Directional Antenna Magic
Directional antennas continue to amaze me as I learn about RF and how different antennas perform different functions. This afternoon I threw my 2m/70cm yagi up on an old camera tripod and connected a Baofeng UV-5R to the 2m side. I was able to work a repeater that is currently having severe TX issues with the 5 watt HT while my 50 watt base is struggling to work it with an omni at least 15′ higher. I also have a large chunk of mountain between me and the repeater but the yagi was unaffected.
This is making me itch to get my Don’s Dream Beam up in the air. The antenna is built, I just don’t have a mast available for it yet. Soon…. Until then I’m going to use this warm-spell we’re having here in North Alabama to do some more testing with my dual band j-pole tomorrow and mount the yagi to it’s mast temporarily to allow me to get into the repeater since it’s my local Weather Net machine.
(The pvc hanging off the back is left over from a quick tuning mount for a 440MHz antenna and the vise grips are acting as a counterweight. Not a good setup but it works for a 15 minute test!)
