Howdy
The 2-way radio you list is clearly not designed for 'indoor use' and without a proper ground plane, mounting, coax-connectors and proper grounding.....you are putting the radio at a high-risk on damaging the Tx side, at minimum.
Also, the RF energy output from the radio is a health hazard if operated at medium or high power along with RF burns & 'feedback' to the unit itself could lead to damage to the radio. High Risk !
If you are using the radio for 'receive only' then almost any antenna cut for UHF frequencies should work and researching would give you serveral options. But note - Receive Only !
You can research "No Ground Plane Antenna's" at your own risk as an option, but really would-not recommend for any indoor use, and especially above 5 watts output at maximum and you still need mounting to ensure to reduce hazards..... and hope the radio does-not interfer with other applications people in the complex are using (TV, Radios....etc...) as FCC would not be impressed if you are operating in without a FCC License if using on Transmit mode....
Thx
Hello, i was wondering if anyone had any info on a INDOOR UHF Antenna? I'm not allowed to have any outoor antennas on my apartment and i am in need of an Indoor antenna for my Kenwood UHF TK-840 Mobile Radio.
Believe it or not, I've actually had some luck with a good 1/4 wave glass mount UHF antenna mounted inconspicusly on an upstairs apartment window with good results. The fact that he's using a mobile in the house/ Apt. made me think about it. Of course that was some time ago, and I don't believe they were the double- or triple-pane windows you see today that might affect it. Of course the old "cantenna" has worked well also.
I have a Larsen NR72BNMO mount on a mag mount that sits on a coffee can in the window sill of my first-floor apartment. It works well. I believe the window is plexiglass.
That's a great solution. I have a Radio Shack PRO-97 trunking scanner that works well with the supplied rubber duck, but I know can work better if I can rig up some kind of antenna in the window. I, too, live in a ground floor apartment and can't put up an outdoor antenna.
So the coffee can acts as the ground, or, in this case, the grounds. Do you experience a slight or significant improvement in reception?
Dave
KA6TJF
A little bit, not much. I think what really helps with reception the most is the fact that it's in the window sill. Five feet further inside/away from the window it really really suffers, especially on VHF.