I've been modeling vertical antennas with 4NEC2 and came across some interesting findings regarding vertical dipoles versus quarter-wave verticals with radials. The simulations show that a half-wave vertical dipole consistently outperforms a quarter-wave ground plane, even with an extensive radial system.

The key difference is that both elements of the dipole radiate, effectively doubling the signal aperture compared to a quarter-wave where the radials merely simulate the missing lower radiator. Has anyone done practical A/B comparisons between these configurations? I'm particularly interested in real-world performance on 20 meters.

My modeling suggests the vertical dipole has roughly 3dB advantage over the best quarter-wave setup. The trade-off is mechanical complexity - center feeding at height versus base feeding with extensive radial system.

Your modeling aligns with my practical experience. I've run both configurations at my QTH and the vertical dipole consistently shows better signal reports. The elimination of ground loss is significant, especially on poor soil.

This is fascinating! I'm just getting into antenna modeling. Could you share your 4NEC2 files? I'd love to reproduce these results and understand the radiation patterns better.

The mechanical advantage is huge too. No radial maintenance and you can rotate the thing easily for different takeoff angles. I built one using two Hustler 6-BTVs mounted butt-to-butt and it's been rock solid for three years.