Apparently Squid Poles actually do serve a useful purpose. Personally I have never been able to understand any other use of these devices.
Introducing the squid pole
Fancy a cheap, collapsible self-contained portable antenna for 80, 40, 30, 20 and 15m that works really well and can be erected in minutes?
The inexpensive 9m long ultra-light telescopic pole known in Australia as the squid pole makes a good antenna.
The squid pole as an antenna
- winding a length of light insulated wire helically around the pole as you slowly extend it is the easiest way of attaching a wire for use as an antenna.
- the wire is most easily end fed at the bottom and the pole is mounted high up on a 4WD or a motor-home or mounted on a steel fence star dropper driven into the ground.
- the poles are 9m long which is a little less than a quarter wavelength on 40m and half wave on 20m; this is taken into account with the matching systems described below.
- a small and easily built slightly off-centre* loading coil brings the vertical wire to resonance on 40, 20 and 15m and remains in place on all bands.
- ground losses can be reduced by simple improvements to your vehicle ground. Use two or more cheap metal 5m long tape measures. Solder banana plugs or bull-dog clips to the ends of the metal tapes and run them from the base of the antenna sloping out and down to ground. A direct wire to a ground stake is a total waste of time.
So get your hands around a pole, slide it up and have a play. Plug it in and then you can tell your mates about how much fun you are having. Squid Pole Erection .