UHF Glass Mount Question - Suggestions

[charmingajs007]

Im looking for a uhf glass mount antenna for rx only. My target frequency range is 410Mhz - 480Mhz.
My question is would i get better performance from a higher gain antenna a bit out of that range or one that is set for that range but has unity gain.

What im looking at is
UHF Broadband Glass Mount 380-474MHz - UHF Glass Mount - UHF Mobile - Mobile Antennas - RFI Wireless
or this
UHF Glass Mount 450-470MHz - UHF Glass Mount - UHF Mobile - Mobile Antennas - RFI Wireless

 

[popnokick]

Since you will not be transmitting, the VSWR will be relatively unimportant. Receivers are much less critical about antenna tuning than transmitters. I'd say get the highest gain whip that is in the center of your target freq range (AP454-70-5G I think?) and try it first without cutting the whip per the instructions. It will probably work fine for receiving across your entire range. The other reason to go with the gain antenna is to help overcome the dB loss inherent in all glass mount antennas.

 

[lafd55]

I'm a big fan of Antenna Specialists antennas.
On Glass Unity Gain Window Mount VHF and UHF Antennas PCTEL

 

[reedeb]

Back many yrs ago I used Rad Shack Scanner antenna glass mount worked good for what i wanted.

ALSO had a mag mount CB ant also [no ham then] I worked in a dark place at night so it was nice not to have shiny antennas for folks to see.

 

[LtDoc]

The gain figures for both of those antennas are 'optimistic', so are the impedance matching (SWR) figures. Either of them would yield about the same performance I would think. One of them was supposed to be a vertical array, that one would give the most 'gain'.
- 'Doc

 

[mmckenna]

I had a Larsen KG-450 on my wife's Pontiac G6 for a few years that worked quite well. I used it with a 35 watt GMRS mobile radio and it seemed to work quite well. If I was doing it all over again, I'd get the same antenna. Nice low profile installation.

Larsen KG-450 is a half wave glass mount antenna. Maximum length was around 15 inches or so. It was all black and blended in quite well. I'm usually a "drill the hole and do it right" guy, but I couldn't do that on this car and have it look decent due to a BIG sun roof. On the back glass, it blended in quite well and was only a 5 foot or so run down to the trunk mounted radio. Tuned up just fine and worked well.

 

[W2NJS]

Here is a Larsen posting about through-glass antennas that has a lot of good information about such installations:
Antenna FAQ - Larsen Pulse

 

[charmingajs007]

Sorry for the long time for a reply from me lol. Thanks for all the help!!
Ltdoc do you think all the companies are optimistic with the vswr ratings lol. And great link W2NJS thanks.

 

[LtDoc]

Do I think all manufacturers are 'optimistic'?
Yes, in general. It's called advertising and making a profit. Some are more willing to be 'optimistic' than others, but they are all guilty of it (me too, if it's my antenna!). No, it doesn't mean that all of them are liars, just sort of 'optimistic', you know? The quoted characteristics from manufacturers are always based on the best possible conditions of use, not the worst possible conditions. My experience has been that I've been blessed with more of those worst possible conditions than the best possible kind. YMMV...
- 'Doc

 

[quarterwave]

I've used a couple glass mount UHF for Tx/RX and they are "ok". I only used the last one because I bought a new truck and didn't want to drill it, as I didn't drive it everyday, just casually. I used the ASP. I think the RX would be better with a regular antenna, but I am not changing it now until I change trucks again (within a year)...then I am just going to drill it. Remember, it's not a "hole in the roof" it's an antenna installation...there's no hole until you take it off!

If you are in a car I might suggest a trunk lip mount and a real UHF antenna, or for a truck a hood/fender mount. I have used those as well (for other people mostly) but all work well.

The other posts have good info too, so just wanted to pile on some experience.

 

[benbenrf]

Im looking for a uhf glass mount antenna for rx only. My target frequency range is 410Mhz - 480Mhz.
My question is would i get better performance from a higher gain antenna a bit out of that range or one that is set for that range but has unity gain.

What im looking at is
UHF Broadband Glass Mount 380-474MHz - UHF Glass Mount - UHF Mobile - Mobile Antennas - RFI Wireless
or this
UHF Glass Mount 450-470MHz - UHF Glass Mount - UHF Mobile - Mobile Antennas - RFI Wireless

Unity gain is going to be your best bet - in mobile scenarios the enviromental influence on receive conditions as a vehicle moves from one location to another are more often than not so variable/changeable that they negate any advantage obtained through the use of using a high gain antenna - especially in setups used in urban enviroments where there is a lot of phase variation to received signals (i.e. a lot of reflected signals on the same freq). In a wide open rural enviroment something like a 5/8's type vertical whip - which has a relatively narrow or flatter beam-width orientated towards the horizon - could prove beneficial.