Using my HT at Home. Which antenna?

[WRUC860]

Wouxun 805G.  I have 1/4 on top of Explorer and get good results.

The rubber-duck obviously doesn't work well in the house to reach simplex or repeater.

I am thinking of either a Slim Jim hung outside the window OR a Tram 1173 5/8 over 5/8 just outside the window.

My local repeater is about 5 miles from the house

I would love feedback and suggestions from the hive on my best choice.  

Barry

[Lscott]

I would recommend the Slim-Jim. It doesn't require a ground plane like a 5/8 wave antenna would. It's also good for portable operation like camp sites etc. When not needed it's easy to roll up and stick in a drawer. If you get the dual band version it works on VHF MURS and the UHF GMRS channels.

https://n9taxlabs.com/shop/ols/products/dual-band-murs-gmrs-standard-antenna

[Borage257]

52 minutes ago, Lscott said:

I would recommend the Slim-Jim. It doesn't require a ground plane like a 5/8 wave antenna would. It's also good for portable operation like camp sites etc. When not needed it's easy to roll up and stick in a drawer. If you get the dual band version it works on VHF MURS and the UHF GMRS channels.

https://n9taxlabs.com/shop/ols/products/dual-band-murs-gmrs-standard-antenna

This. I have one and use it daily as a base antenna. If you get the 5' fiberglass driveway marker, you can zip tie the rollup to the marker for easy mounting. Or make up a throw line for more mobile use.

[WRUC860]

Thanks for the advice.  I am intrigued by the Slim Jim and will probably get one anyway considering the portability.

I guess I did not describe my other option well enough.  I am specifically looking at the Tram 1173, a NGP 5/8 over 5/8 mobile or Browning BR 450, attached to a magnet NMO mount.  My mental plan here is to attach it to a patio table (or higher) for better Rx/Tx.  The radiating pattern of the 5/8 over 5/8 is a bit more horizontal than even the Slim Jim and "should" provide a bit more range for my situation.

Thoughts ????

[BoxCar]

You are correct in thinking the 5/8 would have a better radiation angle but look into using a cookie sheet or piece of sheet steel from Ace Hardware for the magnet mount. Put it on top of a bookcase or shelving unit in a closet for added height. Height is even more important than the radiation angle.

[WRUC860]

Thank you BoxCar,

I fully understand the height-factor but I'm thinking the trade-off of indoor vs outdoor would favor outside, on a metal patio table.  Even though it would be a "table height," either would out-perform an indoor installation.  Your thoughts ?

The beauty of purchasing both is that I could use the Tram on the roof of my Explorer (except for entering my garage) and the Slim Jim while camping or traveling...indoors or outdoors.  The dBi gain of the Tram should out-perform the "unity gain" of the 1/4 wave on the Explorer roof.

Again, thoughts ?

[Lscott]

32 minutes ago, WRUC860 said:

Thank you BoxCar,

I fully understand the height-factor but I'm thinking the trade-off of indoor vs outdoor would favor outside, on a metal patio table.  Even though it would be a "table height," either would out-perform an indoor installation.  Your thoughts ?

The beauty of purchasing both is that I could use the Tram on the roof of my Explorer (except for entering my garage) and the Slim Jim while camping or traveling...indoors or outdoors.  The dBi gain of the Tram should out-perform the "unity gain" of the 1/4 wave on the Explorer roof.

Again, thoughts ?

You have a choice for the RF connector. I wouldn't recommend the SO-239 unless you absolutely need it. Personally I prefer the BNC. I can easily find adapters from BNC to just about anything, and BNC terminated patch cables of various lengths are easy to find. Plus the BNC is a constant 50 ohm type so it's very unlikely to cause any kind of noticeable SWR issues. The down side is it isn't water proof. If the antenna is used out doors where it's going to get wet you might want the "N" type connector, which is pretty much water proof.  

[Borage257]

check this out
 

 

[WRUC860]

6 hours ago, Lscott said:

You have a choice for the RF connector. I wouldn't recommend the SO-239 unless you absolutely need it. Personally I prefer the BNC. I can easily find adapters from BNC to just about anything, and BNC terminated patch cables of various lengths are easy to find. Plus the BNC is a constant 50 ohm type so it's very unlikely to cause any kind of noticeable SWR issues. The down side is it isn't water proof. If the antenna is used out doors where it's going to get wet you might want the "N" type connector, which is pretty much water proof.  

The Slim Jim I am currently looking at offers a SMA f connector that will resolve connector issues.  The less "adapters" the better the performance I believe.

[SteveShannon]

19 minutes ago, Borage257 said:

check this out
 

 

Unfortunately the test of the N9TAX antenna on UHF had no data. He’ll be rerunning that part of the test. 
On VHF test results were obtained for both and the Ed Fong antenna was about 2.5 dB better on SN. 
The SN numbers that were obtained for UHF were quite low compared to VHF. Josh even commented that they weren’t much better than a simple stick antenna. 

[Lscott]

2 hours ago, WRUC860 said:

The Slim Jim I am currently looking at offers a SMA f connector that will resolve connector issues.  The less "adapters" the better the performance I belive.

Well you are the best judge of which connector type will suite your needs the best. Don't forget you may at some point want to use the antenna with another radio, such as a mobile, so you'll likely will need some adapters sooner or later anyway.

[MichaelLAX]

3 hours ago, WRUC860 said:

The less "adapters" the better the performance I belive.

Yes, and some adapters allow for much more stress to be applied inadvertently to the HT antenna connector which can result in its damage.

[WRUC860]

Thanks for all the conversation.

I decided to order a single-band Slim Jim and test the waters from there.  I can always add the Tram 1173 and mount at a later time for one of my vehicles.

Carry on and 73's

Barry