What UHF Antenna

[DiegotheCat]

Well im bout to get a uhf and iv gone back to my 4wd action collection but cant find the mag that had all the info about what antenna to choose.

So could some one with the know how point me in the right direction on what antenna i should get. Ill be using it for general use around 4wd tracks a bit of hills not really long range use.

I do remember reading about which strength to get but just cant recall what that was. Ill appreciate any help.

Ben

[Joe]

I have a 4.5db one Ben which i believe is a good compromise.

[daryn]

Have a look here Diego:

http://www.prestigecom.net.au/index.php?main_page=index&cPath=3

Everyone is different in some respects, is it just for convoying on trips, flat areas, hilly areas etc.

Mine is a GME GME AE4018K1 **4.5db** UHF CB Antenna http://www.prestigecom.net.au/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=337&products_id=97

[Diddy]

Get the GME 4.5db thick white one it's 1.2m tall I have that one and it works best in the hilly areas but I also have a GME 9db hi gain stainless steel on the other UHF the 4.5 is the ideal one if ya want it for the hill but the GME 6db is a good is a good allrounder


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[Diddy]

Have a look here Diego:

http://www.prestigecom.net.au/index.php?main_page=index&cPath=3

Everyone is different in some respects, is it just for convoying on trips, flat areas, hilly areas etc.

Mine is a GME GME AE4018K1 **4.5db** UHF CB Antenna http://www.prestigecom.net.au/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=337&products_id=97

That's the 6db

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[Diddy]

This the ae4705 same as mine


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[DiegotheCat]

what about dual band do they actually work?

[MN GLXR]

The higher the gain the flatter the signal with respect to the horizon. For general convoy comms you will get by just fine with any antenna. Go for what you think looks best on your triton and is strong enough for the type of driving you do. The gme pictured above is rock solid with excellent performance.

[DiegotheCat]

im thinking maybe this one

http://www.prestigecom.net.au/bmz_cache ... 00x150.jpg

http://www.prestigecom.net.au/index.php ... ts_id=2466

A 5db fiberglass antenna

[reeldreamer]

I have a had several RFI antenna's and they go well! Black fiberglass

[ag9111]

If you go a big fiberglass 4.5dB on a beehive it will eventually shake itself to bits if you do heavy corrugation work. Some with the stainless steel 4.5dB elevated gain antennas. Will eventually snap at the base. A lightweight fiberglass 4.5dB is best if you do alot of heavy 4wd work. Otherwise go for you life. Depends on your budget and your desired look. The 6db units will not give you much more range if mounted on the bullbar and I believe are a waste of money. Go white with the sahara bar. Should look smick, even for a toyota

[Josh_Triton]

If you go a big fiberglass 4.5dB on a beehive it will eventually shake itself to bits if you do heavy corrugation work. Some with the stainless steel 4.5dB elevated gain antennas. Will eventually snap at the base. A lightweight fiberglass 4.5dB is best if you do alot of heavy 4wd work. Otherwise go for you life. Depends on your budget and your desired look. The 6db units will not give you much more range if mounted on the bullbar and I believe are a waste of money. Go white with the sahara bar. Should look smick, even for a toyota

Everything said above has happened to me! I have the short fibre 4.5 and it's great mounted on my front guard.

[reeldreamer]

My fibreglass antenna has been on 2 4wd's and a truck over the past 5 years and never had any issues. Mine is only 1m long though.

Mitch

[Kegsy]

I've got a 4.5db from dick smith.

Fibreglass one, but at $99 it does the job well. Can't pick the difference in performance to my mates GME. But the GME looks a little more solid in the spring base.

[DiegotheCat]

Ended up getting this one GME AE4018K1 4.5db boosted to 6db but now the uhf i got is crap and doesnt work DAM. So ill have to look into getting another one of thoes. I was hoping to have them b4 the end of the week for the trip, but i really cant pay $400 plus atm, oh well looks like ill have to really on my .9 watt handhelds LOL.

Thanks for the input I only got 2 responses on the hilux forum lol

[ag9111]

Much better breed of person over on the good side Ben

[Joe]

Ended up getting this one GME AE4018K1 4.5db boosted to 6db but now the uhf i got is crap and doesnt work DAM. So ill have to look into getting another one of thoes. I was hoping to have them b4 the end of the week for the trip, but i really cant pay $400 plus atm, oh well looks like ill have to really on my .9 watt handhelds LOL.

Thanks for the input I only got 2 responses on the hilux forum lol

Hey Ben, have a look at the Oricom UHF050. It's about half the price of GME etc and works just as well. There is a photo in my build up thread

I bought mine from TJM at Coopers plains for around the $200 mark, and I have seen them at Supercheap and Repco for less.

[JamoGLXR]

I think i understand dB. its like unity (1) dB is a Sphere and the higher the gain the more the sphere is flattened squeezing out the sides, a longer transmission distance but less height.

but on relatively flat ground on Ch17 so no repeaters to bounce off my RFI CD440 (spec sheet link below) is out performing a 6.5db (GME AE409L) and a 6.6dB (GME AE4018K1) i was clear but they were crackly. is it just install condition or the difference between 1/4wave and 1/2wave antenna's

http://www.rfi.com.au/downloads/wireless/mobile-antennas/UHF-band/CD440.pdf

[MN GLXR]

Don't believe all the claims made by the manufacturers either. There are two methods of measuring antenna gain and they give slightly different results for the same antenna. Often manufacturers just quote the higher number to boost sales.

Radio waves, transmission lines and antennas are mysterious little buggers and there are many factors that impact performance apart from gain.

My favorite is 50mhz propagation which is called the "magic band". It is very fickle and long distance contacts can come and go in seconds depending on weather.


Cheers MN GLXR via Tapatalk

[snowman]

somewhere in this forum is a post by Blue who completely smashed his antenna (fibreglass i think) on an overhanging tree once and he recommended the RFI CD900 in BLACK. seems very durable and good reports. i have no issues in convoy.

not sure what geek has but i can always hear him better than the others....

dont buy chrome - it stands out too much. my wife hardly notices the black one but when we drove a car with chrome it 'stood out'.

[borngeek]

My antenna was bundled with my UHF. So I didn't even bother investigating just bunged it on the nudgebar and seems fine.
Can pickup a fair way away and no one has trouble hearing me
No real need for some huge fk off thing as only use in convoy anyway...

Uniden AT470 (6db) placed in a bad position apparently on lower arm of nudgebar. pic in my shed

$40 from this mob

[helicoptercow]

I use the same antenna as geek... i have mine mounted on the top of the nudge bar. Can't fault it, great little value for money antenna. Again mainly use mine in convoy but certainly carries some range on the highway too

[Diddy]

i have gone back to this aerial i think it works just as good as the big white fibre glass one i had on the triton and its more flexible when it comes to bush driving and fitting under carparks
[/quote]

[Cowboy Dave]

That looks a lot like the RFI I got Diddy, except mine came with two different whips, a short stumpy one for hill country and a longer thin sort of wire one for flat country. Same spring base and chrome choke though - wish I'd bought black though in retrospect.

[Mongrel]

I bought this one about 3 weeks ago and it worked well for me on the weekend. I have tested with a mate and it does the job just fine.

Looks good on my white truck too.

My only grief is that it does not unscrew, so if you park somewhere unsavoury, you can't take it off to prevent some wanker from snapping it.

Price was not bad too... BUT THE BEST BIT is the supplied connector. The cable has a small little connector on it so it is piss easy to get through the firewall AND they supply the nice big fat one that fits into the back of your radio, and they all just screw into each other. NICE!!

http://www.batteryshack.com.au/axis-axi ... -1880.html