Probably my best 160 antennna was a home brew vertical, about 40 feet 
high.  A friend fabricated some parts; a floor flange attached to an 
insulator, but I forget just how now, because this was forty years 
ago!!  Between the flange was an insulator, thick fiberglass and then 
another flange, back to back with the first.  These were held 
together by nylon, or some other synthetic bolts.  On top of that was 
water pipe, perhaps a 21 foot length.  On top of that the loading 
coil from an old higain vertical, rewound with a lot of #12 enemeled 
wire.  On top of that, was the rest of the Hygain antenna.  I 
remember the capacity hat, four metal spokes were mounted just above 
the loading coil, effectively lengthening the antenna.  The bottom of 
the antenna was fed with insulated #12 wire to the transmitter, just 
inside the shack, only a few feet from the base of the antenna.  The 
wire terminated in an old broadcast variable capacitor, (Mike 
remembers them)!! and the other side went to the antenna output of 
the transmitter.  I know, transmitter and A M on top of it!!  The 
ground system was a ground rod and a few random length radials spaded 
in to the ground.  That antenna really got out and I could adjust it 
perfectly to whatever frequency I needed with the variable cap.  Some 
experimentation was needed with the loading coil and cap. to get the 
tuning range inside of the range of the cap.
Wish I had that antenna back again.
Pat, K9JAu At 03:15 PM 11/12/2011, you wrote:
>hi tom again, ok tom, if you would like to try another ant for 160m,
>then what you should try is using a 3/8 wave inverted l.  use a piece
>of wire some where 160 to 190 feet long, and run the wire from the
>ground to the top of your 40 foot mast and then take it out to some
>tie down point.  so lets say you can go up 40 meet and out 125 feet
>then you have a length of 165 feet and feed the end that is near the
>ground the bottom of the vertical piece and put a ground rod at the
>feed point and put a variable cap between the center conductor of the
>coax and the bottom of the vertical and tie the shield to the ground
>rod and then adjust the cap for the lowest swr.  that will work very
>well and because the feed impedance is much higher then 50 ohms the
>ground losses are reduced a bunch.  you probably won't need any
>counterpoise and because you are tuning the antenna through the cap
>on the coax side of the coax you will be 50 ohms and on the other
>side of the cap who knows.  this a great antenna and with such a
>antenna i have worked the world on 160m europe africa etc.  and i am
>in california.  if you want to send me your phone number i will give
>you a buzz and explain better about the antenna.  take care, c u 73 mike w6quv
>
>
>
>At 12:05 PM 11/12/2011, you wrote:
> >     Mike:
> >
> >The 160 meter sloper is about 40 feet off the ground at the feed point, and
> >the radiating element of the sloper is about 10 feet off the ground at the
> >far end.
> >
> >I will check out the coax coil and adjust it accordingly.
> >
> >Thanks so much for all your help.
> >
> >I know the antenna is far from perfect, but hopefully, it will get me on 160
> >meters in one form or another until I can get something better up here next
> >Spring.
> >
> >My problem overall is that I just don't have the property here for what I'd
> >really like.
> >
> >73 from Tom Behler: KB8TYJ
> >
> >----- Original Message -----
> >From: "Mike Cozzolino" <[log in to unmask]>
> >To: <[log in to unmask]>
> >Sent: Saturday, November 12, 2011 12:40 PM
> >Subject: Re: Need helping making sense out of contradictory SWR readings
> >
> >
> > > hello tom, 100 feet of coax is not even a quarter wave of feed line
> > > on 160m.  if you take in to account the velocity factor of your coax,
> > > you are very close to an electrical quarter wave on 160m.  so do not
> > > cut your feed line.  and as far as coiling up the excess, think of
> > > the rf chokes that are made by coiling up coax.  make the coils about
> > > a foot in diameter, and you will be ok.  you need to shorten the
> > > antenna and don't cut off the extra wire, just wrap it back on the
> > > antenna so you can have plenty of adjustment.  you may not ever get a
> > > 1 to 1 swr, but you should get an swr close enough to make the radio
> > > happy.  ok on the counter poise, that sounds ok.  i don't know how
> > > high the antenna is off the ground both at the fed end and the lower
> > > end, but remember you are way under a quarter wave.  un less you have
> > > a tower that is 130 feet tall smile.  your antenna is seeing lots of
> > > capacity from the ground.  so for that reason you will find the
> > > antenna is going to be some what shorter to resonate at the desired
> > > freq.  take care, c u 73 mike