I Need a Good gmrs yagi.

[WRPT980]

Hello everyone. Thank you all for past replies.  I put  a Tram/Browning yagi 5 element BR-6355 on my telescopic mast and Tram 1486 on top on my pickup for testing 15 miles out 30 feet up. Flat  land to my target house with a cheap 5 element yagi 4 feet below,  a tuned Tram 1486 on top. Spotty woods in between. I read that my br-6355 is not so good. It did ok today. About the same as my Tram 1486 tuned at 465mhz on top of masts. Both did about the same.  SO, I am trying to pick a GOOD yagi for the house for a better RX. the house yagi is at 37 feet with another tram, and cheap yagi is to one side 4 feet and 4 feet lower. FYI. I use a voice activated recorder at house when I test. After I get a good yagi on house I will have a friend there and I will do it right.

I am open for suggestions and constructive criticism. Don't be afraid to hurt my feelings.   Thanks again.

 

 

[Socalgmrs]

I still want to know why all this yagi and tram and 2 antenna stuff for just 15miles.  My hts do over 30miles easy 

just get a comet 712efc some lmr400 and a 20-50w radio and your set.  Woods or not it should blast right through and you’ll only need one antenna an no tuning.  If I can do 235miles with a 20w radio with mountains in the way you can do 15miles with woods keep it simple 

[Borage257]

Its probably your elevation. Run your location in RadioMobileOnline.

[WSBZ540]

Are you transmitting and receiving on the same antennas? I assume you connected the yagi and tested, then connected the omni and tested. You should get considerably more distance from the yagi in most cases. I can't really recommend a commercial version because I build mine.

The yagi doesnt look to be tuneable, and at $100, ide say that's not cheap either. what coax are you running this on? You may have said before but I don't recall now.

[JamesBrox]

https://www.arcantenna.com/products/laird-y4506-450-470-mhz-6-element-12-dbi-fully-welded-gold-anodized-yagis-with-fixed-n-female-connector

I have this one with an RCA rotor, I'm happy with it. Good luck 980.

WRXU693  James

[WSAM454]

  Not sure I understand. 

You mentioned testing with a mobile.  If you are trying to work a mobile, then trying to aim the antenna will be challenging.   Even a 5 element antenna will have a relatively narrow beam width requiring careful aiming.    You said the yagi performed similarly to the Tram, which is an omnidirectional antenna.   The yagi, properly aimed, should outshine the vertical.   Perhaps a larger (7-10 elements) beams  at both ends would be better.  If you are trying to receive another base station  then you will have to aim carefully. 

[WRKC935]

It sounds like you are doing range tests from a vehicle.  First issue with a yagi, it's directional.  Please don't be offended if you knew that.  And I am working from an internet post here so I don't 100% understand what's going on.  It doesn't seem like you are trying to take to or hear a specific repeater, but that might not be the case.

Because the yagi is directional it's only going to work good in one direction.  The higher the gain of a yagi, the tighter the front end of it is and the narrower the pattern, meaning a narrower path of coverage. 

Second thing is are you testing from a vehicle with a portable or a mobile radio with a mounted antenna.  Might seem like a silly question, but with all the BS radio distance ratings of radios, if you are new to this and have unreasonable expectations based on what the box or the manufactures advertisements indicate, you certainly will NOT be the first to be dissatisfied with the real world performance.

 

[WRWE456]

This is the one I use. Very well built. Very happy with it. https://www.arrowantennas.com/solid/464-7s.html

[WRPT980]

7 hours ago, WSBZ540 said:

Are you transmitting and receiving on the same antennas? I assume you connected the yagi and tested, then connected the omni and tested. You should get considerably more distance from the yagi in most cases. I can't really recommend a commercial version because I build mine.

The yagi doesnt look to be tuneable, and at $100, ide say that's not cheap either. what coax are you running this on? You may have said before but I don't recall now.

From my 1    15 mile spot  from my house is 15 miles out. Great weather today.. Lower Delaware. I use a compass to aim. I have an antenna switch. A voice recorder at house. 60 feet of Times Lmr 400 on Br-6355 yagi (yes) untuneable on truck. But Rg8u on each tuned trams which I've read is not so good.  And 35 ft. of Lmr 400 on  cheap 3 element 400-470mhz.yagi at house. I will have a friend help me at the house after I get a better yagi PRE tuned  for proper testing. Then (maybe) put same on truck telescopic mast. Both ants over 30 feet. Using Midland mxt575 in truck with lithium battery not dropping below 13.4 volts when TX. At the same time 10amp charger on until I get the truck wired to battery. RX at house should be better with better yagi . And same on return trip TX.  Midland mxt 400 at house. A Btech HT broke through on the yagi which is a kinda good sign. Plenty of mistakes but hopefully will be using leftover's at 2 other locations I will get set up later. If the money holds out. Sorry for this being so complicated in my writing  but so hard to do all this by my self. I hope the others can read this and share thoughts. I did not graduate for high school but did manage to learn to type some. LOL    I got the...Trash Man Blues....I  got Maggots to my left,  Fly's to my right, Oh baby it makes me so uptight, I got the trash man blues.   It's actually a song. LOL 

Thank you all for your help.  Peace!

