..: .

o------ Loop of nylon line

Dual-Band (to hang antenna)

VHF/UHF
Twinlead Standard Flat
300 ohm Twinlead

J-Pole Antenna
By James A. Williams
Cut out wire
and insulation

W
54inches
1/4" notch
ant to get mo re range ou t of that
handhcld transce iver that just
can · t quite make that di sta nt re-
peater all your friends brag abo ut? Or how
about an emergency ante nna that yo u can
eas ily put up and use whe n a tornado o r o ther
natural d isaster takes down your ma in an-
te n na, o r lightning cau ses you to have to
15.25" inches
d isconnect that beam you have 60 fee t in the
air'l Or do you li ve in an apartment or deed
restricted subdi vision that will not le t you
have outside a nte nnas'>
If you have 30 minutes to Cut out small notch ,
spare. you can bui ld a Dual - Band remove only insulation Cut out small notch,
VHF/U HF J- Pole ante nn a that DO NOT NI CK WIRES remove only insulation
is g uaranteed to get you on the Solder coax center conductor DO NOT NICK WIRES
air q uickly, outperform the rub-
berduck antenna that came with yourhandhe ld.
a nd solve all the above problems and then
J_ ~ .25" inches
Solder coax braid (shield)

some.
It will serve not only as an emergency
antenna, but as a portable antenna system for
anyone needing an easy- to-set-up antenna.
~
Twist wires together and solder
such as trave lers who want to monitor o r
ope rate from the ir hote l room. The low profi le
antenna can be set up and take n down qui ckly. For thi s artic le the we wil l concentrate on le ng th radi ator and a 1/4 wave le ng th match-
and it stores in the space of an eyeg lass case. the most popul ar bands in thi s country: the 2 ing stub that operates like an end-fed halfwavc
It can be hung in a corne r of a room. attic or me ter band ( 144 M Hz to 148 MHz) and the 70 antenna. If built to exact specs listed. there is
other o ut of the way locatio n for a mon: c m band (440 M Hz to450 M Hz). I have found no tuning needed for thi s antenna. Just build it
permane nt insta llati on, or can be put up and the ante nna to have a voltage standing wave a nd USC it.
taken down when needed. ratio (VSWR) of le ss than I :5: I across the The Dual -Band Twinlead J-Polc ante nna
The J- Polc antenna has been used by ham e ntire 2- me ter band, and less than I: 7: I across is made from standard fla t 300 o hm twin lead
radio operators around the world for years . the 70-c m band. As a scanner antenna (non - TV ante nna wire. avai lable from most hard-
It ·s one of the first antennas that most new transmit ) it is usable from 30 MHz thro ugh the ware and electronic sto res. Most of us o ldtimcrs
ha rm hear about and wi sh to acquire. Se vera l g igahe rtz bands. wi ll re member this wire as the twinlead used
commercial antenna manufac turers make and I will not get into the theory or math in- to connect a TV to the roof-mounted antenna
sell this ty pe of antenna in the price range of vo lved in the construc ti on of thi s antenna. that almost all homes in th is cou ntry d is-
from $ 15 to $25 dollars each ; you can make it othe r than to state that it is a vertically polar- played before the advent of cab le TV. You can
for $3 or $4 dollars. ized ante nna with two c leme nts: a 3/4 wave- use an o ld pi ece of twinlcad you o r a friend

20 MONITORING TIMES April 1998

may have lying around or huy a new pi ece 6 i nchcs above and below the mark. being care- shri nk tubing at the notch you cu t out to make
foot long. fu l not to nick the wire. Repeat on the other the ground side (stub) of the antenna.
side of the twin lead. Punch a hole at the top of the an tenna at the
You will need the following: M easure exactly 15.25 inches from the one center and ti e a loop of nylon line ( fishing) or
o f the notches you have just cut and remove a another nonconducting l ine to hang the an-
6 feet o f nat 300 ohm twi n lead .25 inch notch from thi s point: remove both tenna from the ceiling, tree limb or other
6 feet or more of RG-58 coax the insulation and the wire. Thi s is the ground locati on. Install your choice of connector (PL-
PL-259 or BNC connector (your choice) side ( 1/4 wave stub). The other uncut side is 259. BNC. etc.) to the coax and use. You w ill
Soldering Iron and Solder the radiator side (3/4 wave) of the antenna. find that the antenna will have a gain of 3 to 4
Wire Cutters, strippers or knife Using a piece of RG -58 coax at least 6 feet dB.
Plasti c electrical tape or heat shrink tubing long. careful ly remove .75 inches of insula- When using the antenna try to keep it away
tion from the coax to expose the braid. Sepa- from metallic objects such as electrical w iring
I Building the Antenna rate the braid from the center conductor and and plumbing. It is possible to detune the
twist together. Remove the insulation from antenna i f it is close to such objects. For a
Begin hy carefully removing 0.75 inch of
the center conductor. Connect the braid from permanent outdoor installation. mount the J-
insulation from one end of the twin lead. being
the coax to the ground side (stub) of the Pole inside a piece of PVC pipe capped at both
carefu l that you also do not cut the wires. Once
twin lead and the center conductor to the long ends. Drill a hole in the bottom cap for the
the wire has been stripped. tw ist the pair of
side (rad iator) of the twinlcad. Try to connect coax to pass th rough and seal around the coax
w ires together and solder. Thi s is the bottom
the coax so that it lays in the center o f the with a good waterproo f scaler. M ount on top
of the antenna.
twi nlead. Solder the coax braid and center of your mast or tower.
Cut the twinlead to 54 inches exactly from
conductor to the twinlead. By bui lding several of these low cost. easy
top to bottom. Doub le check the length: it
Use elec trical tape or heat shrink tubing to to construct antennas you can keep one handy
needs to bt: exact.
secure the coax to the twinlcad. This will help at all times-such as in your car glove com-
Measure 1.25 inches up from the bollom of
take the stress off the solder points and make partment. briefcase or back pocket- and en-
the antenna and mark the in~ulation. From th is
the j oint waterproof. A lso tape or use heat joy the improved performance of this antenna
mark. carefull y remove the insulation for .25
any time.

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-
Scanner Support:
Solder coax Solder coax braid
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center conductor- - - (shield) to wire 7100, ICOM 8500, ICOM 9000, AOR
to wire 3000, AOR 8000 and WinRadio
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• FCC database
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• Cut 'n paste or drag & drop into LP

/
• Sort, search and proximity search
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$79.95 on diskettes w/o database

Tape or Heat Shrink Tubing For more info, see www.lpcom.com

Coax to Twinlead. Try to Coax LP Communications, Inc.
center coax on twinlead 51 14 Balcones Woods Dr. Ste. 307-
305, Austin, TX 78759
as shown. Phone(512)260-3478

April 1998 MONITORING TIMES 21