Ham Radio Antenna Building
A Bench-Ready Field Guide to Wire Antennas: Designs, Deployment, and Tuning for Portable and Permanent Stations
★★★★★3.9 · 7 reviewsby Alumigogo Books
non-fiction
Build and deploy wire antennas that work—exact lengths, materials, and field procedures, no guesswork. Your go-to bench and field companion for portable and permanent wire antenna success.
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About this book
Stop guessing. Start transmitting. If you've ever spent an afternoon wrestling with a wire antenna that just wouldn't tune, or found yourself scrolling through forum threads at midnight looking for a reliable measurement, this is the book for you. Ham Radio Antenna Building: A Bench-Ready Field Guide to Wire Antennas cuts through the noise and gives you exactly what you need to build, deploy, and tune wire antennas that perform—every time.
Inside, you'll find a focused, no-padding reference built for the workbench and the field. We cover the physics of wire antennas in plain language, but the heart of the book is practical: detailed designs for the most effective wire antennas, including the half-wave dipole, the end-fed random wire, the off-center-fed dipole, and the multi-band fan dipole. Every design includes a complete materials list, exact wire lengths for every band from 80 meters to 2 meters, and step-by-step assembly instructions with precise soldering temperatures, insulation stripping lengths, and weatherproofing techniques.
Field deployment is where most antennas fail—and where this book shines. You'll get checklists for site selection, mast setup, and guy-line tensioning, plus a full chapter on tuning and troubleshooting with an antenna analyzer. The final reference chapter puts all the charts, conversion tables, and wire gauge data in one place, so you can leave the theory at home and just look up what you need. Whether you're setting up a permanent backyard station or a portable rig for POTA or emergency service, this book is your field companion. No fluff, no filler—just the knowledge you need to get on the air with confidence.
Reader Reviews
Donna Ramirez
★★★★★I've been a ham for a few years and have built a few dipoles, but this book made me realize I was doing a lot of things wrong. The tables are handy, but I wish there were more diagrams for the field deployment section. The troubleshooting chapter saved me when my EFHW wouldn't tune. It's a solid reference, though not perfect for absolute beginners.
Melissa Roberts
★★★★★The book is well-organized and has a lot of useful data, but I found the tuning procedures a bit repetitive. I was hoping for more on stealth antennas, but the author clearly focuses on the basics. Still, the wire length tables are worth the price, and the weatherproofing section is the best I've seen. It's a good addition to my shack library.
Amanda Lopez
★★★★★This is the book I wish I had when I started doing POTA. The field deployment chapter is gold—I can now set up my end-fed in 20 minutes flat, no guessing. The exact wire lengths and tuning steps are spot on. I've already recommended it to three friends in my club. If you're serious about portable wire antennas, get this.
David Torres
★★★★★Finally, a book that treats wire antennas with the respect they deserve. The fan dipole chapter was exactly what I needed to get my multi-band setup working. The tables are clear, the procedures are precise, and the troubleshooting guide solved an issue I'd been fighting for months. This is a permanent fixture on my bench.
Richard Scott
★★★★★I'm a retired engineer and a lifelong ham, and this book is the best practical guide to wire antennas I've ever read. It's not a textbook; it's a manual. The reference chapter alone is worth the cover price—I've used it more times than I can count. Whether you're a newbie or a seasoned op, you'll find something valuable here.
Charles Robinson
★★★★★Decent book, but I was expecting more on multi-band designs like the G5RV or the W3DZZ. The coverage of the OCFD is good, but I felt the book could have gone deeper into advanced configurations. The field deployment checklists are useful, though. It's a good reference, but not the be-all-end-all I hoped for.
Matthew Harris
★★★★★The book is well-written and the tables are helpful, but I found the tone a bit dry. I also wish there were more photos of actual installations. The troubleshooting chapter is the best part—it's saved me a few headaches. It's a solid reference, but I wouldn't read it cover to cover. Still, it's earned its spot on my shelf.