My goal is to help you with choosing the right amateur radio antennas when you are starting out, or at least provide a couple of options for your consideration. This post is not meant to be an exhaustive list of antennas or antenna types. There are far too many out there to cover. We are keeping the subject limited to a very narrow scope, mainly focusing on what I have found to be good choices for use with my handhelds. We will mainly be talking about antennas for use with VHF and UHF frequencies in amateur radio. One exception is my use of mobile units as base stations in my HAM shack, read: home office. There are no HF antenna overviews here; and if you are expecting some sort of technical overview or breakdown of these antennas, you are also in the wrong place.

Specifically, I am covering the antennas I now have personal experience with including some of my favorites that have worked well for me. Mileage may vary for you, based on the radios you are running, the locations where you want to operate, how you want to use your radios, and the repeaters you have in range of where you are.

Note: We have no affiliation with any antenna manufacturer and have not been asked or paid by any antenna manufacturer to write this post.

Antennas

Antennas contribute to your success when it comes to making contacts or getting onto repeaters. The following are several that I have had general success with across my handhelds, my mobile units, and having something better for my HTs while in the car. Choosing the right amateur radio antenna does not have to be a hard task and hopefully we help simplify it for you.

HT (Handheld Transceivers / Handy Talkies) Antennas

Like for many starting out, HTs represent most of my amateur radio experience to date. I really like them a lot for their size and portability. Of course, I got into amateur radio to have an alternative means of communications; and HTs help facilitate that by being the ultimate form of mobile or portable communication, short of cell phones. Needless to say, there are a lot of antenna options out there for handhelds.

When it comes to antennas and your HTs, you are going to want to find the ones that work best for your radios, where you are, and where the repeaters you want to operate on are located. You may wind up buying 2-3 different antennas and trying them out like I did. Like HTs, it’s probably safe to say you cannot have too many HT antennas. OK, maybe you can; but there is no reason to limit yourself either.

“Rubber Ducks” 

“Rubber duck” is the nickname given to the stock rubber antennas your HTs come with. These suck. One star. Not recommended. Sure, they offer minimal basic abilities to get you on the air out of the box; but to be able to better utilize your HTs, you will want to get something aftermarket. Here are some of my favorite HT antenna options to-date.

N9TAX Labs

These guys make a very nice j-pole type of antenna they call the “Slim Jim.” It might be my favorite overall. You will most likely want some paracord (75-100ft or so) and half pound (8 ounce) throw weight, which is really a small bean bag, to be able to hoist this antenna up into a tree.

You just need the bean bag heavy enough to get the cord up into a tree while not being so heavy that it’s a pain to carry, especially if you plan on carrying the antenna and cord while you are out hiking, for example.

This j-pole antenna works extremely well, unless you are down in a basin or similar. Be sure to get yourself or make an antenna hook so that you can use it to attach the antenna to the cord once you get it looped over a tree branch or similar.

You might could even use this j-pole with a 2M/70cm mobile unit, as these can handle a max power of 100 Watts. You would just need to connect to your mobile unit’s UHF connector. Of course, if you going to operate at 100 Watts with your mobile unit, you would be right on the edge. This could be an option, if you were trying to use your mobile as a portable unit with battery or similar, as an example. Too, nothing says you couldn’t put a j-pole in your attic to run with an HT or mobile in your home if you so chose.

SignalStuff Signal Stick

Very flexible whip antenna that seems to work very well for dual band (VHF/UHF) HTs. It is so flexible that it can even be twisted up to carry and then return to its original shape, mostly. They come in different colors and have a glow in the dark tip on them. One of my favorites.

Diamond

Both the SRH77CA and SRJ77CA seem to work very well. The SRH77CA works with tri-band, when you have something like a Yaesu VX-6R. The SRJ77CA works with most any dual band HT. They are both a bit longer and therefore a bit heavier when mounted on your HTs. However, they generally get great reception. I’ve become a really big fan. Be on the lookout for and avoid the knock-offs that are floating around out there.

Nagoya

The Nagoya NA-771 is a solid contender and seems to be known best for working with Baofeng; but I equate them for use with Chinese-made radios in general. This is not to say that they don’t work fine with other radios; but it seems they are mostly talked about in context of the Chinese options.

Again, be on the lookout for knock-offs. Learn how to identify the fakes and buy from a reputable source.

Smiley Antenna

I really do like these antennas. The triband 270A can be used for amateur 2M, 70cm and 1.25M. They seem to work very well, all by adjusting the length of the antenna (how many sections of the antenna are extended) based on the frequency you are working. In doing so, you can easily switch between 2M, 1.25M, and 70cm. The drawback or at least my concern? I’m always afraid I’ll bend or snap off the antenna at a point because it’s all metal. Flexible whip options, like a Diamond or a Signal Stick may be a better choice for some activities. Nonetheless, Smiley is an option for you to consider and likely have in your antenna stash. They work very well, at least they have for me and where I usually operate from.

Just know that your range with an HT, with any antenna, is going to be limited; and they can all be somewhat finicky. We joke that sometimes you just have to be standing just right and aiming your body just so to get the frequencies you are after or hit the repeater you are trying to talk on. I can say the aftermarkets mentioned here work leaps and bounds over any stock, OG ‘rubber duck’ antenna.

Comet

OK. I will list the Comet HT-224 as an honorable mention. It may be a solid option for dual band too. I hesitate to list it, as I have not used it enough to know how well it works. Seems though that it could be a solid contender. I like it because it is not as long or heavy as the Diamonds mentioned above.

