'Quick'n'Dirty' antenna

['Doc]

Wanna try a quick-n-dirty antenna that works? Takes about 20 feet of wire, an SO-239 connector, a tree, and some string.
Cut a 9 foot piece of wire and solder one end to the center pin of that SO-239. Cut the remaining wire so it's about 18 feet long, thread one end of it through one of the mounting holes for that SO-239 connector. Position wire so that it's of equal length hanging from that '239 (9 feet each side). Twist wire so that it isn't going to come loose from the '239. Make loops in the 'other' ends of those wires, so you can tie string to them. Throw string on the center pin piece of wire over highest limb in that tree that you can. Haul the whole mess up sort of high as it'll go. Spread the 'legs' hanging down with the string tied to them so that you get as wide a 'spread' between those 'legs' as you can get. Uh... should have said connect feed line to that SO-239 before hauling it up into that tree, sorry.
Guess what you do from that point?
The 'angle of the dangle' of those legs will change the SWR, adjust to whatever you think is best. What angle is best? Whichever one gives the lowest SWR.
How do you get any cheaper than that?
Soldering things will help to some extent, or just twist things tight. 14 ga. wire works okay, whatever will fit through the holes in that SO-239, or 'wobble' out that hole a little. Cost just depends on what you might have laying around.
TA-DA! One 1/4 wave groundplane antenna. It'll work as well as any other 1/4 GP at the same height. Pink insulation works best, if you can find it, it's rare you know...
- 'Doc

['Doc]

Should have said to remove the insulation (if any) from the center part of hat wire that's gonna hang down. Has to make electrical contact with the SO-239. Oh well, sometimes I forget.
- 'Doc

[drdx]

Quicker than that? No soldering, no wire, just an old piece of rg-58 you were planning to chunk anyway:

1. Take an old piece of coax, strip the rubber cover back about 9 feet, poke a hole in the shield and pull the center out, making an all in one dipole(it will look like a big Y). Want 2 legs for a vertical? Split the shield and hang.

2. Plug the other end of the coax into the radio. Trim for swr or change the angle if in a V.

3. Talk.

-drdx

[linx]

LOL, great thread. I have tried Doc's method and actaully walked Hookie through making his first home made antenna doing it that way. Works sufficent. Never tried that method DRDX, but I'm sure it works.

Not sure if either antenna would have any gain but they should be sufficent to talk on.

[drdx]

If you think about it, Doc's is basically a Starduster, less one downward radial, a very good design for low angle radiation.

-drdx