Antenna

[ryolsen8]

Hey All,

Not quite sure if this is the place I should be posting this, but I am not sure where else to do it!

I got an Antenna from a friend, no cables, just the antenna - I would like to get it up and running for use, if it works. I am not sure what to do next as far as what connections to get, cables, etc etc.

Thanks

 

[mmckenna]

You'll need to get a 300 ohm to 75 ohm balun to convert from the wing nut'd terminals to your coax. Connect the two pieces of silver colored rod with the eyes on the end to the wing nut terminals along with the balun. For your scanner, some good RG-6 coaxial cable will work fine.

Ideally you would want to turn the antenna 90 degrees on the mount to switch it to vertical polarization. You'll need a drill with a 1/4 inch bit to drill new holes on the boom. Just use one of the brackets as a template.

That should work well as a basic UHF/VHF scanner antenna. Good score.

 

[ryolsen8]

Thank you.. I am not knowledgable on the antenna, coax wires, or anyhing you really said I need there... Can you post a link to where Id need to get each of those things? I live close to a radio shack...

 

[ryolsen8]

You'll need to get a 300 ohm to 75 ohm balun to convert from the wing nut'd terminals to your coax. Connect the two pieces of silver colored rod with the eyes on the end to the wing nut terminals along with the balun. For your scanner, some good RG-6 coaxial cable will work fine.

Ideally you would want to turn the antenna 90 degrees on the mount to switch it to vertical polarization. You'll need a drill with a 1/4 inch bit to drill new holes on the boom. Just use one of the brackets as a template.

That should work well as a basic UHF/VHF scanner antenna. Good score.

Google what you said I needed.. I now understand, thanks again!

 

[n5ims]

Thank you.. I am not knowledgable on the antenna, coax wires, or anyhing you really said I need there... Can you post a link to where Id need to get each of those things? I live close to a radio shack...

You'll need to get a 300 ohm to 75 ohm balun to convert from the wing nut'd terminals to your coax. Connect the two pieces of silver colored rod with the eyes on the end to the wing nut terminals along with the balun.

What he called "balun", Radio Shack calls a "transformer". This should be what you need. --> Indoor/Outdoor Matching Transformer : Antenna Transformers | RadioShack.com

For your scanner, some good RG-6 coaxial cable will work fine.

Here is one of the lengths of coax (they go from about 1 foot all the way to 100', perhaps even longer. Get the length you need based on what they have available. RadioShack RG-6 Coaxial Cable (Black) : Coaxial Cables | RadioShack.com

You'll probably also need one of these adapters (Standard F Connector to BNC Jack : F Connectors | RadioShack.com) to change from the supplied "F" connector on the coax to a "BNC" for your scanner (the scanner end may be different since some don't use a "BNC" but use a "SMA" instead, get the adapter for the connection type your scanner has". If you're not sure, bring your scanner with you and have the sales person match it for you.

 

[thomasbillman1]

Coax

Just a suggestion, If your looking to use this antenna for long term, Get some good coax unless you live in the city. If your not in the city then stay away from all rg cable and spend a little money on LMR coax. The lost is very few with this cable. With LMR300 which is what I am using and I live 45 miles out of phoenix and 116 miles from Tuscan. I can pick Rural Metro up from Tuscan , with the rg6 and the rg 59 my radius is about 50 miles. Now if your in the city you don't even need and out door antenna because you may get whats call a front end over load. This is like having no antenna at all.

 

[ryolsen8]

Just a suggestion, If your looking to use this antenna for long term, Get some good coax unless you live in the city. If your not in the city then stay away from all rg cable and spend a little money on LMR coax. The lost is very few with this cable. With LMR300 which is what I am using and I live 45 miles out of phoenix and 116 miles from Tuscan. I can pick Rural Metro up from Tuscan , with the rg6 and the rg 59 my radius is about 50 miles. Now if your in the city you don't even need and out door antenna because you may get whats call a front end over load. This is like having no antenna at all.

I live in Rural Area.. I will most likely try the antenna out in the Attic first and see if that helps reception.

 

[LtDoc]

I think if you have the option, the best place for that antenna would be to mount it as high as possible outdoors. A fairly low loss feed line of the proper impedance would be very nice. More than likely you could probably get away with using 75 ohm coax. That assumes that you will only be monitoring, not transmitting. Impedance is much more important to a transmitter than to a receiver.
That antenna appears to be a combination of several antennas in a sort of log-periodic type feed system. Unless you have a means of measuring the input impedance at various frequencies you really have no idea what it may be. Until you have reason to think it requires a balun/transformer, don't bother with trying to pick the right one, you can't, unless you buy several and try them each out.
Try the thing! Until you do, all of this is just conjecture with no basis to go on.
- 'Doc

 

[ryolsen8]

I think if you have the option, the best place for that antenna would be to mount it as high as possible outdoors. A fairly low loss feed line of the proper impedance would be very nice. More than likely you could probably get away with using 75 ohm coax. That assumes that you will only be monitoring, not transmitting. Impedance is much more important to a transmitter than to a receiver.
That antenna appears to be a combination of several antennas in a sort of log-periodic type feed system. Unless you have a means of measuring the input impedance at various frequencies you really have no idea what it may be. Until you have reason to think it requires a balun/transformer, don't bother with trying to pick the right one, you can't, unless you buy several and try them each out.
Try the thing! Until you do, all of this is just conjecture with no basis to go on.
- 'Doc

Correct, monitoring, not transmitting.. Thanks

 

[zz0468]

Correct, monitoring, not transmitting.. Thanks

So, are you going to use the thing on a scanner? If so, you need to plan on mounting it with the elements vertical.