Bucket End-Fed Wire Antenna

End-Fed Wire Antenna

An end-fed 53-foot 26-gauge antenna wire was fed from a strategically-located MFJ-993BRT Remote Automatic Tuner and a 4:1 BALUN in a 5-gallon bucket from late 2016 to late 2017 when still in Haymarket, VA. The end-fed antenna wire exited the bucket via an elbow going up to the railing, and then out to woods behind the house. A counterpoise with 4 various lengths of wife (from about 8 to 16 feet) exited the bucket from another elbow then running down towards the ground from the elevated deck. Suprising, the antenna configuration seemed to work quite good for such a compromise of an antenna. My wife even put a potted plant on it!

The pieces and parts prepared for assembly.

Holes located in the 5-gallon bucket ready for the small 90-degree elbows. The single elbow is for the RG-58 coax with a BNC connector to enter the bucket while the two adjacent elbows in the foreground are for the antenna wire to exit and for the multi-conductor counterpoise wire set to exit.

All set up and ready for the lid to be put on. Along with the 1:1 UNUN, there is a 4:1 BALUN which is out of view.

In-place and quite usable.