Link Network courtesy tones cause all sorts of problems from ping-ponging, irritation, locking up of nodes/bridges etc.

The sentiment that courtesy radio tones are a nuisance is a common one within the amateur radio communities. While they serve certain functions, their implementation and design often lead to user frustration.

Reasons for the Nuisance

• Annoying Sound: The beeps or tones can be simply irritating to the listener, especially if they are loud or high-pitched.

• Disruptive: They break the flow of conversation and can be particularly annoying during long discussions.

• Redundancy: Experienced operators often know when a transmission ends through other means (like the sudden end of the carrier signal), making the tone unnecessary.

• "Roger Beeps": Tones that activate after every transmission, often called "roger beeps" (common on some consumer radios but generally frowned upon in amateur radio), are widely disliked by many users.

• User Error: In some cases, users might not know how to disable them in their radio settings, leading to unintentional use.

The Purpose of Courtesy Tones

Despite the annoyance, courtesy tones are used for several practical reasons, primarily on repeaters:

• Signaling End of Transmission: The primary purpose is to signal that the previous user has finished transmitting (un-keyed the microphone) and the repeater is clear for someone else to use or break in.

• Preventing "Squashing": It provides a brief pause (hang time) before the repeater drops its carrier, which helps prevent users from accidentally talking over each other.

• Emergency Break-ins: The pause allows a window for a station with an emergency to transmit and be heard.

• Confirming Access: For the transmitting user, hearing their tone on the output confirms that they successfully accessed the repeater.

Potential Solutions and Workarounds

If you find courtesy tones a nuisance, several approaches may help:

• Disable on your radio: Many radios allow you to disable the transmission or reception of certain tones in the settings.

• Use CTCSS/DCS (Privacy Tones): These sub-audible tones filter out other traffic unless it uses the same specific tone, effectively muting unwanted sounds like courtesy beeps from other groups or random static (squelch tail).

• Simplex Operation: If you are talking to someone nearby and can communicate directly without a repeater, switching to a simplex frequency avoids repeater-specific tones entirely.

• Contact the Repeater Owner: For amateur repeaters, you could contact the owner or group that manages the system to discuss the tone settings. They might adjust the tone or volume if there is enough demand.

The debate highlights a balance between operational efficiency and user preference in radio communication.

The ZS Link Network Administrators has decided to not allow courtesy tones on the ZS Link Network. In the event that a station transmits courtesy tone on the ZS Link Network, the radio amateur will be contacted and referred to the decision taken by the ZS Link Network Administrators. Failure to comply will result in the suspension or ban of the station from the use of the ZS Link Network. Stations connecting to the ZS Link Network and courtesy tones are transmitted over their repeater or links will also be notified and requested to solve the issue. PLEASE lets use great diplomacy in solving the issue amicably. No need to be a "policeman" or even worse ban or chase a station of the air. Rather assist and help such a station. A reasonable time should also be allowed to remove the courtesy tones as some radios need to be re-programmed.

New features to be added to the ZS Link Network 

The ZS Link Network is not a "once off" installation of equipment and software.  Apart from maintenance and upkeep there is also new features that we add to the network on a regular basis.  Experimenting which entails building, modifying, and testing radio equipment and antennas, or using radio signals for scientific and digital communication purposes. Experimentation can range from creating "homebrew" electronics to using the latest and greatest hardware and firmware to enhance the ZS Link Network.

The following experimental projects is currently on the test bench:  

1.  Creating a 5.8 Ghz Backbone Network setup for the ZS Link Network

2.  Testing a SVXLink Node on 70cm to link a specific repeater to the ZS Link Network as and when necessary.

More information  will be provided in future posts regarding these two projects.

Weak Signal Propagation Reporter (WSPR) in the Southern Cape 

Now why would one setup a WSPR Beacon in the Southern Cape?

Read more by clicking HERE and HERE

The beacon is currently running on 40 meters as a test beacon.  The final "VHF Allocation" of the beacon will soon be implemented and work on this is progressing very well.  More information to be published in future postings.  We do have high expectations for this beacon to be spotted in parts of the world and on a frequency never before spotted from the Southern Cape.  Hopefully this beacon will contribute to the WSPR "network and mode" by utilizing a specialized protocol and software for weak-signal radio communication to examine radio wave propagation conditions.

Activity on the ZS Link Network

With three on the air Nets running a day the ZS Link Network is one of the busiest networks in the country.  With an average of  between 10 - 14 stations reporting in during each net the activity on the ZS Link Network is thrive.  Several new radio amateurs that passed the October RAE already participated in the Nets.  All radio amateurs especially the new radio amateurs are most welcome to join the Nets and use the ZS Link Network.  A wide variety of topics are covered during these Nets.  New radio amateurs are encouraged to ask questions or advice from the many experienced participating radio amateurs. 

Finally:  If you have not yet used the ZS Link Network you are most welcome to do so.  The ZS Link Network Adminstrators trust that users will enjoy using this dynamic and busy network.  Enjoy!

“WE WILL REMEMBER THEM” - 11 November 2025

The Armistice was signed at 05:00 on Monday 11 November 1918 and the agreement took effect at 11:00 on that Monday 11 November 1918 – “the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month” and is remembered as a turning point in world history when peace was restored after years of devastating conflict.

Each year this day is commemorated on the Sunday nearest to the 11th or on the 11th of November by the military, military veterans, schools, churches and the community. The focus has changed from the First World War to encompass the fallen of all wars, right up to the present.

