[Hammarlund] Newbie-hq180

[Mike Taylor]

Gordon, an aluminum window screen will get some signals. Also, if your abode
has aluminum rain gutters around the roof, that will make a decent antenna.
Drill a hole through the upper lip of the gutter and attach the lead-in wire
with a sheet metal screw or machine screw and nut. Or you could do it
somewhere along a downspout. Use silicone or "Goop" to seal out weather.
Use metal straps or short pieces of wire to bridge where gutter sections
meet to insure a good connection between them. One very old trick was to
clip a wire on to the metal finger stop of a rotary dial phone. For some
reason, this worked quite well. Or try tying a small weight on the end of 50
to 75 feet of wire and throwing (or hauling it up) over the roof. Or over a
tree branch if one is handy. Bring the wire indoors through a window. If the
screen or storm window frame pinches the wire, that's OK. It just becomes
part of the antenna. Anything metal in or around your home that doesen't
touch soil will work. Some folks have used the aluminum ductwork from the
furnace/AC. Others have even used their bedsprings! Now for connecting the
wire to the HQ-180. On the terminal strip marked "A1", "A2", and "GND",
there should be a metal jumper connecting "A2" to "GND". If it's not there,
connect these terminals with a short piece of wire. Your antenna wire
connects to "A1". Have fun and keep us posted on the progress of your new
adventure. 73's, Mike