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[Athena86]

I have a dual band antenna already 50ft in the air. Its tuned for MURS/GMRS. That is not too far away from the ham 440 and 2M freq. Would it be safe to use my curent antenna to talk on HAM bands once I get my license? Would it harm radio? Too high of swr etc

 

[LtDoc]

Your dual band antenna may be able to be retuned for the ham bands, but 'as is', probably wouldn't work at all.
- 'Doc

 

[Rt169Radio]

I have a dual band antenna already 50ft in the air. Its tuned for MURS/GMRS. That is not too far away from the ham 440 and 2M freq. Would it be safe to use my curent antenna to talk on HAM bands once I get my license? Would it harm radio? Too high of swr etc

Well I personally wouldn't try it,it would be best to get a antenna for 2/440.

 

[N4KVE]

I have the opposite situation. I use a Diamond mobile antenna tuned for the ham band, but from time to time I use it on GMRS. While I haven't checked SWR, the radio works just fine. I might only use the GMRS for 5-10 minutes a week, but there is no loss of performance. Every antenna & radio is different, so I'm certainly not recommending for others to do what I do, but in my case with my equipment, there is no problem. Remember, in my situation, I'm using my radio 98% of the time on UHF ham freq's with the correct antenna. It's only a few minutes a week where I'm using the radio with the wrong bandsplit antenna. And should I blow up the radio [which I doubt] it's a Kenwood wideband only TK 840 which cost me $50, & I have 4 of them. So if I was the OP, & I was to use my equipment 98% of the time on the GMRS freq's, & rarely on Ham freq's, I'd stay with the antenna that's at 50 ft. But if I were going to ragchew on the ham freq's, I'd retune, or change the antenna. I mean what is a radio operator who legally uses a business radio on GMRS & ham supposed to do? GARY N4KVE

 

[gewecke]

I use a Diamond X50A @ 38' and it works pretty fair on GMRS, as well as 2/440 bands. I have a Daiwa swr cross needle meter at it shows about 1.5 swr reflected on 462/467.550mhz.
The X50A is only 5'6" long also!

73,
n9zas

 

[canav844]

Without knowing what kind of antenna, and what the frequency range of the antenna is it's really going to be a stretch to make a guess (for example if it's a beam or a yagi, probably not a chance, if it's a VHF quarter wave with a trap, you might be ok on one or both bands); but the absolute best way to know is get an SWR meter or antenna analyzer (that lets you adjust and pick specific frequencies) and test it with a meter (if you use a radio to generate the signal always start at low power). You may find that the antenna can be great on one set of bands and still acceptable elsewhere, which for routine contacts and low usage should be fine.

While I can appreciate the enthusiasm to get on the air, I'd suggest planning for the cost of a new antenna, or even more rewarding, build an antenna specifically for the amateur bands, there's plenty of free designs out there and the more of a station that I've made myself the more understanding I develop and the more pride I have in the station, and making those first few contacts is self affirming. Then if you decide that you want to purchase a manufactured antenna at a later date (perhaps to handle weather a little better or look a little cleaner), then if something fails you still have a solid backup ready to go at short notice. Wire J-poles are fairly easy to make for a 2m/70cm, and they can also be tossed into the back of a car or backpack (if you go hiking this can make a world of difference) or storage container. I put zip ties on the top of mine and I can hang them just about anywhere on short notice.