BC125AT: Repurposing stock SDS100 antenna to BC125AT

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UPCoffeyvilleSubMain2

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Hello,

I bought an SDS100 a few weeks ago and opted to add the Remtronix antenna, works great, especially for trunked comms.

I have the spare stock SDS100 antenna I'd like to use on my BC125AT that still works great for railroad scanning.

Questions:

1. Am I likely to experience better, worse or the same performance, everything else being the same, if I plug the stock SDS100 antenna into the BC125AT instead of the stock BC125AT antenna?

2. The SDS100 antenna jack is different from the BC125AT socket or whatever you call thing the antenna screw/twists into, so I'll need an adapter of some sort.

I believe the BC125AT antenna jack is called a BNC jack.

Is that the correct terminology?

3. I can't seem to find out the terminology for the SDS100 antenna jack, from the paper owner's manual or elsewhere.

Any suggestions? RG-something?

Would the plug on the antenna be considered male or female?

I'm looking at the SDS100 antenna, which has a rod/wire poking out in the center and threads inside the circular conductor around the center wire/rod so I'm not clear on its gender.

3. Would an adapter part I need for this be available locally or is it specialized enough that I would should order from, for example, the online biz I bought the SDS100 from?

Thank you.
 
nessnet

nessnet

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1. Don't bother... (it is not considered a good antenna). The best place for it is the wastebasket.

2. The 100 has an SMA connector. The other common connector is BNC.

3. SMA to BNC adaptors are available everywhere. Your 100 should have come with one in the box.

On #1 above. Seriously, for railroad scanning, get an antenna designed for the freqs they use.
 
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n1chu

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UPCoffeyvilleSubMain2 said:
Hello,

I bought an SDS100 a few weeks ago and opted to add the Remtronix antenna, works great, especially for trunked comms.

I have the spare stock SDS100 antenna I'd like to use on my BC125AT that still works great for railroad scanning.

Questions:

1. Am I likely to experience better, worse or the same performance, everything else being the same, if I plug the stock SDS100 antenna into the BC125AT instead of the stock BC125AT antenna?

2. The SDS100 antenna jack is different from the BC125AT socket or whatever you call thing the antenna screw/twists into, so I'll need an adapter of some sort.

I believe the BC125AT antenna jack is called a BNC jack.

Is that the correct terminology?

3. I can't seem to find out the terminology for the SDS100 antenna jack, from the paper owner's manual or elsewhere.

Any suggestions? RG-something?

Would the plug on the antenna be considered male or female?

I'm looking at the SDS100 antenna, which has a rod/wire poking out in the center and threads inside the circular conductor around the center wire/rod so I'm not clear on its gender.

3. Would an adapter part I need for this be available locally or is it specialized enough that I would should order from, for example, the online biz I bought the SDS100 from?

Thank you.

If you are asking which antenna will work better on your BC125AT, stay with the stock antenna that came with the radio. Or, as has been suggested, buy a antenna designed for the band you use the BC125AT for with a BNC connector. This path would negate your need for an adapter but the one shown is what you would need if you decided to use the stock SDS100 antenna on any BNC antenna connection type radio. The adapter is always a nice extra to have handy for those times when you have the opportunity to try someone else’s antenna but couldn’t because it’s got the wrong connector on it. (The same is true when you might want to try a BNC antenna on the SDS100.)
Click to expand...
 
TailGator911

TailGator911

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As others have noted, the stock antennas shipped with the scanners are generally considered useless for whatever band you wish to monitor. Granted, they are betteer than nothing, but when you have other options it is in your best interest to research and inquire to find what antenna is best for you. A good vhf/uhf antenna is what you need for railroad monitoring. I prefer Watsons or the good ol' Austin Condor, but there are a plethora of options out there and a good search here will take you to many of them. Of course, ideally, a wideband discone outside as high as you can get it is your best solution by far.
 
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UPCoffeyvilleSubMain2

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Thanks for all the feedback.

Allow me to retort...

There is an adapter in the SDS100 box.

But it appears to be opposite of what I need, being a male SMA to female BNC .

I was a little puzzled as to the purpose of the adapter, but now I see it would permit me to connect a BNC antenna into the SDS100 .

I can see the adapter in the Amazon photos is what I needed for what I had been considering but now I've soured on the idea.

In my opinion, although the stock SDS100 antenna might not be very good, I experienced vastly better railroad reception with the stock antenna.

I will research other portable antennae optimized for railroad scanning.

Thanks again to all.
 
mancow

mancow

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If I recall correctly when I swept the stock antenna it was resonant somewhere around 158 MHz so that would make sense why it worked well for railroad.
 
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UPCoffeyvilleSubMain2

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jtwalker said:
SDS100 stock antenna was better than Remtronix on railroad? Not too surprising as Remtronix is tuned for 800 band. Imagine how much better railroad reception would be with a VHF tuned antenna over stock.
Click to expand...

Correct, the SDS100 with stock antenna seemed to receive better on RR than with the 800 band Remtronix, for obvious reasons.

It seemed like the police/emergency traffic was no longer as lively from the same location while RR perked right up.

I also had fewer occurrences of a long-winded RR transmission being locked on by the BC125AT with stock ant but never locked on by the SDS100 with Remtronix, from same location. This was with SDS100 scanning only RR and not 800 band.

I hear mixed messages about the best way to go on a portable tuned for RR on the various forums and retailer reviews.

Some people are really high on something called "5/8 SLIM DUCK 150 MHZ" , others on the "Diamond DUal-band RH77CA"

Is 2 meter the same as RR? What about 150 Mhz? Close enough or not?

Also, many antennae have power ratings which I assume are not relevant to receive-only, correct?

Thanks again
 
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n1chu

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It’s time to loose that restrictive collar around the antenna connection that promoted a moisture barrier at the antenna connection. It’s not like I’m going to take long hot showers with my SDS100... it’s a great radio, but it’s not that great. And since I won’t be subjecting it to moisture, I don’t need a water-resistant antenna connection. Once that collar is gone I can use any of the many SMA antennas I’ve gotten over the years for scanners and ham portables.
 
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UPCoffeyvilleSubMain2

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Turns out there's an electronics retail store across the state line with what looks like the right thing on their web site.

I'll hop in the car and go grab them when they open in about 90 minutes.

This way I can take the radio and antenna to make sure it's what I need.

They call it a "Vanco BNC Male to SMA Female Coax Adapter".

Thanks again.
 
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