antenna thoughts

[FLYSWATTER]

as a new member i would first like to say thanks to all that take time to reply to the posts i've spent several hours pouring over much needed information....if ignorance is bliss my head shouldnt hurt right now

anyway i'm looking to upgrade my antenna from the browning single coil i have right now ... i would give you the exact model number but um... well its cold outside :blush: its rated for 1000 watts .... i recall that much only putting out around 700 ... my question really i guess whats probably the best bang for my buck i can get ... i enjoy listening to skip and since i got the ts dx 500v, couldnt get be heard over everyone just w/ the radio, i've been able to participate some ... but i just don't feel like i have very good "ears" like i'm out talkin myself lots of relayed messages.....any thoughts would be welcomed

 

[W5LZ]

FLYSWATTER,
What is your best bang for the buck to improve your mobile signal? That's fairly easy to answer, harder than @#$$ to 'do', though. The single thing to improve a mobile signal that will always work the 'best' is to make that shortened antenna into a full sized one, and get the thing higher than however it's mounted now. (I don't figure I'm telling you something that you don't know already.) From there, it's just a matter of getting as much as you can and still be practical about it.
It's just a fact that a mobile antenna isn't going to be very efficient compared to a fixed antenna. A fixed antenna can typically be 'larger', which means a change in it's radiation pattern and doesn't change locations much, which means it isn't adversely affected by stuff around it. Mobile antennas are never as efficient as a fixed antenna. You can tweak a mobile antenna until it's a efficient as it can possibly be and it still isn't going to be as good as one that is bigger and that doesn't move around.
Several reasons for all that, and I'm sure you've probably heard them all before. Unfortunately, there's no 'miracle' antennas that do everything well, they all have compromises. The best that you can do is find the best compromise for you (which is what you're doing, isn't it?) and then accept what you gotta accept. I wish I could tell you exactly what you should have, but I can't do 'miracles'. Good luck!
- 'Doc


The people who have found that 'perfect' antenna are doing one of two things. Just rationalizing what they have, or have really pleased the god 'Staticleeze' who performed a miracle for them... guess which is more likely.

 

[Marconi]

Well FS, I'm not hearing too much DX at the moment.

You could buy some TS500V's and pass around out there a few hundred miles aways from Louisiana and maybe some of those guys might be able to get back to you when the DX is rolling.

Or, you could wait a while longer for good DX conditions to return and then you won't have any trouble hearing guys that only have 12-30 watts.

Why don't you spend some time driving around and try to find some hot-spots to transmit from in you mobile. If you pay close attention and are lucky to have some skip roll-in you might be able to find a convient location along a road somewhere. It has been my experience that the parking lots of some small strip centers, for some unknown reason by me, can make a good hot spot. And, if you do this enough you will also find dead spots.

With mobile antennas being so close to the earth makes the antenna depend on the soil conditions even more so than a base station that is typically higher.

 

[6 Meters Rules]

Well I Prefer A Top Loaded Mobil Whip 5'Wilson Silver Load I have Worked All over the World Easier with this Antenna Than Any Other I Have tried & I Have 150+ Countries on This Antenna ,But ! Just My Preference!

 

[6 Meters Rules]

Well I Prefer 5' or 6' Wilson Silver Loads They are Top Loaded & For Mobil Applications They Out Perform All of The Antenna's I Have Tried In 30+ Years In the Radio Business & I Have Personally Work 150+ Countries With This Antenna, For The MONEY! There Isn't An Antenna That Comes Close $20-30 Bucks Just The FACTS!