I Have The Power!

One word of caution with HT antennas is that you do not want to use them with any mobile or base radios, as they are only rated for HT radio power levels. Most HT antennas have a max power rating of around 10 Watts. Be sure to double check any antennas power rating so you are sure not to exceed.

Connectors, Relative to HTs

But First A Word on SMA Male versus Female

Most all HTs have SMA connection points for their antennas; and I admit I still get confused regularly about which is which when it comes to SMA connectors. So in effort to help, I will tell you that when it comes to your SMA connections on your HTs, it has nothing to do with the attachment threading on the radio or the antenna. Male SMA connectors have a post, while female SMA connectors have the hole. It is as simple as that.

It seems Chinese HTs, like Baofeng as an example, primarily use male SMAs, while Japanese HTs, like a good number of Yaesus, utilize female SMAs.

BNC Connectors

The short? You will want them. BNC connectors are your friends, at least when it comes to HTs. They make swapping out antennas on your HTs super quick and easy. Is it a big deal to have to screw off and on an antenna every time you want to swap one out? No, not really; but BNC connectors eliminate the need to do so. Plus, you may wind up using BNCs to connect your HTs to your vehicle mounted antenna, to a j-pole, or to the antenna you opt to put in your attic.

When determining which BNC you need for a particular HT, you will need to know whether the HT radio has a male or female SMA as well as what the antenna has. In other words, you’ll have either a male or female BNC attached to your HT as well as a BNC attached to your HT antenna, for a total of 2 BNCs. In other words, it is a 2 part system that allows for the quick attachment and disconnect.

If you are like me, over time you will likely put BNC connectors on all your HTs and HT antennas. You’ll see.

Vehicle Antenna

The Need

I wanted something to allow for better reception and transmitting while I was driving, as an HT antenna inside a vehicle may be frustrating to use at times. I did a bit of research and landed on a Comet SBB224. The reason? Mostly good reviews and it supports tri-band, which is a good thing since I sometimes run my Yaesu VX-6R HT.

A vehicle-mounted antenna, like this Comet, is going to be noticeably better than any HT antenna used inside a vehicle. Trying to work HTs inside your vehicle can be challenging, as vehicles can be a barrier to RF signals, like a lead box sometimes. You will just need to determine the type of mount you want to use based on the type of vehicle you have, what mounting places you have to mount an antenna to, and where you want your antenna to be. A mag mount offers some of the most flexibility because you can move it; but you may opt for something more permanent.

Mounting

I bought a Trax mag(net) mount with an NMO connection to put on my car’s roof, since you need a good grounding plane with mag mounts. I also wanted to more easily be able to remove the antenna off my roof again, since I do not drive around with it up there all the time. The biggest disadvantage? You’ll need to remember to pull the antenna off again before pulling into your garage! Ask me how I know.

I do not have a mobile unit in my car, because I really don’t want to install a mobile unit into my car. Therefore, I have only used some of my HTs with this Comet; and it works fantastic.

Home Antenna

I have no base units. Currently, I run mobile units as base units in my shack. Too, I did not want to string up antennas on my roof, on my chimney, or up in some random tree in my yard.

On the recommendation from someone I trust in the amateur radio space, I went with a Comet GP-1. I opted for the GP-1 over the GP-3 as well, because I knew the GP-1’s overall length would more than likely work in my attic, which it did. Reviews were mixed but good overall. With all that said, it works absolutely fantastic.

I have 2 mobile stations that I use as base stations in my home office that I can connect to the GP-1. The GP-3 was an option too, but prepare to pay a little more; and it comes in right at 6 feet which could be more of a challenge, if like me, you opt to mount it in your attic and not on your roof or similar.

I can also run my HTs off of the GP-1 without any issue and with great reception. Of course, antennas like this support more power which is good when running mobile units or especially base units. I believe the GP-1 allows a max power of 200 watts, which is going to work with most anything.

Connectors

One item of note is that a lot of mobile units, if not most, are going to connect to antennas via UHF connectors.

Ground for Safety

If you have antennas anywhere on your roof or up in a tree, you definitely want to have them grounded. Putting them in the attic allows you to avoid grounding them, as they will be less likely to be hit by lightning.

There are tons of other options for your home, whether mounting on a roof, up in a tree, or up on a tower for you to explore and consider, all depending on the frequencies you are wanting to operate on. Just be sure to include getting them grounded should you opt to go outside with them.

Resources

• N9TAX Labs
• Comet Antennas
• Diamond Antennas
• Smiley Antennas
• SignalStuff
• Nagoya Antennas

Conclusion

Beyond the dual band Comet GP-1 I mentioned, I cannot speak to antennas for base stations yet, as I do not have any. However, if you are like me, and I suspect most may be, you will not be starting out with a base station, as you too will likely be utilizing HTs or maybe mobile units.

My collection of HTs has grown in time. I like most of them and have no regrets. Each HT I own has its merits driving why I opted to add them to my HT stable. I mean how do you know what your favorite might turn out to be if you don’t try a few? The same can easily be said about antennas. You may have a ‘need’ to try a few before finding and settling on your favorites. Not to mention, HT antennas are relatively cheap in the overall scheme of things as compared to the radios.

I hope this post on choosing the right amateur radio antenna helps you on your amateur radio journey. Now go continue your research and find the antenna(s) that is right for you and your radio(s). The amateur radio antenna world, especially when you get ready to move into HF, is your oyster.

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