Looking for some real-world feedback on elevated vs ground-level radial systems for a 33-foot vertical on 40m. I've been running this setup for 6 months with four quarter-wave radials buried 6 inches down, and while it plays well on 40m and upper bands via loading coils, I'm curious about performance improvements with elevated radials.

The theory suggests that a generous radial system can perform as well as a dipole, especially for DX work with low radiation angles. The radials represent half of the antenna's performance, essentially acting as the other half of a dipole turned 90 degrees. Anyone made the switch from ground to elevated radials and noticed significant changes in signal reports or noise floor?

Made that exact change last year on my 43-foot vertical. Elevated four radials at 12 feet, each cut for quarter-wave on 40m. The difference was immediately noticeable - quieter noise floor and lower ground losses. S-meter readings from my regular nets improved by about 1/2 to 1 S-unit, and several DX stations commented on cleaner audio. The elevated system definitely reduced ground coupling effects.

Interesting timing - I'm planning the same modification. Current setup has 16 buried radials of varying lengths, but poor soil conductivity seems to be limiting performance. What height did you choose for the elevated radials, and did you notice any change in the radiation pattern or preferred DX directions?

Be careful with mechanical considerations when elevating radials. I used telescoping fiberglass poles to support mine at 10 feet, but ice loading took out two radials during a winter storm. Consider investing in a quality balun at the feedpoint. Also found that tuning shifted slightly - had to trim about 3 inches off each radial to restore minimum SWR point to center of band.