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This Hashtag was posted to allow for open discussion on the use of "Hamstick"-type antennas in all their variants, and to present any solutions, examples, and theories regarding their use. As with any non full-size half-wave dipole antenna there will be compromises. The most common challenges a Ham might encounter (especially one residing in or visiting the Florida Keys) are not unlike many others elsewhere: Limited space for your antenna. The footprint of many simple wire antennas often eclipses the space you've got. For example an 80 Meter Half-Wave Dipole "cut" for 3.500 to 4 MHZ is anywhere between 117 and 133 feet in length (36-40 Meters). Now consider "best practices" being to have it 1/4 wavelength off the ground. In reality- those of us who don't have a large lot to dedicate to our avocation place the aerial as high as we can, and tune an acceptable Standing Wave Ratio (SWR) of 3:1 or less (hopefully much less). You need to set up a temporary station somewhere, quickly. Whether by activation, or by leisure, you're going to operate somewhere which is away from where you normally do. You've got to set up and be on the air with as little fuss as possible. The focus is operating. This could be your local park, a hurricane shelter, the beach, almost anywhere. You're "Mobile". Yes, like many Hams before and many after you're so entrenched that you've not only taken the time to properly install a Ham Radio in your vehicle, but the antenna system too. Now, there are many options out there. Many very nice options which come with very nice price-tags. If you have the funds and dedication to purchase and install a Screwdriver Antenna, awesome. If you don't mind switching out a 5-6 ft (2M) antenna to change bands, also awesome. There's no wrong answers here. Take into account, the screwdriver is anywhere from $500 - $1,000+ USD. Each Hamstick is $39.99 USD. Low Cost, Easy to use, light, small...almost too good to be true. There has got to be some trade-off, right? Correct. There is. Going back to our example, that 80-Meter Half-Wave Dipole gives us a great bit of useable bandwidth inside of that space between 3.5 and 4MHZ. Once we're cut to have that acceptable SWR for as much as the band as we can get, we leave it up there, forget about it, and operate. The Hamstick comes with some different challenges, the most notable of which would be the de-crease of useable bandwidth inside our chosen band. To the human ear this translates to an excess of noise, less space inside of that 3.5-4MHZ with an acceptable SWR, and a less energy on transmit - making a difference to how far your signal will make it, clearly. There's the trade. For easy of use, weight, and cost - you've dealing overall with a less robust antenna. With that in mind, our discussion is on how to maximize the limits of this system. At my station I've set up an 18' Foot (about 5.5M) tripod and installed the "Hamstick Dipole" mount. This sits atop the tripod and allows me to connect two 40-Meter Hamstick Antennas together and run them as a dipole. At the time I'm writing this I don't yet own an antenna analyzer, so through some trial and error I used a tape measure, measuring out the "whips" evenly, returning to my station and testing for SWR at the lowest power I can. After about 5-6 tries I got them to within 3:1 SWR and was able to use the internal tuner in my radio, and in other cases a roller-inductor type tuner to get a safe signal. I'm looking forward to some experiments coming where I intend to use the Hamsticks in a Vertical configuration, both as a dipole and with radials/ground-planes. More on that later... What I've learned so far: If you have an antenna analyzer you can use with the Hamstick Dipole when you deploy it- use it. I've built MANY great working antennas without one, however, if you want these aerials to give you the most- they'll need to be tuned precisely on or about the frequency you're working in. Remember, you have WAY less bandwidth to work with here. This is where that first tradeoff rears itself. A radio tuner will work, yes. But also re