Ham Radio Antenna Design And Simulation Software

                   
                             Antenna simulation tutorial 1 - 4nec2 user interface
                                                                   by dx2hunt
  When I started think about designing my own ham antennas I looked around the internet for any free software I could find. Yes there are quite a few good ham radio antenna calculators out there. Some of them are very good for Yagi Antennas, Dipole Antennas, Quad Antennas and many more. Most of the time like me I have to think of something that will fit in my small backyard. I do have my 10 to 80 meter dipole going from the backyard over the house to a tree in the front yard. The apex is on a mast on the chimney at about 35 feet. It does a very good job with the end points about 16 feet off the ground.




                  
                    Antenna simulation tutorial 2 - building antennas with the editors
                                                                    by dx2hunt
 Back to the question of free antenna design software. One of the free Ham Radio Antenna design simulation software's out on the internet that are free is the 4nec2 software package. When looking around Ham Radio Operators are very happy with it. Here is a link to a website where you can download it from http://www.qsl.net/4nec2/ . I have not done a whole lot with it yet. I more or less am learning about it just like most ham radio operators out there. In fact that is partly what the amateur radio hobby is about, learning, building, sharing, helping and having fun.


                 
               Antenna simulation tutorial 3 - 4NEC2 optimiser and impedance matching
                                                               by dx2hunt     

  After looking around the internet for as much help as possible I did come across some tutorials on how to use the 4nec2 ham antenna design and simulation software. So I thought I would share them with anyone that wants to watch and learn from them. So I hope you enjoy them and get some helpful information from them. I do know that these videos are a few years old, but they do help. Any other programs I come across I plan to share them on my blog.


                 
                             Antenna simulation tutorial 4 - sweep frequency display
                                                               by dx2hunt                   

   I would also suggest that when building antennas think about what local supplies you can use in the building process. I my self have found many different types of supplies locally. I generally end up going to Home Depot, Lowes and Harbor Freight. There are other local stores as well such as ACE Hardware and maybe just a small local hardware store. Although small hardware stores are becoming harder to find. Some of the things I use are the grey pvc conduit electrical pipe, because it is UV Resistant and may last longer. Of course you can paint it with a UV protective paint. I also like to use the fiberglass driveway staff markers for quad antennas or small wire beam antennas. The ideas are up to your imagination.


                                         Antenna simulation tutorial 5 - what if? modelling
                                                                   by dx2hunt     

Well I hope this information is helpful. Thank You for reading from Dan KC2YTI  73s.