Antenna thoughts

[N / A]

Just looking for opinons, I have read a wack of reviews and found a few posts on various antenna but I thought I would pose the question

I am running a K400NMO mount on the hatch of my 5th Gen Runner with a Comet SBB1 for my daily driving and trail comms. I would like to get something with a little more reach for travel and when I am in the middle of nowhere. I was looking at a Comet SBB5 or a Comer SS680SB. I know the Larsen 2/70 has a good rep, but I like the look of the Comets a bit more. My SBB1 appears well made. I know the SBB5 looks like it would snap pretty easily. Not sure what route to go....thoughts?

I guess I should add...for 2m and 70cm

 

[rambrush]

I am running the Diamond 77 series with gain 3.0 5.5 and also a comet search and rescue model CA2x4 I think it is. with gain 3.8 6.2 both fold over or remove quickly. Then I have a 102" whip for HF to reach out in remote areas without repeaters.

 

[93Cummins]

I know you said you don't like the look, but I have had excellent luck with the Larsen NMO 2/70 in both their ham and commercial versions. I have them installed on everything from my F-350 to my ATVs. We have even used them on the County SAR vehicles.

 

[Frdmskr]

When you need to call for help looks ain't gonna cut it. The NMO270 rocks. I have a super gainer and an NMO270. I hate the dead spots driving around with the super gainer. It's a lot deafer than the nmo270 and didn't help me at all on the trail last week. Gave the wife the good antenna for her car (for now) but will be installing the NMO270 soon enough.

Btw I have a 3rd gen 4Runner, TMD270ga with the NMO mounted on the hood drivers side.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[wirenut]

I've had poor results with Comet antennas. Not that they didn't work but they didn't hold up. Hitting one against a branch would break the little plastic loading coil. I have mostly run Diamond antenna for over 20 years. The one I use is the NR770HA. It has an all metal loading coil in the center.
Where do you live; mountains or flat land? A 1/4 wave antenna tends to have a radiation pattern that kind of goes up. In order to get more gain with a 5/8 wave antenna the pattern is kind of squished so it goes out more but up less. If your in the flat lands that's really good. If you're in a mountain valley or trying to hit a repeater on top of a mountain then you actually want the signal to radiate up. a 1/2 wave antenna is kind of a compromise between the 2: more gain than a 1/4 but more upward radiation than a 5/8. Therefore, since I live in the mountains of western Virginia I tend to like the 1/2 wave design.

 

[pugslyyy]

I really like the Diamond antennas. I've found that their construction makes them very tolerant of low clearance / brush, and they just work really well.

 

[gary in ohio]

Larson 2/70.. Nice price point, handle being hit by branches.. works well.

 

[N / A]

I've had poor results with Comet antennas. Not that they didn't work but they didn't hold up. Hitting one against a branch would break the little plastic loading coil. I have mostly run Diamond antenna for over 20 years. The one I use is the NR770HA. It has an all metal loading coil in the center.
Where do you live; mountains or flat land? A 1/4 wave antenna tends to have a radiation pattern that kind of goes up. In order to get more gain with a 5/8 wave antenna the pattern is kind of squished so it goes out more but up less. If your in the flat lands that's really good. If you're in a mountain valley or trying to hit a repeater on top of a mountain then you actually want the signal to radiate up. a 1/2 wave antenna is kind of a compromise between the 2: more gain than a 1/4 but more upward radiation than a 5/8. Therefore, since I live in the mountains of western Virginia I tend to like the 1/2 wave design.

I live in Eastern Canada, more so rolling hills. I spend a lot of time in the Cape Breton Highlands where there are pretty steep hill, not really mountains, maybe 1000ft tops. I drive a lot on trails with lots of tree branches, so that is a concern

 

[KI4LTX]

I have used a Larson 2/70 on all my vehicles. Great antenna, never a problem. Handles tree limbs, parking garages, anything I threw at it.

 

[Robert Bills]

I use a Larsen NMO-2/70SH, 19" closed coil with spring. It works well and has stood up to tree branches, low overheads, etc. I've thought about trying the Larsen NMO-2/70B because it is very popular and gets great reviews, but at 34.75" long with no spring I've been concerned about how well it would hold up in forested areas.

 

[murphy744]

Larson 2/70 with a fender mount here

 

[KI4LTX]

You can purchase a spring from Larsen for the NMO-2/70B. Just remove the same length from the bottom of the antenna as the spring adds. I have one on the roof of the current truck for 10+ years. No impact failures, great range. Larsen is a great commercial/public safety quality antenna.

I use a Larsen NMO-2/70SH, 19" closed coil with spring. It works well and has stood up to tree branches, low overheads, etc. I've thought about trying the Larsen NMO-2/70B because it is very popular and gets great reviews, but at 34.75" long with no spring I've been concerned about how well it would hold up in forested areas.