Sir Percy FitzPatrick in South Africa suggested the 2-minute silence as a way for people to honour the soldiers who had died in the war. On 7 November 1919, King George V sent a message to the people of the British Empire requesting them to observe the two minutes silence - the first minute is a time of thanksgiving for those who have survived. The second minute is to remember the fallen.

Tomorrow, 9 November 2025 the Annual Remembrance Day Service on Amateur Radio Today will be led by Hannes Enslin, ZS6JDE. The SARL transmitted the first Remembrance Day service in 1961 when the Service was broadcast simultaneously on the amateur bands and by the Afrikaans and English services of the South African Broadcasting Corporation. As a mark of respect radio amateurs are requested to observe radio silence during the Service.  The Service will be broadcast at approximately 10:30 CAT.

Where can I monitor WSPR Beacon information, data, spots etc?

The acronym

WPSR in the context of "spotting" most commonly refers to the Weak Signal Propagation Reporter (WSPR) protocol used by amateur radio operators, not a traditional spotting community site for aircraft, trains, or ships. 

WSPR is a specialized protocol and software used for weak-signal radio communication to examine radio wave propagation conditions. It involves low-power beacons and receiving stations ("spotters") that upload data to a central database. 

The primary site for this activity is WSPRnet: 

• WSPRnet.org: This is the centralized database that collects and displays real-time propagation reports (spots) from WSPR stations worldwide. Users can view maps, tables, and statistics related to WSPR activities.

This technology has also been used in experimental ways for other types of "spotting," such as detecting and tracking aircraft over long distances, which gained some prominence during the search for MH370. However, this is a technical application of the radio data, not a general public spotting site in the traditional sense. 

WSPR Viewing, Mapping, and Analysis Tools Available at:

1.  WSPR NET =  http://www.wsprnet.org/drupal/wsprnet/spotquery

2.  WSPR LIVE = https://wspr.live/?s=35

3.  WSPR NET CHARTING VK6YSF = https://vk6ysf.com/wsprnet_data_charting_V2.htm

4.  LU7AA WSPR PROPAGATION =  http://lu7aa.org/dx.asp

5.  WSPR STATS = https://wspr.live/gui/d/o_qTGcqik/home?orgId=1&from=now-6h&to=now&timezone=utc

6.  WSPR APRS = http://wspr.aprsinfo.com/

7.  WSPR ROCKS = https://wspr.rocks/

8.  WATT WSPR Analysis tool = https://www.gm4eau.com/home-page/wspr/

9.  WSPR SPOT = https://wspr.spot/

10.  PSK REPORTER  = https://pskreporter.info/pskmap.html

 

And there you have some WSPR Tools for Analysis, Mapping, Timeline Animation and Reporting.  

Enjoy!!

Constructing a WSPR Beacon to monitor propagation conditions from the Southern Cape (Part 2)

In Part 1 available HERE we looked at the construction of a WSPR Beacon to monitor propagation conditions from the Southern Cape.

In Part 2 we will be looking at the functioning and operating of the beacon as well as reports received and stations that spotted the beacon.

The ZS1I WSPR 40M Beacon is currently on air since the 7 October 2025 @ 10h00 SAST.  The first station to spot the beacon was Fred ZS5SAM (Div 1) from Barrydale. (Distance 134 km)

 Image:  Barrydale.  Take note of the mountains surrounding the town.  Photo:  Viv ZS1VIV on a mountain site.

 

 

Images (Click on images for larger view.)

I hear many of you say but that is no big deal receiving the beacon.  Well after I constructed a project it is important for me to know that the project is working and that it is working well.  Thanks, Fred for taking the time to spot the beacon.  Highly appreciated.  Now Fred is not the only one that spotted the beacon. 

More on this later as here is another interesting occurrence once again involving Fred.

Fred also run a Ultimate 3S beacon from Barrydale.  On the 9 October 2025 I was busy monitoring the beacon in my Shack using my RTL-SDR V4 Dongle and the included portable V antenna.  (See photo of antenna.)

Images (Click on images for larger view.)

The equipment that I used to monitor the ZS1I Beacon on the 9 + 10 October 2025 can be seen from the above images.  The third image reflect my setup on the two days.  The antennas were not extended as I concentrated on the ZS1I Beacon that was running in the Shack.  I used SDR Console and WXJT-X to decode my beacon's signal.  Well I nearly fell on my back when the WSPR Beacon of Fred ZS5SAM was decoded  using the test setup inside the Shack on the 9th and 10th.  Look at the images below for more information.  Remarkable that this setup decoded the signal of Fred's beacon from Barrydale especially using this simple antenna.

Images (Click on images for larger view.)

This is proof that WSPR is living up to it's name!

Other spotting stations:

I would like to thank all the many other stations that spotted the ZS1I 40M WSPR Beacon since the 7 October 2025.  Many stations taking the time to listen out for the beacon.

Here is a lists of stations listed by LU7AA:

Images (Click on images for larger view.)

Thank you to all the stations that assisted me in getting the beacon "fine-tuned" for its ultimate use in the next few weeks.  Yes the 40M band beacon will be changed to something more exiting and challenging.  I can confirm that the beacon has been running flawlessly after making the necessary small set-up adjustments.  Lookout for Part 3 relating to more information as to the ultimate use of the beacon.

End of Part 2