The Highly Portable, Ultra-light Multi-band

50 Watt Micro-Windom

Price, Quality, Service – Now pick all three

The amount of DX one can do with low power never ceases to amaze. We will never tire of extolling the virtues of the simple dipole antenna, especially resonant ones. This antenna is the result of amateur radio lessons learned, one of which is - If you can put up a dipole, you should, especially if one operates portable. There are times however, when multi-band and other dipole variants become extremely useful and fun. They are still dipoles and function as dipoles. Amateur radio operators may have noticed the recent volatility and unpredictability of the amateur radio bands. Therefore, especially for those of us who appreciate the elegance of low power, our antenna system needs to make the most of what it is given, and exploit any advantage it can. In that spirit, we are happy to introduce our latest offering. Like all of our other antennas, it is extremely light, extremely portable and exceptionally rugged. Moreover, it remains true to our values of providing high-quality antennas that perform as well or better than others of the same type or class while providing the utmost value in terms of cost, service and delivery

For 59.99 you will receive:

·       Our Micro-Windom dipole variant with integrated 4:1 impedance transformer placed at the apex, as depicted in the photos & diagrams, tested and described below

·       A vertical section complete with connectors, to be placed between voltage balun and choke

·       A miniaturized, portable RF Choke to be connected at the feed-point

·       A BNC end protector cap for each connector (3)

·       A weather resistant hard carrying case as pictured

·       The entire package fits into a 7” x 3” x 2.5” case weighing less than 14 oz.

·       Your antenna will be tested on the air before shipping. If available, QSO details will be enclosed.

·       Free Shipping within the United States.

·       Your order will be shipped within  one business day (Sundays excluded).

30 day right of return  - return the unused/undamaged item and your money will be refunded (less shipping) -

No questions asked

This antenna requires a tuner. Antennas of similar design have many different names. Depending on who you ask, it’s called a Carolina Windom, a New Carolina Windom; others just call it the Windom. For our purposes here, we have decided to call it the Off-Center Fed Micro-Windom Dipole Variant, or Micro-Windom for short. As the name suggests, the Micro-Windom is a variant of the Off-Center Fed Dipole with two critical differences. First, the integrated impedance transformer at the apex is a Ruthroff-type voltage balun rather than a current balun. It allows for 4:1 impedance matching that results from feeding the antenna approximately 1/3 of the distance from the end but does not impede RF flow back to the feed-line. Second, a RF choke is added 10 feet below the apex. (Note: some designs call for a line isolator in this section. Line isolators are big, heavy and typically over-engineered so that they may function across a broad range of power levels. We are placing a relatively large inductance at the end of the vertical radiator sufficient for 25 watts (SSB) or less, so we will just say RF Choke). What this configuration does is to allow the 10 foot section of the feed-line between the balun and the choke to radiate. The resulting radiation pattern includes low-angle emanations that are useful for DX operating.

Admittedly, this is controversial in some circles especially when operating at power levels of 100 watts and above, but there are positive results to be gleaned from this antenna configuration within certain parameters. From our perspective, these parameters include QRP Operation and operation on frequencies above 7.00 MHz. Our practical experience with this antenna also bears this out. So with this in mind, we have developed the Micro-Windom, optimizing it for ultra-light portable operating with a tuner.

The antenna is a 40 Meter half-wave dipole fed 1/3 of distance from the end. This raises the feed-point impedance to approximately 200 ohms. To compensate, the antenna is equipped with a 4:1 Ruthroff style, volatge balun embedded between the BNC female connector and the 20 AWG UL1007 radials (See schematic with photos). The balun uses one (1) FT50-43 ferrite toroid. Between the balun and the feed-point, a 10 foot section of RG58 or RG8X coax, complete with BNC male connectors is supplied (BNC Male to SO239 adapters are available -  just ask). Attaching to the end of the coax is a RF choke that consists of 4 BNOC-43 ferrite apertures with multiple windings. The result is a highly functional dipole variant for use on 40 meters through 6 meters. Using a Yaesu FT-817ND as a transmitter and a MFJ portable tuner, The Micro-Windom tunes between 1.1 to 1.5 SWR on all bands 40 through 6 meters. It is tested between 25 – 30 feet from the ground and fed with approximately 30 feet of RG-8X coaxial cable. So the testing involves: Radio  -  Tuner  -  Coax  - Antenna, the same way every time, every antenna. All are tested this way before shipment. As with our OCF Dipole, if a QSO is made with another station, the details will be included with the shipment. Perfect for outdoor or stealth operation. Perfect for a small base station antenna.

We make antennas for fun, and don’t offer anything that we don’t use ourselves. Any DX, but especially QRP DX, can be challenging. We believe this antenna configuration yields the best probability of working long distance stations (particularly Europe, Central & South America, and the nearer Asian stations) than any other of the antennas we make. Note the screen captures of the PSK reporter map in the photo section. An internet search of "carolina windom radiation pattern" will produce a number of images, data and schematics of the radiation pattern with and without the vertical radiator. Fabricating and testing these antennas has been found to be exceptionally labor intensive, so only a limited number will be produced.

Working QRP DX can be an immensely satisfying experience that the Micro-Windom can help make possible. It's also a great, inexpensive gift to give those involved with amateur radio that requires no additional finishing. It fits easily into a backpack, glove box, bag or carrying case. People who are familiar with our antennas already know that we believe the best option for light, compact, effective performance is a dipole, or in this case a dipole variant. The difference here is that we can offer all of the highly portable and durable characteristics of our regular antennas in the multi-band Micro-Windom for 40 through 6 meters. Again, this antenna requires a tuner. Fortunately, there are many lightweight portable tuners available and many newer radios include an auto-tuner. If you are so equipped, then the Micro-Windom, a solidly built, rugged  high-performance value alternative to much more expensive and fragile equipment, is for you.