Stealth Antennas were covered on another page of our web site (stealth antennas) and yet we felt the need to cover the Zero Five line of amateur radio antennas. The reason for this is that the Zero Five line of antennas will cover any and all HF1 bands as well as all the shortwave radio frequencies. Along with the frequency coverage the Zero Five is excellent for stealth work. With no traps2 or coils3 sticking out it is difficult to see, paint it with colors that blend in with the surroundings and it is even harder to detect.
Why Does It Work So Well ?
The popular ZF-43 43 foot vertical cannot be matched for quality and can be a great multi-band antenna for an antenna restricted QTH4. The VSWR5 presents a very manageable load on all the HF ham bands except 30m. Our customers find that their built-in radio auto tuners can tune this antenna. The design goal was accomplished with careful design of the antenna feed point and taper, careful measurements and design of the nylon insulator and capacitor it creates, and the matching transformer/balun to achieve this kind of VSWR5 performance. For a better view of the Zero Five ZF-43 antenna shown here just click on the picture and it will open in a new browser window at full resolution. In this case you could paint the antenna a flat dark green and it would difficult to spot until you were up close to it.
The Flagpole Series
Why a flagpole antenna? Stealth! It doesn’t matter if you are a survivalist or you simply live in an area where antennas aren’t allowed the Zero Five Flagpole antennas are the answer. These fantastic antennas come in three different sizes: 18 foot, 24 foot, and the 33 foot model. These antennas are made from heavy duty T-6 1/8″ wall aluminum tubing. The custom welded bolt down base with its massive 4 inch OD CNC machined base will let you run your rig at legal limit all day long.
The Zero Five Flagpole antenna comes complete with a 3 inch gold ball for the top, pulley truck, 3 x 5 foot American Flag, and rope with a tie off. This particular antenna is made for a more permanent installation due to the mounting requirements. All of these antennas require a concrete base to bolt the antenna base to so that it will withstand the forces placed on it by the flag as it blows in the wind. While this may not be an ideal antenna for someone on the move it will prove to be a great addition to a permanent base camp installation.
1HF when used to describe radio equipment refers to the High Frequency bands.
2Traps part of an antenna used to make it multiband.
3Coils part of an antenna used to make it multiband.
4QTH this is a “Q” code that hams use for your house/camp/location.
5VSWR Voltage Standing Wave Ratio (VSWR). A comparison of the power transmitted to the power received back from the system with respect to a 50 Ohm line impedance. A VSWR of 1.0 is a 100% efficient antenna, a VSWR of 1.5 is 97%, a VSWR of 2.0 is 89%.