Coax Antenna

[Duxhog]

If i drop a 25 foot coax cable from the roof of my house to my window and connect it to my Scanner, will it act as an antenna? Please i need an answer! ty

 

[CoolCat]

The short answer is: No.

 

[Ishmole]

No is correct, unless the transmitter is close by. The coax braid shields the inner conductor, No go.

 

[K9WG]

CoolCat is correct, but depending on the type of coax and frequency it will make a good dummy load

 

[Duxhog]

thanks for replying guys! i actually just ordered a 6 foot Jpole antenna for the roof!

 

[ridgescan]

What if he stripped and exposed a 10" length at the top end?

 

[gewecke]

Well,he could fashion the coaxial cable into a crude "leaky-ax" antenna,by simply exposing the center conductor at a length close to the wavelength of his choice.
n9zas

 

[RadioDaze]

What if he stripped and exposed a 10" length at the top end?

I did that once and got put in jail for a week. (Damn near caught a cold, too.)

 

[K9WG]

Well,he could fashion the coaxial cable into a crude "leaky-ax" antenna,by simply exposing the center conductor at a length close to the wavelength of his choice.
n9zas

And, and then he could solder some radials to the shield..... Oh, wait, that's a ground plane. Never mind....

 

[WA1ATA]

What if he stripped and exposed a 10" length at the top end?

Or better yet, folded the braid back over the outer jacket to form a bazooka antenna.
The Vertical Bazooka Antenna - Ham Radio Library

 

[K9WG]

WOW, a bazooka antenna. I haven't heard of one of those for years.... Brings back fond memories ......

 

[rfradioconsult]

The coax bazooka is really hard to beat, I doub't that a J pole would do much better. Just strip about 23 inches of the outer insulation off, fold back the braid on the coax, leave the center insulation on and trim it to about 18.5 inches in length. Suspend it from an overhead support with a piece of string and you are ready to listen

 

[gewecke]

The coax bazooka is really hard to beat, I doub't that a J pole would do much better. Just strip about 23 inches of the outer insulation off, fold back the braid on the coax, leave the center insulation on and trim it to about 18.5 inches in length. Suspend it from an overhead support with a piece of string and you are ready to listen

Right you are, and did you notice that you are at 666 posts? :twisted:
n9zas

 

[RadioDaze]

Right you are, and did you notice that you are at 666 posts? :twisted:
n9zas

So you're saying that we SHOULDN'T take antenna advice from the devil's spawn?

BTW, I might hit 1,000 today if I don't stop sticking in my two cents everywhere.

 

[rfradioconsult]

Can't stop at 666, so there!

 

[W2NJS]

At one time the type of antenna you guys are kidding about was the standard FDNY mobile antenna on all of their trucks. I think the correct term is "coaxial" and all it is is a quarter-wave whip mounted on and insulated from a chrome tube which serves as the other half of the radiator, so it's actually a half-wave vertical dipole antenna that by design doesn't require a ground plane. The design was also used extensively by the Bell Mobile system for their VHF IMTS mobile telephone units.

 

[rfradioconsult]

Yup, they were around a long time ago, I used one for my marine VHF on a fiberglass boat.

 

[gewecke]

Can't stop at 666, so there!

ROF! :lol::lol:

n9zas