Antenna question

[phfobetor]

I am a total newcomer to the world of Amateur radio and
have a question regarding the antenna for my portable
radio. I currently own a Baofeng UV82 HP and also have a
Radio Shack Pro 651 Scanner. A while back I purchased a
telescoping scanner/ham antenna for my scanner. I was
looking to get another antenna for my UV82 and the manager
showed me an SMA female to BNC female connector. My
question is can I use that to attach the telescoping
antenna to my UV82 without any problems?

I apologize if this seems to be a silly question, but, as
I indicated, I am very new to the world of amateur radio
and want to hear from an experienced operator if the
telescoping antenna would be a good thing to place on the UV82.

Thanks for your patience and assistance.

 

[vagrant]

Your question is not a silly one, but rather a wise one to ask. That telescoping antenna may not be tuned for the band you want to operate on, as they are meant to just capture whatever RF and slip it into your scanner receiver. Someone might chime in and say the five watts does not matter on the SWR issue, which would be wrong, but that advice is missing the entire point. You want an antenna that is resonant on the band(s) you want to use so that reception and transmission is not compromised. (Not that it is all that great to begin with on a handheld and the typical antennas that attach to them)

An improved antenna for your Baofeng would be a Diamond SRJ77CA. They cost around $23 from various sources. They are not short in length, by any means.
Diamond RH77CA SRH77CA Antenna

Here's the thing, are you having trouble getting into a local repeater or are you trying to talk to someone else directly (simplex) and your radio is not working, or there is too much static? If you are not having any problems, then why spend money for an improved antenna? If you are having problems, that Diamond antenna may not solve your issue either. You may need an antenna outside of your vehicle, or home, and even then you may not have enough power from the radio. At that point you may need to jump up to a mobile radio that offers more power. Those radios require improved ($$) antennas as well.

A Baofeng radio and the like provides for an inexpensive entry into the amateur radio world. If it is working for you, then don't mess with it.

Even if all you were doing was receiving, you would want to use an antenna tuned for the band you want to listen to. Transmitting into an antenna that is about as good as a wire coat hanger will eventually lead you into purchasing another radio, and another, and another...

I just looked up your radio model and here's another point that might help you out. Avoid running it at 7 watts and you will enjoy the improved battery life. If running it at one watt is enough to get you into a local repeater, then enjoy the extended battery life even more. If you hear someone say, "You're full quieting into the repeater", then however your radio system is configured, it's working fine. If they say, "You have some white noise, but I can hear you", take a step to the left/right whatever and it may suddenly improve.

 

[phfobetor]

Thanks Vagrant

Thank you very much for the information Vagrant. I decided to get my licence before getting involved with the community, so, as of yet, I have not spoken to anyone or even listened to the radio. Fortunately, I do have a degree in physics so I am able to understand your reply. I will try to listen to the local repeater with the antenna that came with the radio, then, depending on the result, I'll research whether or not the other antenna should work.

Thank you for the detailed and informative reply. Being so new to the world of amateur radio, I have actually copied it to my notepad and saved it on my desktop. I'm happy I signed up on this site and feel confident that I will be able to reach out for assistance in the future.

Have a great day!

 

[TheSpaceMann]

If you really want to have fun and extend the range of the radio, try building a ground plane antenna. (Plans are online) You can hook it to the radio with an adapter and some coaxial cable, and mount it on the roof! You'll be surprised at how far that little radio can get out.

 

[jwt873]

If you can reach all the repeaters you want with the antenna that came with the radio, then you don't really need to upgrade.

Handheld radios are light and portable, but they have terrible range. A more expensive rubber duck antenna will only make it a little less terrible.

As the Spacemann suggests, I would go for an external antenna. You can build a simple ground plane, or pick up a commercial vertical like the Diamond X30A. http://www.theantennafarm.com/catalog/diamond-x30a-4868.html It all depends on your budget. Then, get it up on the roof on a mast as high as you can mount it.

Same goes for the car. An easy route is using a trunk lid mount or a mag mount and putting something like a Larsen 2/70 mobile dual band antenna on it.