I've really enjoyed reading all of the posts relative to the above subject... I really do not worry about radials any more...
I have a 100 foot 45G tower festooned with monobanders from 80 to 10 meters. I use an Omega match on 160 with 32 radials of #14 stranded, insulated wire from Home Depot. The 2000 pfd vacuum variable is tuned with a 1 RPM, 12 VDC motor, and the SWR is always unity or close to it. IF I can hear it on the Hi-Z 4-Square I can work it. Of course that is a treatise in itself. An too, I won't go into electromagnetic theory. However I do have a copy of Dr. John Kraus' book _ELECTROMAGNETICS_ with a 1953 copyright date. W8JK was an awesome individual . He said "a transmitting antenna may be defined as the structure associated with the region of transition between a guided wave and a free-space wave, or vice versa for a receiving antenna. The wave radiated from an antenna spreads out in all directions much like an expanding spherical soap bubble having the antenna at it's center." Other than that it is ALL in the books. My late father gave me the book in the 1960's while I was a student at GA Tech. Go get 'em on 160... Every antenna is a compromise.. 73, John, W4NU K4JAG (1959 to 1998) _______________________________________________ UR RST IS ... ... ..9 QSB QSB - hw? BK