Tape Measure Yagi Beam Antenna - Ham Radio Q&A
ฝัง
- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 6 ก.พ. 2017
- The 2 Meter band tape measure beam antenna is a 3 element Yagi with about 7.2 db of forward gain. This lightweight antenna is perfect to use for fox hunts or as a portable directional antenna for public service events.
Instructions:
www.jpole-antenna.com/2017/02/...
Parts List
1 25 foot 1 inch wide steel tape measure
1 10 foot piece of 3/4 inch Schedule 40 PVC Tube
2 3/4 inch PVC Cross connectors
2 3/4 inch PVC T connector
6 3/4 to 1 1/2 inch stainless Hose Clamps
1 5 inch piece of 14 ga wire
1 length of RG-58 cable, approx 6 foot
Solder and Flux
Electrical Tape
Tools
Soldering Iron
Tin Snips
Wire Cutter
Screw driver or nut driver
PVC cutter or fine tooth saw
Sand paper or Dremel tool with sanding disk
Ruler or tape measure
Based on the design by WB2HOL: theleggios.net/wb2hol/projects...
Support Ham Radio Q&A by shopping at Amazon: amzn.to/2kO6LH7
Read my blog: www.jpole-antenna.com
Music by license:
www.premiumbeats.com
Funky Chunk Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)
Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License
creativecommons.org/licenses/b... - วิทยาศาสตร์และเทคโนโลยี
WOW!! What a great video. All you you tube video producers should watch listen and learn. 1. Great audio, nice and even and at a proper level. 2, Great subject, something people may really be intrested in. 3. To the point and not endless talking heads. 4. Showed
proper assembly, quick to the point assembly instructions, not a 2 hour video of some guy who left his camera on. 5. Great presentation and commentary, not some guy saying UUh and whatnot for and hour. GREAT video keep up the good work, and Thanks. (I'm Gonna build one)
Thanks for the compliments, I'm glad you enjoyed the video. It's been my experience that there is a dearth of good amateur radio DIY videos. So I'm using my expertise in video production and experience of amateur radio to create tutorials that are interesting and well produced.
i was wondering what mount u used to mount the yagi while you was testing it
Yep, and he talks at a good pace. Many times I have to crank up the speed to 1.25 because of slow talkers.
@@KB9VBRAntennas please please don’t ever stop making videos 😊
Subbed. This was probably the most concise video on building your own yagi I have seen. I pulled a hat trick on Saturday and went from unlicensed to Amateur Extra in one shot. Now I'm just waiting for a call sign.
Congrats on the license!
I know it's almost a year later, but I would like to know how you passed all three exams in one shot. Did you already have some background in the field?
@@tradedate -- Most certainly, as there's enough info at each level to prevent guessing at the answers and passing.
I have a BS - EEE, and have studied a bit, so that I'm hitting 90% on Tech practise exams, but only 65% on the General practise exams. Doing all three at once is a great achievement.
@@CycleRayinOK for sure. I decided to pace myself since it was all new subject matter for me. I studied hard for the technician license. I aced that, so they offered me the general exam. I missed it by two questions, having not studied for that one at all.
No regrets though. I didn't want to overwhelm myself and fail the tech.
I built this antenna last month and i just sent my APRS beacon to the International Space Station with this. It works perfectly well. Thank you. TB1CLR, 73.
Great video! I did laugh out loud when you used a tape measure to measure the tape measure to cut it...
I'm fairly new to ham radio, but im fascinated by antenna and antenna design. Thanks for the information...
Combustion Kills : I agree, couldn't get any easier could it???.
Agree, I though that was insulting to the tape. If you have to cut up a tape for this, at least have the decency to use it to determine its own length!
@@AlessioSangalli Heck no! That would be savagely!
I just wanted to say Thank you! I used your design here and substituted a wooden yardstick in place of the PVC pipe because I couldn't get PVC pipe where I was deployed. The antenna was fantastic! Using my Yaesu FT-817 I was pushing 5 watts QRP with zero watts reflected as measured on a Bird Thruline wattmeter making contacts that I never would have thought possible. Great design that has me wanting to make more antennas in the future when I get home. Thanks again. 73's KX4IG
I'm curious how far that 5 watts will reach out with this thing?
Just made this antenna with the stuff I had in my shop. Was my first antenna build and worked great out of the box. Hit a repeater 32 miles away.
I built one of these at a local ham club meeting. They talked about it being great for fox hunts, but nobody mentioned you could use it with an HT to hit a repeater 60 miles away! This thing may become part of my go kit, since it folds up pretty easily. Thanks for the step by step walk through... excellent video how-to!
73,
Brett
You are correct‚ you can transmit with them. I did a video last month where I used mine to make a sideband contact 40+ miles away: th-cam.com/video/uvH8NQy-T84/w-d-xo.html
6 years later your video's still helping people. Built my first yagi following your directions and it works great! Hope to find a fox hunt this summer. Thank you!
Could you give the formula for calculating the reflector and boom length @matthewnovak5440 ??
@@Chalan_Chitramu I can't help you, sorry. I just followed the instructions provided in the video, and that was a year ago, so I don't recall them of the top of my head. If he doesn't provide that info in the video, I wouldn't know it anyway since that's where I got my info.
@@matthewnovak5440 Could you suggest any book for designing the yagi uda antenna ??
I built one of these and my first attempt on 2m simplex was a brand new ham calling out! He had just got his technician license at the DARA hq just a few days ago. He was super excited to reach me as his first contact ever, and I was super excited because he proved this new antenna worked fabulously!!!! Thanks for posting!
Thanks for the great video. Thanks to this antenna I was able to participate in the ISS SSTV event this morning. Thank you
That is just plain cool! This is why I like the ham radio hobby! Simple, field expedient and gives your signal from the ht a kick in the butt!! Thank you for sharing your project!!
