Turns out that adding ferrite to a loop antenna “dampens the loop RF flow”, i.e., degrades the antenna efficiency. Doh! But, taking out the ferrite and just coupling a small three turn loop to the mag-loop’s main loop does not degrade the antenna much (if at all). This version built with a few turns around a water bottle cap and close coupled to the loop works pretty well down on 40m. Will continue testing and optimizing, then write up as blog post thereafter.
#HamRadio #DIYSuccess #MagLoop