Antenna for Pixie 2

[kd0ekt]

Hello,

I have decided to attempt to assemble a pixie 2 kit (see link below) to do some CW DXing.

I know little about electronics and only have a tech license so please speak very slowly with me!

I am ordering the kit and a crystal kit. My questions are:

1) What do I use for an antenna on this and how? (just hang a 1/4 or 1/2 length wire from a tree?)
2) What do I use for a key?
3) Do I need to order anything else from HSC?

Thanks in advance!

http://www.halted.com/commerce/catal...=1322270827322

[K7KBN]

I'd think that the instruction manual would have a description of the recommended antenna, but the basic antenna would be a half-wavelength, center-fed dipole using coaxial cable for feedline. Overall length depends on the band. As a tech, you have CW privileges on 80, 40, 15 and 10 M, so you'll need a crystal for whichever band(s) you pick.

For a key, you'll want a key. Check ebay.

Anything else? Wire for the antenna, coax for the antenna, insulators...

[kd0ekt]

Thanks for the reply. I've done some more digging and come up with a bit more info on the pixie 2. And although I haven't found much discussion of antenna types, what little I did find seems to be saying what you are - dipole half length. I used to have a good balun that I suspect would have worked well, but it got stolen (long story I won't go into). Having said that, my stolen balun would not hav easily fit into a backpack or glovebox. I'm mainly interested in this rig for those reasons, portable emergency short range (50-200 miles I'm hoping for) in addition to it being a learning project. I'm not planning on taking this thing to a field day or any contests!

So my next question is, what is the smallest and most lightweight antenna I could get away with? I'm hoping to skip the coax if possible too. I'm still learning antenna theory so I don't yet know if this would work at all. I'm thinking maybe this is something I could find at radio shack, in addition to the other odds and ends not included in the kit (which there are several I found out).

[K7KBN]

You need something between the antenna and the transmitter in order to get the signals from one to the other - UNLESS you connect the antenna directly to the antenna terminals. However, this means that every time you need to make an adjustment to the transmitter/receiver, things are going to change as your hand moves closer to/farther from the rig. I don't know anything about that rig, so I have no idea of what it can match and what it can't.

[kd0ekt]

Thanks! I have been reading everything i can find on antennas and rf, and i have learned a lot but i hadnt thought of that issue. My key will be a momentary push button switch, so the entire tranceiver will always be in my hand when in use.

From what i have read and understood, it sounds like i will need a 75 ohm coax feeder going into through a balun into a 1/4 length dipole (just plain wires for this).

Im going to have to get creative!

[K7KBN]

Hint: try it WITHOUT the balun first. No sense using one if it's not necessary. In 52+ years of hamming, during which I've used dozens of dipoles with excellent results, I've never used a balun and never suffered for it.