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VHF ariel

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  • VHF ariel

    Can anyone advise me what type of antena to replace my old glass fibre one, as it has snapped at the base, plus, not sure it was very good in the first place.
    Does it make much difference being mounted on a gantory rather than just on the cabin roof.
    P.B. Cod 30lb-11ozs Balcary.

  • #2
    Arthur, I’d just buy another glass fibre aerial about four foot long and with high gain.

    The aerial’s range works on line-of-sight, so the higher up it is the longer the range. The difference between a four foot and eight foot is pretty minimal but it’s still worth mounting it high up on the cabin roof. Make sure it comes with the right connector for your radio.

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    • #3
      its a complex area! a 4 foot antenna will resonate at half the wavelength, an 8 foot will resonate at full wavelength at channel 16 frequencies. the way an antenna resonate affects range a lot. as you move to different channels the frequency and therefore wavelength changes - the percentage difference between the antenna's fixed resonant frequency and the frequency you are transmitting on will also be a lot greater with a half wave versus a full wave as you move away from channel 16 (antennas are optimised for use on 16), the gain characteristics are usually higher with a longer one as well

      personally I'd always go for 8' If practical

      not the best diagram but quicker than drawing one myself!



      range is estimated at

      approx 1.42 multiplied by square root of antenna height at the top

      the extra 4 foot can make an important difference. Most important thing of all is get it as high as possible, keep it as straight as possible, none of this raked backwards looks good malarkely - if it ain't straight you'll be transmitting upwards - look at the lifeboats - they rake theirs forwards so when the boat is planing, the antenna sites perfectly vertical. keep the cable length to a bare minimum. a lot of them come with 30' of cable - cut off what you don't need as you can lose a lot in the coax
      ʎɐqǝ uo pɹɐoqʎǝʞ ɐ ʎnq ı ǝɯıʇ ʇsɐן ǝɥʇ sı sıɥʇ.

      Thought for the day:
      Some people are like slinkies - not really good for anything but bring a smile to your face when thrown down the stairs

      Converting an MFV Fifie trawler type thing.

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      • #4
        javascript:;

        Was looking at these on ebay. look sound and durable.
        P.B. Cod 30lb-11ozs Balcary.

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        • #5
          Metz marine VHF radio/ AIS antenna (aerial): Lifetime warranty. | eBay

          Was looking at these on Ebay, thought they looked the buisness. Anyone got any thoughts!

          Thanks for your thoughts Mark & Kevin, didn't realise it was such a complex thing to get right.
          P.B. Cod 30lb-11ozs Balcary.

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