Clean Sweep from an HOA Flagpole: K3WA | Greyline
Hand-built in Sun Valley, Idaho
Customer Spotlight · 20’ DX Flagpole · North Carolina HOA · K3WA
Clean Sweep. 1,000+ QSOs. HOA Lot. 20-Foot Flagpole.
Bill K3WA, president of the Potomac Valley Radio Club, ran a competitive station for decades — towers, stacked Yagis, the works. Then he downsized to an HOA. The tower stayed behind. The contesting didn’t.
In Bill’s Words
“I did better than I expected — over 600 QSOs and a Clean Sweep, all 83 sections in the log without difficulty. A Clean Sweep with my flagpole!”
— Bill K3WA · PVRC President · 20’ DXF · North Carolina HOA
CW Sweepstakes
Clean Sweep
600+ QSOs · all 83 sections · HOA lot
WPX CW + ARRL DX
1,000+ QSOs
each contest · running Europeans on 80M
Clean Sweep Rate
4–5%
of all CW SS logs submitted — per ARRL
From Towers and Yagis to a 20-Foot Flagpole
When Bill and his XYL decided to downsize, he knew the big station was finished — smaller house, less land, an HOA community in North Carolina that allowed no antennas except flagpoles, 20 feet maximum. He’d been contesting since the late 1950s. Sitting out the November Sweepstakes wasn’t on the table.
So he bought the tallest flagpole his covenants allowed — a 20-foot Greyline DXF — on the simple logic that any antenna beats no antenna. He ran it for eleven months, worked DX, made contest QSOs. Then he decided to find out what it could really do when he pointed a serious effort at it.
Bill K3WA Writes
“I’ve been active in the November Sweepstakes since the late 1950s and hate to miss one. I was anxious to see how well I could do with my radio and flagpole — and especially whether I could work a Clean Sweep, including the tougher sections, far away and usually with lots of callers.”
“Well, I did better than I expected — over 600 QSOs and a Clean Sweep, all 83 sections in the log without difficulty.”
“A quick call to the ARRL gave us the number: roughly 4 to 5% of hams who submit a CW Sweepstakes log report a clean sweep. That raised my spirits. A Clean Sweep with my flagpole — and it got us wondering how many other flagpole operators did, too.”
K3WA’s CW Sweepstakes log — all 83 sections, 20’ DX Flagpole, North Carolina HOA.
What Bill Did Next
He followed the Sweepstakes with 1,000+ QSOs in WPX CW and 1,000+ in ARRL DX CW, both on the 20-footer. Then he added a 4’ extension, moved to 24 feet, and went after top band — showing up in the ARRL 160M Contest with 61 QSOs and 23 sections, 750–1,000 miles on 1.8 MHz from an HOA lot.
Read the 160M field report →From Greyline Performance
Bill — a Clean Sweep from an HOA lot on a 20-foot flagpole puts you in the top 4–5% of every CW Sweepstakes log submitted. The antenna does its job; the operating is all yours. Well done. 73 — Jon KL2A
Siting note for the next operator: Bill’s flagpole sits at least 3 feet clear of tree trunks. RF absorption from nearby vegetation is real — open placement matters, and his results reflect a clean install in a well-chosen spot.
See It for Yourself
The Scoreboard
3830scores.com →
Where contesters post scores the morning after. Watch what modest antennas are actually doing in real events — Bill posted his flagpole results here.
Reverse Beacon Network →
Call CQ in CW and watch skimmers worldwide spot you in real time. The honest map of where your signal is landing.
Where Operators Argue It Out
CQ-Contest reflector →
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TopBand →
Open archives of hard-won opinion on contesting, verticals, and restricted-lot stations.
More Operators Who Hid in Plain Sight
K3WA — 160M DX from a 24’ HOA flagpole →
Bill’s next chapter: 61 QSOs and 23 sections on top band.
WC0R — a defense-antenna executive picks Greyline →
A career building antennas for governments. Runs ours in a Colorado HOA.
What is a VDA? — the physics behind the flagpole →
Why a non-resonant vertical dipole works without a field of radials.
The full Operator Network — every field report →
Verified callsigns and real logs, most from covenant-bound yards.
The Antenna Bill Started With
20’ DX Flagpole
The most-approved height in HOA neighborhoods. 160M through 6M, one feedpoint, no radials. HOA approval documents in every box. Hand-built in Sun Valley, Idaho.
See the 20’ DXF → Selection Guide →73 · Greyline Performance · Sun Valley, Idaho · 435-200-4902
Ham Radio is fun again! Pass it on…
Hello John!
Thanks for the kind words. Glad you are finding value in our shared Dx experiences. We’ll work with you to get a Greyline DX antenna on the air from VK6! Ham Radio is fun again! 73
Hi, every one,since receiving Greyline Antennas e-mails on their products I have learnt a lot about Vertical antennas. The Flagpole type masts appear to work extremely well as proved by Bill K3WA in his article in which he won the DX contest in USA. Well done Bill. The closest I come to the Flagpole is a 1/4 wave vertical on the patio roof base fed. on 40 meters. Love to have a Flagpole but the difference in the australian $ and USA plus freight is twice the price to us down under. Keep up the articles.73s John VK6RD.