Yeah it's tricky where you need that washer. Don't want the two touching. I always use my meter to make sure that I don't have a continuous circuit between the middle node (+) and the ground.
Sometimes it's just tough to get these guys working right. What kind of meter are you using?
I've got a pretty neat device that tells you where the antenna is resonant without hooking anything up. It's called a grid dip meter and has vacuum tubes in it. It is from 1958 i believe. Makes it much easier to find out where the antenna is at (freq. wise).