Topband: Fence "ground screen" instead of wire radials? (Gary K9GS)

[lrpmbt at comcast.net]

2 years ago I put down chicken wire in the entire dog pen as that is where my feedpoint for the Battle Creek Special wire TX antenna is, 20'X40' then covered it with burlap to protect to dog. Under the chicken wire are several #10 ground wires going outside the fence then terminated to 32 radials of varying length. all the chicken wire is soldered together is several spots and soldered to the # 10 wire where it exits the fence. My yard is not big enough to allow resonance radials or even spacing, they go where I could make them fit and only in a about 150 degrees from the feedpoint. Not ideal but it works. During the winter months I add more radials, that are taken up in the spring. The chicken wire is galvanized and has not deteriorated over the last 2 years (yet). I do notice a slight change in resonance and bandwith with the winter radials. Larry W8VVG