Topband: Way short radials.

[Jon K Hellan]

I have just made my first baby steps on 160m. I slung extra wire off the ends of the inv vee I use for 80m, and zigzagged
it around the garden. Results aren't bad. Longest distance is about 2500 km / 1500 miles, and the "easy" countries in Europe
have turned out to actually be easy. I never expected DX from this antenna.

I'm unsure whether it makes sense to try a vertical in my  small backyard. Imagine a shape like the British flag. I could run
4 10 m long / 1/16 wavelengths radials along the diagonals, and fill in between them with even shorter radials. This is so
short that it's off the scale of the diagrams I've seen. Any idea how it would work?

I can supplement with one long radial each side of the house going into the front yard. How much would this help?

Regards

Jon LA4RT, Trondheim, Norway