There are some tricks to getting antenna size down like folding the dipole in all manner of ways, but the real cheat code for reducing antenna size is to build a loading coil instead.

To make life easier, we used an antenna that accepts 5-12 volts DC. ... We'll make the coil from scratch, and the capacitor is either a 47pF or 100pF capacitor. Building the coil.

We're building a biquad antenna feed because it offers very good performance and is pretty forgiving when it comes to assembly errors. Follow along as we assemble the feed, attach it to a DirecTV ...

Luckily [Øystein (LB8IJ)] seems to have found a way around that with this low-cost homebrew motorized antenna coil, which is compatible with the Yaesu Automatic Tuning Antenna System.

It's an affordable, easy-to-make antenna that works as an amplifier for better signal strength. Watch now to create your own spark plug antenna and enjoy endless TV channels!