I few months ago, I set out on a quest to put together a mid-power backpack VHF packet station using equipment I already had, but with one catch: I wanted the ability to deploy it with a self supporting vertical antenna for use in situations where suspending antennas from trees or structure was impossible. I knew what type of components were necessary to make this idea work, but I couldn’t find the critical piece: the 1/2 wave vertical compact antenna that…

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