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  Re: Options for HT radio antenna?
  By: Sean Dennis to Nigel Reed on Thu Oct 09 2025 18:25:51

 > Have you ever heard of the Ventenna?  It's an antenna that slides over your
 > bathroom vent if you have one.

Can't say I have and I'm not sure my wife would go for that so I'm going to
have to scrap that idea.

 > Have you tried making a J-pole?  They're easy to make and can really extend
 > your reach on 2 meter.  I have one my dad made back in 2004 for me that
 > works amazing even with a giant hill blocking many of my northern repeaters.

I've not tried making any type of antenna yet. Just watched a video and it
seems pretty easy. Almost half way to making a trombone :) The guy said he was
reaching 50 miles with 5-7w so certainly interesting. I don't have any copper
pipe tho but I'm sure I can find some.

 > Absolutely.  I've seen a Tokyo Hi-Power amp made in the 80s that put out
 > 300W from 5W input.

Also a good option but I would definitely want to have an SWR meter check
before hooking something like that up. I used to have one back in England in
my CB days but I'm sure it disappeared when I moved to the US.

 > I have a 2-meter mobile, a Motorola UHF mobile programmed for GMRS and local
 > 440 repeaters, and a 220mhz (1.25m) mobile--our club is putting up a 220
 > repeater--sitting on my desk.  All work but I need more power supplies. XD

My local club has a 70cm and 2m repeater along with a couple of DStar
repeaters.

I did look at some mobile setup that I could sit on my desk. Amazon have them
for about $150 which doesn't seem to bad but I figure if I'm going to take up
more desk space, I should probably go for something with more bands since I
have a general license. I wouldn't mind getting my extra so I don't have to
worry as much about which bands I can and cannot use but that's not top
priority right now.
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