One of the most popular antennas today is the end fed long wire antenna due to it ease of installation, portability and stealth in various installations. It can be a condo dweller’s only access to the world of ham radio or the best alternative for a backpacking SOTA (Summits on the Air) mountaintop expedition.
The antenna is simple to deploy, folds up easily for transport, and weighs under a pound, yet, with the proper length of wire, can work the 80-10 meter bands easily with the built in antenna tuner of most current day transceivers. You will need several components for a successful deployment of the end fed antenna and these are shown in the diagram below:
The antenna impedance matching components (BOX “Z” above) to match the antenna impedance to the coax line impedance (usually 50 ohms). For non-resonant end fed antennas, the typical feed point impedance is 300 to 600 ohms and a 9:1 impedance transformer (e.g. 450 ohm average antenna impedance to 50 ohm coax, also know as a 9:1 unun). For do-it-yourself antenna builders, 9:1 impedance transformer information is HERE
With end fed antennas, the coax is meant to radiate as part of the antenna system (serving as the “ground” or counterpoise) and therefore you need to use a Feed line Choke (BOX “FC” above) to suppress the common mode current on the outside of the coax feed line so it does not enter the radio and cause garbled communication.. The Feed line (FC) acts as a stop sign for RF current flowing back on the outside of the coax. The higher the choking resistance of the feed line choke, the less the coax braid RFI common mode current, and the less noise enters the radio. Feed Line choke alternatives are HERE.
The radio station is also a key component of the antenna system and has two functions: transmit and receive. Matching the transmitter to the coax feed line is often done with an antenna tuner and receiver systems should be installed to maximize signal to noise ratio. Reducing receiver noise is critical for weak signal reception and the use of coax noise filters AND receiver power supply lines (AC or DC) noise filters is usually needed for optimum reception. Reducing RFI generated by the radio station (you are the SOURCE of RFI) or received by your radio station (you are the VICTIM of RFI) is an important aspect of radio station operations. Palomar Engineers has many solutions for RFI problems – Click HERE to develop alternative strategies depending on your particular situation.
Want to compare End Fed Antennas? See: End Fed Antenna Secrets (PDF)
The “Bullet” End Fed Long Wire Antenna
The key to end fed antenna success is the matching network interface between the long wire antenna and the coax feed line and feed line choke at the transceiver. Palomar Engineers employs a dual core matching system that offers wide bandwidth (1-61 MHz), 500 watt PEP rating, and a connection for a counterpoise or ground if desired.
The antenna can be used as a sloper, “L” with a vertical section and a longer horizontal section, or as a random horizontal antenna between two trees or supports.
Our network matching network is called the “Bullet” because of it shape and its effectiveness at taking down or contacting distant (DX) stations all over the world under the right conditions. The Bullet uses all stainless steel connectors and a dual core ferrite 9:1 unun for higher power rating then many competitive products.
We sell the Bullet components separately so you can add you own wire type and length or you can purchase a complete antenna system including wire and end insulator.
New improved version now goes down to 500 KHz (25 dB common mode AM Broadcast band suppression) and up to 61 MHz < 2:1 SWR. Choose Balun only or add optional dipole wire kit (wire, Insulators, Spade lugs for attachment to balun - assembly required). Center insulator and Balun in one case - 1/4" stainless hardware and 1500 real watts rated!
The SBullet-1B-1500EB is a multi-core current balun with built in feed line choke offering up to 38 dB (on 20 meters) of common mode current rejection (plenty for most applications) to keep RFI off the coax outer braid during transmit operations. The SBullet-1B-1500EB is housed in a waterproof PVC enclosure that is lightweight yet robust in features and makes a great high power antenna feed solution for dipoles and other balanced antennas. Halyard hoist at top of balun for convenient attachment point. Input is via SO-239 coax connector and output with dual side eye bolt output and wire strain relief. Rated 1500 Watts PEP Watts from .1-61 MHz. SBullet-1B-1500EB weight is 2 pounds.
This balun/feedline choke keeps TRANSMIT RFI off the coax outer braid while transmitting. If your station suffers from common mode RFI noise on RECEIVE, then use one of our Common Mode Coax Noise Filters (such as the CMNF-1500) that suppresses common mode noise on RECEIVE operations.
Make a FAN DIPOLE using optional dipole kits (e.g. 80/40 would use extra 40 meter dipole if you chose the 80 meter dipole lit for this listing).
NOTE: We rate our Bullet baluns (and ununs) VERY conservatively at 1500 watts PEP with a 50% duty cycle. Some manufacturers selling low cost baluns may use a 5% duty cycle for their PEP rating to make it appear you get a higher rated balun for a lower price, but you may in fact be getting be getting less. Their 1500 watts PEP really means 75 watts continuous or 150 watts at a 50% duty cycle (like FT8) compared to our 1000 watts at 50% duty cycle (assuming a SWR < 2:1). Our baluns typically cover a larger frequency range under 2:1 SWR which make your transceiver happy and probably will last longer with less electrical stress.
Remember we over engineer our products, to out perform our competition - just compare the weight of our baluns to theirs and you will know we put much more into our products so you don't have to worry about failure at a critical moment.
Typical installations are shown below:
Bullet End Fed Antenna Notes (PDF)
CAUTION
USE CAUTION WHEN INSTALLING ANTENNA AND KEEP AWAY FROM ANY POWER LINE WIRES!