THE UK’s LEADING VINTAGE RADIO REPAIR AND RESTORATION CENTRE

HOME ABOUT RADIO REPAIRS MY DETAILED SERVICE PROCEDURE DIM DIAL LIGHT BULBS COLLECTING RADIOS SPEAKER CLOTH WOODEN CABINETS TUNING IN YOUR RADIO CUSTOMER REPAIR PROGRESS IDENTIFYING YOUR RADIO RADIOS FROM AUCTION SITES CHASSIS PHOTOS EXTENSION SPEAKERS THE RADIO GALLERY RADIOS FOR SALE RADIOS SOLD TRF RADIOS POSTING YOUR RADIO TO ME TERMS AND CONDITIONS FREE SERVICE MANUALS THE BUSH DAC90A THE WORKSHOP AERIALS SHORT WAVE MILITARY RADIO TECHNICAL STUFF AUDIO WELCOME VIDEO MENU FAQ CONTACT FACEBOOK TWITTER PODCASTS Tweet Short Wave Aerials and Earths

The Aerial If you want to enjoy tuning around the short wave bands on your vintage radio, you will need an external aerial plugged into the back of your radio. A length of wire strung around the room will give you some results but, to pick up the far away DX stations, you will need an outside aerial. The diagram below shows an ideal arrangement, but any length of wire strung up outside the house will be pretty good. Aerial suitable for short wave reception For the best results, the wire should be as high as possible. Some radio manufacturers used to say that the wire should be no more than 50 feet long. This was because a longer aerial might overload the radio's front end when receiving strong stations, which might cause problems. There are many shortwave radio stations transmitting from all over the world, and tuning around the short wave bands can be fascinating. You will find that the 13 - 16 - 19 - 21 - 25 and 31 metre bands are usually good during daylight hours. At night, the 41 - 49 - 60 - 75 and 90 metres bands come alive. Medium wave is also good during darkness with stations coming in from far way places. The Earth It might be an idea to utilize the earth socket on the back of your radio if you want to do some serious short wave listening. Don't use the mains earth as this could take interference from the house wiring into your radio and make matters worse. All you need is a wire taken from the earth socket on the rear of the radio to a metal stake in the ground in the garden. The metal stake should be at least four feet long and driven into damp soil. Do not hammer it into the water main or sewer pipe! To improve matters, you could link several earth stakes together with lengths of wire but, when using a domestic radio, it probably won't make a great deal of difference. THE SHORT WAVE BANDS AND THE IONOSPHERE - HERE

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