Why are there ridges and or bumps on car antennas?

(2011-07-18 14:25:03) 1. ELKRIVERSCOTT Says: I see what appear to be bumps on antennas and some of them look like wire wrapped around them. For ice? To reduce noise?2. rick29148 Says: What you're seeing is the actual antenna. The stick part of the antenna is fiberglass, which is then wrapped with a thin wire, which is the actual antenna. There's a top coat of something to keep the wire wraps in place, & that's what you have. The important part of the antenna isn't the thickness of the wire, but the LENGTH of the wire. So, you can see that a 3 foot all metal antenna is no match for a fiberglass stick with 150 feet of wire wrapped around it. Tag: Why are there ridges and or bumps on car antennas?