[WRQI583]

12 hours ago, WRPT980 said:

Flat land to your target? Have you checked on at least a topographic map? If so, and it is confirmed that there are no obstructions as far as elevation between your target and you, you should be able to do it with an omni-directional. However, if you do want to use a yagi, the 5 element should do perfectly fine. Maybe mounting a yagi at both locations pointed at each other would also help. Remember, you dont have to have them perfectly aligned as you would if you were working with microwave signals (GigaHertz frequencies). At UHF you still have a bit of beamwidth to play with so as long as you are pointed as best as you can in the direction you want, you should be good. A good tool to help you with this is google maps. Put the map in satellite mode and right click on your location and go to the bottom of the menu that pops up and click measure distance. Then go to your target location and click on it. Then go back to your location and zoom in. Follow that line to a point nearby such as the neighbors house or a tree or other structure and when mounting the antenna, point it in that direction. You will generally be on target about as good as you can get it without pulling out all of the equipment that they use on towers to align directional antennas. It is what I have used when mounting my antennas.

I live in a hole and am able to get a UHF signal to a repeater about 35 miles from me with many hills obstructing my signal and I use a 6 element browning gold anodized yagi with about 30 watts mounted about 25 feet off the ground to do this. I have even used the same antenna with a slight bit more power to get up to 20 miles away on simplex on GMRS. 

 

 

 

[WRWE456]

https://www.scadacore.com/tools/rf-path/rf-line-of-sight/

Here is a line of sight calculator. This is very helpful. You can put it in satellite view and see your locations. You can also set the heights of the antennas above the ground. The popup graph will show you what terrain is likely between your locations. This doesn't always mean it won't work but can give you an idea of what you are dealing with. I find that if a hill is very close to either antenna that is the worst, but if further away is less of a problem. Just another tool for your radio tool kit. 

[WRPT980]

2 hours ago, WRQI583 said:

 

Thanks, Yep . Pinning down another yagi.  Google Earth is a great help. I used the measuring tool for lines to 4 contacts  and put on paper map and got the distance converting to miles and can see all obstructions. We have spotty woods, flat here and many pines (dense) and others of course.. If I get test completed soon and am satisfied that will change when all leaves are out in a few months and will have to live with results. And based on my calculation curvature is 8 inches per mile.  I draw lines to each contact and luckily all are within 40 degrees. And use a compass. No repeaters here. 

[WRPT980]

21 minutes ago, WRWE456 said:

https://www.scadacore.com/tools/rf-path/rf-line-of-sight/

Here is a line of sight calculator. This is very helpful. You can put it in satellite view and see your locations. You can also set the heights of the antennas above the ground. The popup graph will show you what terrain is likely between your locations. This doesn't always mean it won't work but can give you an idea of what you are dealing with. I find that if a hill is very close to either antenna that is the worst, but if further away is less of a problem. Just another tool for your radio tool kit. 

Thanks. gonna check that out for sure.

[WRPT980]

15 hours ago, Borage257 said:

Its probably your elevation. Run your location in RadioMobileOnline.

 

15 hours ago, Borage257 said:

Its probably your elevation. Run your location in RadioMobileOnline.

Yes. I agree. After  I get equipment done I will go back to  raising masts but will have to use guy lines. Every foot matters.

13 minutes ago, WRPT980 said:

Thanks. gonna check that out for sure.

 

[WRPT980]

12 hours ago, WRWE456 said:

This is the one I use. Very well built. Very happy with it. https://www.arrowantennas.com/solid/464-7s.html

Could you tell me the degree of that yagi beam  ?  I might need to stay with a 5 element.

[WRPT980]

17 hours ago, Borage257 said:

Its probably your elevation. Run your location in RadioMobileOnline.

I agree. after equipment is done I will go back to the mast. every foot matters but I will need guy lines.

[nokones]

Maybe a corner reflector will perform better than a Yagi. At least look into the specs and see. You never know.

[WRPT980]

19 hours ago, WRWE456 said:

This is the one I use. Very well built. Very happy with it. https://www.arrowantennas.com/solid/464-7s.html

ORDERED!

[WRWE456]

Nice!

[WRPT980]

14 hours ago, nokones said:

Maybe a corner reflector will perform better than a Yagi. At least look into the specs and see. You never know.

That is my next learning subject that I will study now as it's  a slow time waiting for parts. Maybe that will help on a couple other antennas.  And I am assuming it would block some signal in unneeded directions. Perfect timing and,, Thanks for reminding me!