Tabletop Antennas
Some years ago, I lived in Richardson, Texas, which is a suburb north of Dallas. This is where Collins Radio had a plant and built broadcast transmitters and many other radio-related items. Texas Instruments also has a large installation there. Because of these two companies, Richardson had a large concentration of about 2,000 hams. So, there were antennas everywhere of all sizes and descriptions for every band imaginable. Except in one area. This area was so restricted that the local bug population was not allowed to have antennas, if they wanted to live there. Consequently, there were not too many hams living in that one spot. Everything was restricted to very rigid rules, even gardens and hedges as to their size and shape.
I met one unfortunate soul who had moved there before reading the living restrictions for that development. He was on two meter mobile where I made first contact with him as we both drove to and from work. When he told me where he lived, I extended my sympathies to him for the limitations he faced. He was more than a little upset, as he wanted to maintain a sked with his brother and father on 40 meters. I suggested running a phone patch from my place, which we did for a while.
One Saturday he called on two meters and invited me over for coffee and homemade black walnut ice cream, which I like dearly. I was over there before he hung up the phone, even though it was about 3 miles away. After I had eaten about half a gallon of ice cream, he asked if I wanted to see his 40 meter antenna. Knowing how the area was restricted, I said okay where is it? He replied, “we were eating on it!”
Upon close inspection of the table, which had not drawn my attention before, revealed the table was made of painted copper pipe. The top of the table was a carefully disguised capacity hat made of 3/4-inch pipe covered with a wooden and plastic top. The top capacity hat was about 5 feet (1.52m) and the bottom was about 1 meter across. The center support was made of 2 ½ or 3 inch (6.35/7.62cm) and was about 3.5 feet (1.064m) high—a little tall for a table, but made sense because his family was all over 6 feet tall (1.824m). The center conductor was supported by two fiberglass rods and the whole assembly was covered by fiberglass as well. In reality, the fiberglass supports were coil forms and the covers hid the coils. The base was also a copper tubing matrix covered by an artificial stone cover and marble base. The legs were copper tubing and painted on the outside. He had a very clever ground system too. He had put in a copper pipe yard water sprinkler system, as well as a radial system tied to the water system.
When he put the table in the back yard, he merely set the legs over some pipe stubs that were capped and the legs then made a solid connection to the ground system. To prevent the table from being “blown over in high winds”, he soldered the legs to the stub pipes. Later on, he added an umbrella, mounted firmly to the center of the table. The umbrella was also made of copper pipe and connected by solder to the rest of the antenna. That let him operate on 160 and 75 meters with very good results. As long as he lived there, not one person ever was aware of his antenna or operating. He kept his power down to low levels, no more than 100 watts. He did try operating at 1 kW, but that sort of curled the grass around the legs of the table for some reason and got into the intercoms in all of the houses within a block of his house. So, that was out and he didn’t try it again—a close call.
Figure 1 is a side view of the table and shows all of the major components, as seen by the unsuspecting eye. There are five legs, one in the center and four on the sides. All are soldered to the ground system. The fiberglass covers covered the two loading and matching coils located at the top and bottom of the center support. It was a very attractive table and fooled everyone for as long as he lived there. It was a well-disguised antenna, indeed.

Figure 2 displays the construction design of the top and bottom capacity hats. I do not know why he used the top capacity hat as well as the bottom one, unless he was expecting a problem getting a good ground. The addition of the bottom capacity hat (capacity bottom?) would help make a better ground in some cases.

A diagram of what the table’s appearance as an antenna is shown in Figure 3 and is self explanatory. I do not have any idea of the value of the coils inductance. I imagine he just used two sections of B&W Miniductor and tapped down and/or up until he got a match. I can tell you, the thing loaded up fine. This was indicated by the porch light coming on when he keyed up. Of course, a field strength meter or antenna current meter would be a good indication of loading.

After I moved to the Lower Rio Grande Valley, I made several contacts with this very inventive guy and can report he had a stout signal, which cut right through the SWBC interference from Radio Moscow and the BBC. I usually could give him a 10-20 dB/9 report.
That’s about all I can remember about this most excellently disguised antenna, but I think there is enough information for a jolly good attempt and some eXperimentation to be done—if you need a really disguised antenna—and like to eat outside!
Originally posted on the AntennaX Online Magazine by Richard Morrow, K5CNF
Last Updated : 26th April 2024