portable 20m vertical antenna body

thingiverse

This is an ongoing development of a vertical antenna with a BNC connector that can be used on radios such as kx2/kx3. *Note*: Due to the strain on the BNC, I've recently released a fourth version featuring a 1/4-20 screw at the bottom for mounting on any tripod. This project requires several additional components: * A telescopic whip from Buddipole: http://www.buddipole.com/fetewh.html * A BNC plug (https://www.amphenolrf.com/112420.html) or jack for version 4 (http://www.kitsandparts.com/BNC.jpg) * Three M3 screws * Two 1/4-20 screws, the thin brass ones To tune the whip mentioned above, you will need to make 20 turns on the coil (for 20 meters), and a counterpoise. The body is printed upright with support. This means that there will be columns to remove inside (I'll modify the design to avoid internal supports). The two windows for accessing the BNC soldering cup will require removing their supports as well. *Note*: When printing with support, change your slicer to print only supports for overhangs greater than 80 degrees. Otherwise, you may encounter supports within the groove for the coil, and it won't clean easily. This might be slicer-dependent (I'm using Cura). The design utilizes a captive nut held in place by the 3D printed top and body. The whip screws onto the top - into the nut held in place. The coil can be soldered to the nut if you prefer to screw and unscrew the whip. Alternatively, the wire can be simply held between the 3D printed part and the nut. Another nut is dropped at the bottom of the body and pushed into place with pliers (this is a force fit). This is where a tripod can be screwed in. I recommend using the ground lug on the BNC to connect to a counterpoise or the nut at the base. Your screw through the base may touch the BNC, making contact already. To put the BNC screw in place requires needle-nose pliers. If anyone has a better suggestion for making this easier to assemble, let me know.