 

[hotrod]

i agree drive around find a big hill to park at .or 2 nd best would be to get out in
the country were theres no trees buildings blocking your signal.location plays
a small role.my mobile doesnt get out to my friends very well at home [i live down in a valley]but if i go 2 my parents i can talk to them all day long[they live on a hill]
as far as antennas the best design was the 102 inch whip.also the least practical

 

[FLYSWATTER]

i appreciate the responses fellas yeah i did fail to mention that the mobile set up is in a 379 peterbilt so i do get a lil higher than say a mobile antenna riding on the back of a honda :tongue: i have noticed a couple hot spots ... usually away from major cities lol interstate 10 in florida outside of the major cities you can usually pick up something granted it may be only a couple hundred miles away but its enough to get me wound up...:tongue: i have given the 102" steel whip a thought the only thing is i'd have to get it high enough to not block half the antenna and at the same time keep it low enough that those 13'6" bridges don't pull the mounting bracket off

 

[W5LZ]

FLYSWATTER,
I really think that what you are seeing now is probably about as good as it's going to get, with in reason. The reason for that is because of where/how you have to mount an antenna. If you could make the thing lay down going under bridges, etc, you could expand your options quite a bit. Not being able to do that, well, you're kind'a limited, right?
If it were your tractor and trailer, you'd have quite a few options about sort of modifying them to hugely expand your possibilities! But if you don't always pull the same trailer, I seriously doubt if you'd wanna do that modifying to every one you happen to hook to. (But then, everybody knows all them truck drivers are rich! Do it! ... right? )
- 'Doc

 

[FLYSWATTER]

well after much deliberation ... and a few more thoughts from my tech the 102" is a no go ... granted it can be mounted but height is a major factor ... after all i don't need to be completing circuits with power lines .... i did however upgrade i guess you could say to a monkey made antenna with the flat coil and my ears have noticeably improved when it comes to picking up weaker signals much clearer ...as a sidenote have been hearing quite a bit from the sw (cali, nm, az) and much much less from east and north ... cept one REAL loud station out of jersey ... oddly though the usual "local" stations a few hundred miles away that i can't hear over are hardly coming in... i guess mother nature decides whose gonna be heard ... and as always fellas thanks for the input

 

[9C1Driver]

Yea, a 102 will never work on a semi mirrior mount. You have some exellent gear for a mobile, hard to improve on that.

 

[kd-5-bgt]

At one time I had a Firestick 2 , 4 foot long, on a pickup that I had with a Uniden Grant XL with an extra channel kit and a d-104 mobil mic pushing a 75 watt kicker.I had no trouble working North America on ssb when conditions were good and a non DX range of around 50 to 75 miles also on ssb.I would rarely go AM.

The Firestick antenna might be a good one to look at.Just be sure that the antenna top is just below the 13' 6'' level

 

[C2]

I would guess the 102 is the best antenna, but only on the right vehicle. Not a semi due to height.

The parking lots might work well if they have a wire mesh under that asphalt.

 

[hotrod]

I would guess the 102 is the best antenna, but only on the right vehicle. Not a semi due to height.

The parking lots might work well if they have a wire mesh under that asphalt.

yea if your PARKED somewere a 102 whip would be awsome.then when driving
switch back to the monkeymade.

 

[6 Meters Rules]

Don't Waste You're Money$ 20.00-30.00 For a Wilson Silver Load ,Just 1 You Can't Go Wrong You've Tried The Rest Now ! Use The BEST . The Best For The $.

 

[FLYSWATTER]

HotRod i shoulda freakin thought about that keep'n the 102 handy for while i'm parked :headbang i really am fiending to do so lol ... just need to be able to check muh swrz after switching ....well wait ... in theory all i should have to do once they are "set" is just switch out right? nothing is really changing ... all trimming will be done already had to lose 2" off the monkey made. ... 102 w/ the 700 watts would be smokin and topping off over 20 ft height :w00t:

and yes i heard the wilson silvertip i just well couldn't find one along my travels lol made it back to my the "shop" first and well i had been eyeballing the monkeymade ... and as a sidenote the bottom of the coil is just at the top of the cab the only thing higher than the coil is well the stacks ...

and if i should be checking the swr's each switch what is a good one thats both reliable and friendly on the wallet ... most commonly available in line meter i can find @ the t-stops is the barjan model ... bout 20 bucks just for the swr meter and 40-50 for the swr meter/wattage meter ... anythoughts?

and as usual thanks for the help!