5/8 Wave Vertical Antenna

The 5/8 Wave Vertical Antenna has about 4dB higher gain in the horizontal direction compared to a dipole. This is because the radiation angle is lower. The impedance matching can be done with a loading coil at the feedpoint, making the radiating element look like a 3/4 wave element. A more accurate, but elaborate match can be done with a tapped coil transformer. The reactance of this coil should be around 300 ohms. The location of the tap varies a lot depending on the ground plane system and needs to be experimentally tuned. The ground plane can be horizontal radials, down angled radials or a metallic vehicle roof.