DIY Cantenna

[TonyMrg]

Hello everyone,
So I want to make a cantenna(to use with my tp link tl-wn722n) and the only thing i can't get my hands on is the N type connector(due to the quarantine situation going on).I was wondering if I can use the antenna which came with the wifi adapter to make the cantenna.I saw this crazy russian dude(with the wifi gun) he dissasembled the antenna and came up with this coaxial cable.
So how i am supposed to connect things?I think i should connect the inner cable to a copper wire with the desired probe length and the outer to the chassis?Or am i wrong?
P.S. Excuse my English.It's not my main language.

 

[W5lz]

A cantenna is a 50 ohm resistor inside a can that holds oil to cool that resistor when it's under load. That resistor is quite large to handle the power it does. So, start with a -carbon- resistor rated for the power levels you plan to put into it. Twice the power levels would be a very good idea (good luck). One end of that resistor goes to the center pin of the connector, the other end goes to the 'ground' of that connector. Thats the basic idea, you 'expand' on it from there (type of container if any, cooling if required, etc. The leads to/from that resistor should be kept as short as -practical-, no coils/loops etc. You can use a single resistor if it;s large enough or a series/parallel circuit of smaller resisitors, what ever you got that gets close to 50 ohms. The 'biggy' is the watage ratings of the resistors and ohms law. Have fun...

 

[mmckenna]

A cantenna is a 50 ohm resistor inside a can that holds oil to cool that resistor when it's under load.

A "cantenna" is also a home made WiFi antenna. It's a soup can with a stripped back piece of coaxial cable inside it, spaced off from the bottom of the can. Makes a nice little higher gain directional antenna.
I'm pretty sure that's what the OP is referring to.

@ the TonyMRG,
W5lz is referring to an older product that was also called a "cantenna". It was often a gallon sized paint can with a bunch of load resistors inside it filled with oil. They were used as high power dummy loads for tuning up amateur radio transmitters.
As for your question, sure, disassemble the WiFi antenna and reuse that. The element will need to be trimmed down to 1/4 wavelength at 2.4GHz or 5.8GHz. As it is, it's probably a colinear design antenna with coupled elements inside it.

 

[TonyMrg]

Yeah sorry my bad for not explaining what i'm referring to.

A "cantenna" is also a home made WiFi antenna. It's a soup can with a stripped back piece of coaxial cable inside it, spaced off from the bottom of the can. Makes a nice little higher gain directional antenna.
I'm pretty sure that's what the OP is referring to.

@ the TonyMRG,
W5lz is referring to an older product that was also called a "cantenna". It was often a gallon sized paint can with a bunch of load resistors inside it filled with oil. They were used as high power dummy loads for tuning up amateur radio transmitters.
As for your question, sure, disassemble the WiFi antenna and reuse that. The element will need to be trimmed down to 1/4 wavelength at 2.4GHz or 5.8GHz. As it is, it's probably a colinear design antenna with coupled elements inside it.

So i don't have to connect the inner wire of the coax cable anywhere?I leave it as it is and just cut it?

 

[SteveSimpkin]

Here is one person's solution. It has some good links on the subject as well.

How to build a tin can waveguide antenna

 

[mmckenna]

So i don't have to connect the inner wire of the coax cable anywhere?I leave it as it is and just cut it?

Yeah, it's the radiating element. It's just going to sit there in the can and spray out RF. Depending on the design of the antenna, it should not be connected to anything inside the can.

 

[TonyMrg]

Yeah, it's the radiating element. It's just going to sit there in the can and spray out RF. Depending on the design of the antenna, it should not be connected to anything inside the can.

So i just found this video at youtube,where this guy solders the outter cable of the coax to the chassis for "grounding".He explains it at the 3.40 mark.

 

[izzyj4]

If you search online, there is the good old hack how to build the "Pringles cantenna". I remember reading about in in a little quarterly "hack" magazine and tried to construct one. Some good info online how to build it.

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