[K3CAL] replacement antennas for Prince Frederick

Fri Oct 5 11:43:41 EDT 2018

Thanks for these suggestions.  I'm looking at sources and reviews.  Here's one of them.  I'll do the same for the other one in a separate email. 

Tram 1481 Dual Band 2M/70cm 144-148 & 440-450 MHz Base/Repeater Antenna 17' 
1-10 of 11 reviews

Great Antenna

Average rating:5out of5stars, based on0reviews

Easy to assemble. My experience had a 1.1-1 swr match on 2m and a 1.2-1 on 70cm and GMRS on first attemp. One of the easiest antennas i have ever setup.

KE8DBM, ‎February‎ ‎18‎, ‎2016

100

Average rating:1out of5stars, based on0reviews

s.w.r. went up to 4.0 after first rain storm. I even sealed joints with silicone . water still got in. very poor quality control at factory. would make a good inside antenna. lol.

Juddy, ‎April‎ ‎20‎, ‎2018

20

tram 1481

Average rating:5out of5stars, based on0reviews

Not the best made antenna out there. But it is well worth the price. Just make sure you tape up the joint on the main mast to keep out water. The supplied seals are not very good. The extra tape will help the SWR to stay low..

Victor, ‎September‎ ‎2‎, ‎2016

  Verified purchaser

50

Good gain, good reception, but very narrow banded!

Average rating:4out of5stars, based on0reviews

I like the Tram 1481 antenna it has good gain, good reception, but it very narrow banded. The swr at 146.00 MHz is 1.1 to 1. but at 147.83 it rises to 1.7 to 1 and the same with the 70 cm band. I am feeding the antenna with a 45 ft. run of LMR 400. I may try a different type of coax and see if this condition changes. but, as for now it is what it is. I would recommend this antenna to you and Walmart as the place to get it.  Honestly I was kind of shocked to see Walmart having this or any other amateur gear available for sale on their website and at a very good price.

See more

KG4EIQ, ‎October‎ ‎28‎, ‎2016

  Verified purchaser

20

Great Antenna

Average rating:5out of5stars, based on0reviews

This is an outstanding antenna.  It performs as well or better than it's Diamond or Comet counterparts.  I'm using an HT at five watts and hitting repeaters 70 - 80 miles away with QSO's, not just getting an ID from the repeater.  Easy to put together and get it as high as possible.  Be sure to weather-proof it since any water or moisture inside of it will throw it off... the joints where it goes together are most vulnerable to water incursion (it's only weak point).

Dave, ‎March‎ ‎4‎, ‎2017

  Verified purchaser

20

Outstanding value

Average rating:4out of5stars, based on0reviews

Newer ham radio operator, was using a homemade J -pole for several months and decided to upgrade.  Antenna was shipped to my local Wal-Mart in two days and assembly was easy.  There are two screw together joints and set screws that hold the internal wiring together.  Everything went together very smoothly with the exception of one of the joint that couple the fiberglass rods together didn't screw all the way down.  The threads were not cast to good tolerances, but it doesn't affect anything.  The instructions said taping was not necessary, but I used white electrical tape at all the joints and left the bottom unsealed as it said there is a built in weep hole for drainage.  Results are amazing, I'm hearing stations on 2 meters that I never was able to hear and my signal reports are amazing.  Highly recommend this antenna and the price is unbeatable.

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KansasHam, ‎February‎ ‎24‎, ‎2017

  Verified purchaser

00

Love this antenna, works very well!

Average rating:5out of5stars, based on0reviews

This antenna worked great, has great gain and very respectable SWR numbers for both bands. Better on the VHF(1.08)  band but both were decent UHF (1.3). I have not tried to tune the UHF band but likely could get some better numbers with tuning.

Clark, ‎December‎ ‎5‎, ‎2016

  Verified purchaser

10

On par with diamond

Average rating:5out of5stars, based on0reviews

So far so good handles 200watts without issue. Swr under a 1.5-1 at 200watts. I just put some RTV on the treads between each section.

Bryan, ‎March‎ ‎1‎, ‎2017

  Verified purchaser

10

Great bye

Average rating:5out of5stars, based on0reviews

Best investment I made little slow getting here due to the weather that great bye

Bruce, ‎January‎ ‎22‎, ‎2017

  Verified purchaser

10

Dual band 144/440 With a Bonus at 220

Average rating:5out of5stars, based on0reviews

The quality seems good. This antenna not only performs well on 144/440 it is near flat SWR on 220. I like it and for the $ it can't be beat. We'll see what time does to it but I suspect it will hold up well. John/W8JER

JR65, ‎December‎ ‎24‎, ‎2017

Tell us if something is incorrect

Tram 1481 Amateur Dual-Band Base Antenna with 17' Base Antenna, 8 dBd 144MHz/11 dBd 440

Average rating:4.4545out of5stars, based on11reviews
11 reviews

TRAM
Walmart #  554822257

$73.12

Free shipping 

Arrives by Wednesday, Oct 10

Options

David Hardy      
davehardy0101 at aol.com

KB3RAN
CARA President

-----Original Message-----
From: David Weaver <W3PQS at comcast.net>
To: 'Calvert Amateur Radio Association - K3CAL' <k3cal at mailman.qth.net>
Sent: Fri, Oct 5, 2018 11:27 am
Subject: [K3CAL] replacement antennas for Prince Frederick

Hello, Cara members
At last night meeting, you asked me what type of antenna we should use. I found these 2 on eBay.
One is 17 foot long and the other is 5.6 Feet

Tram 1481 Dual Band 2M/70cm 144-148 & 440-450 MHz Base/Repeater Antenna 17' 

11.7dbd gain UHF430 MHz - 450 MHz
8.3dbd gain VHF 144MHz -148MHz

Diamond X50A VHF/UHF Dual Band 2Meter/440 Amateur Ham Radio Base Antenna

Band:

2m/70cm

Gain (dB):

4.5/7.2

Please let me know what you think?
Also, there's a lot of coordination that needs take place to replace the antennas. 
If you would like for me to move forward with the coordination of cable and antennas. Please let me know
We will need to get an estimate from a company to climb the tower and install the antennas.
David Weaver W3PQS

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