25-1300 mhz antenna

[FIRE321FIGHTER1985]

could ya'll please give me some ideas for a base and 2 mobile antennas that would cover 25-1300 mhz. I have 2 old RS antennas that are still good and claim to cover 25-1300 mhz, but they really do poorly from 700-1300 mhz. They are both base antennas with 1 vertical and 3 horizontal. Any ideas would be appreciated.

Thank you and God bless

 

[mc48]

I have the same old RS antenna and recently switched to a Tram-1410 and LMR400 (in my attic) and have been happy with the results. I also have been pleased with a Larsen Tri Band NMO 150/450/758 (with spring) for mobile use but it is not rated to 1300mhz.

 

[FIRE321FIGHTER1985]

Thank you for your reply. I forgot to mention I need a minimum of 18.5 inches on cable for car with a bnc to connect to scanner. Would it be ok to mount on the trunk lid because it would be to tall on the roof to fit under the carport. Is there a good lower grade of cable that I could use besides LMR-400.

Thank you and God bless

 

[IdleMonitor]

I use a Comtelco Tri-Band Antenna VHF-UHF-800 Mhz for my mobile on a magnet and it does quite well for my needs while travelling. Going into underground garages or leveled parking lots at shopping malls can be a hassle. But other than that, it`s a small enough antenna. I use this on a ford escape.

As a base antenna, I have a Diamond D130J Antenna up about 30 ft. and again I get great results on that for a base antenna. I use LMR 400 coax cable and do have a small amp hooked up inline which has been also helping me get some better signals. Aside from airplanes up 20,000-40,000 ft. I routinely get my regular signals up to 80km/50miles in distance. Aircraft I can get up to about 300kms or about 185 miles.

Google those suggestions to get a better description of those antennas, but for me, they do the trick just nicely. I use a BCD436HP for both a base and mobile. Hope this helps.

 

[Hit_Factor]

Thank you for your reply. I forgot to mention I need a minimum of 18.5 inches on cable for car with a bnc to connect to scanner. Would it be ok to mount on the trunk lid because it would be to tall on the roof to fit under the carport. Is there a good lower grade of cable that I could use besides LMR-400.

Thank you and God bless

If you are willing to accept some reduction in performance you can mount your antenna anywhere you want.

LMR-400 is the good stuff, any thing less is a compromise.

Maybe the old antennas are good, it's just mounted in a less than optimal location and the coax has problems.

 

[brownalan]

Two thoughts about the coax.

On your mobile installation, the coax run is short enough that it won’t matter as much which cable you use.

On your base installation, a longer coax run will make a difference and the higher the frequency, the more loss your coax will have. You can Google “coax attenuation charts” and see the numbers for just about any coax.

Your current RS antenna might do much better from 700-1300 with a lower loss coax. Just a thought….

FYI, greetings to you in Winnsboro. My grandparents lived there, my dad grew up there, I used to visit a lot, but they are all deceased now. Haven’t been there in a couple of years.

 

[mmckenna]

Thank you for your reply. I forgot to mention I need a minimum of 18.5 inches on cable for car with a bnc to connect to scanner. Would it be ok to mount on the trunk lid because it would be to tall on the roof to fit under the carport. Is there a good lower grade of cable that I could use besides LMR-400.

Thank you and God bless

The Larsen antenna that MC48 suggested is a good antenna. Add an NMO mount of your choosing and you'll be good to go. The NMO mount will have RG-58, which is perfectly acceptable for mobile use, and you can even get them with BNC connectors already installed if you don't have coaxial crimpers.

As for frequency coverage, it's going to be difficult to find one mobile antenna that will cover 25MHz to 1000MHz effectively. The Larsen hits most of the popular public safety bands, with the exception of VHF low band. If you really need low band, you may need to add a second antenna.

 

[FIRE321FIGHTER1985]

Thank you for the reply's.