My vertical dipole

[N4DXX]

Thought i would share this antenna that i tossed together in just a short time using scrap antenna parts..I have no idea as to why it works so well on vhf and WOW on 400 - 500 mhz it kicks butt..I have compared it to my discone and yes it beats it bad on uhf and almost the exact same signal strength on vhf..Great on 800 mhz as well..But i had found that this antenna works much better without a 300 to 75 ohm balun?Why i can't answer that but it does..I also have the st-2 and this works just as good if not better in the 400Mhz range..I was truly amazed with the performance and it was much cheaper than any of my other ones..The no balun issue has me wondering why does it work much better without it?I am using heavy duty triple braid RG 6 for the feedline no pre amp..

 

[Rt169Radio]

It kinda looks like the AntennaCraft ST2.

 

[jackj]

What you have there is three center-fed, 1/2 wave dipoles with a common feed point. VHF hi would work a little better if your 12" elements were more like 16-17". I built one several years ago and you're right, they do work well.

 

[LtDoc]

Adding other elements to that vertical 'fan' dipole, one set for each particular band of frequencies you want to cover, isn't a bad idea. It will start getting a bit 'awkward' after adding a number of elements, but beauty is in the eye of the beholder, right?
- 'Doc

 

[mmckenna]

Nice. Just goes to show you there is nothing magical about the store bought antennas.