Expedient 10M Dipole Antenna

I whipped this up in about 15 minutes this afternoon.

I used a wire stripper/cutter and the reamer on the Victorinox Pioneer Swiss Army Knife. I could have used just the SAK.

Bill of materials:

• BNC-to-Binding post adapter
• No.36 bank line for a center hang loop (optional)
• Two lengths of 20 AWG silicone insulated wire, cut to 8 feet and 1/4" each. You may want to go a little longer and trim to length to adjust SWR as needed.
• Insulators cut from plastic dividers from a plastic parts bin organizer

The build is simple:

1. Cut the wires to length
2. Strip about 1" of the insulation of one end of each wire, twist, and put the stripped end through the hole in the binding post, one to the red and one to the black. Snug down the screw on the binding posts.
3. Cut the wire end insulators and drill two holes large enough for the 20AWG wire near one end. Drill a single hole on the other end.
4. On the end with two holes, thread the end of the wire through the hole closest to the edge then down through the second hole. Tie an overhand knot to prevent it from coming back through, then pull the wire snug. Here's a closeup:

Notes:

• I was going to crimp a ring connector onto the ends of the wires where they attach to the binding posts, but the rings weren't quite large enough. You might be able to drill them out a little with a step drill.
• Depending on what size line I use to hold up the antenna, I may need to add a small loop of bank line to either end. I didn't want to drill the third hole too large because the plastic I used was thin.

I should be able to try this out later in the week and will post a follow up. If by chance I cut the wires too short I can replace them, then repurpose them for use on a 6M dipole.