Just finished building this antenna and it is amazing. Thanks for putting this video together. Made a few contacts over 50 miles away with an HT.
Good to hear that the antenna is working great for you.
Was that a simplex contact?
I could listen to funky music and watch people build antennas all day. Great stuff man. Can't wait to try this out!
The music is great for sure!
A friend of mine built one of these. This is only based on a test of one antenna. I measured performance in a clear open area. Since the intended use was hidden transmitter hunting, my only concern was the antenna pattern.
I found two important things with the antenna brought to me:
1.) It had terrible common mode on the coax. I could touch the VNA analyzer case, or slide my hand along the coax, and see a fairly large change in impedance.
2.) It had generally poor directivity in the 2M Ham band. It lacked a good deep null off the rear. It actually seemed to have better directivity on the weather band than2 meters.
I did two things.
1.) I altered the spacing. We just swapped the director and reflector around on spacing so the reflector is wider spacing like almost all 3 element Yagis are. This improved the back null quite a bit. I made no efforts to trim elements, but suggested he make the elements slightly long in a future model so we could trim them in.
2.) I grounded the coax shield to the center point of the reflector. We had about 18 inches of coax spiraled around the boom to the hairpin match. This forms a high impedance on the shield at the hairpin. This completely eliminated the noticeable SWR changes as I moved my hands along the coax.
It’s ALIVE! Followed along and built my first antenna. Thanks!
Michael, I watched this a couple times last night (friday.) I managed to copy a rough idea of this (2 meter, tuned with the nano) and made a contact 52 miles away with a UV5R, yes you heard that right, a little 3 watt radio. I think the real lesson here can bring up a multitude of topics which I will discuss with some other people soon here: hams have the privilege of building their own stuff, our signals can travel much farther, that topic of possible interference could possibly happen if it's zipping around the earth or bouncing off of things and lastly and most importantly never underestimate the ability of underrated equipment in the right conditions. I really think this was dumb luck but I did use a Google distance calculator, a compass bearing and found a good spot. Thanks for all you are doing with this channel and being a servant to others. The information you taught might save somebody else's life one day.
Great Ham Radio project Michael. Excellent easy to understand video. Especially like the method you use to speed up the construction portions of the project. It is refreshing for a ham to give the parts lists and step by step instructions. FIRST CLASS PRESENTATION. Very professional, I thought you must be a teacher with many years of experience. I built two of the antennas for an upcoming ham club fox hunting event. No problems, worked just as you said and showed in your video. Other Amateur Radio operators could learn many good tips and methods to present and do videos on ham radio projects if they watched your videos. Keep up the good work Michael. Great Job! Howard WB0ATB
Thanks for the compliments. I'm glad you found the video easy to follow and were able to build working antennas by watching it. I never was a professional teacher, but I did stay at a Holiday Inn Express once :). I do have a degree in Communication Arts, so it's good to put my Liberal Arts education to use in benefitting the amateur radio community.
Super brand new to this hobby.... thank you for using plan English... easy to understand
Just made contact with the ISS via APRS using this tape measure antenna and my Yaesu FTM400XDR. Thank you for posting this video Michael! 73s from KI5BWY.
Thank you for sharing your knowledge and expertise with your videos. I’m just getting back into amateur radio and the new technology and information that is available is staggering and somewhat overwhelming at times. I find your videos to be clear, concise and welcoming to those of us who are new to this great hobby. Living in an apartment building makes antennae’s somewhat challenging as I have to be rather stealthy with them. Most of my activity ( when I’m licensed in the new year ) will be field transmitting and I’m gathering various radios and antenna styles to experiment with. I’m really looking forward to using my QRP radios as well as my stronger radios under field conditions.
73
John in Toronto Canada. 😀
I am stunned by the excellent presentation on the subject. Believe that you covered all the bases of a video. Last but not least, I am amazed of you thinking out of the box using such simple materials and making a really nice Yagi. Good day too.
Never thought about using tape measure as an element. Great idea.
I built one of these over the weekend and it works very well. I got the SWRs down to 1.1:1 and instead of soldering the coax to the driven elements, I decided to use an SO-239 connector with 3 inches of wire for the center conductor and ground, each. My house is in a 100 ft valley (compared to surrounding terrain) and I am still able to talk to my brother 4 miles away on 1 watt of power. Also, I'm using RG-8X coax to connect to the antenna.
Excellent video. I'm a fairly new ham and I'm looking forward to trying this project.
I just built this and it looks like I am hitting towers about 50 miles away. However, please tape up the ends of the tape measure, my ten year old son was holding the antenna while I taped the cable and he dropped it on my leg,
And it cut an inch and half gash, I am headed to the clinic now to see if it needs stiches.
I love your videos. You make them understandable! I’m working on my antenna now. I used plastidip on the ends to prevent cuts. 73 and thank you!
I built this antenna today per your instructions and it turned out amazing! Thank you for the clear and concise video. 73, KF0OVB
This is the best video I've seen for a beam antenna beautiful job well explained!
Thank you Mike, i’m working on building my third 2m tape measure antenna, they work great!
Cool... Great presentation. As a former teacher, I can really compliment your style and AV methods. Solid and easy to understand instructions. I don't even really need one, but it looks like a fun project. I think I will build one to keep handy. I wonder how much of Harbor Freight's business is from hams? 😀
My 12 year old son and I just built this. Thanks for a great how to vid.
Hey I've been a wood flooring contractor for 32 years that little tape measure you got from Harbor Freight is one of the best tape measures you can spend three bucks on better than a Stanley I originally bought three of them one lasted like 3-4 months and it was just so dirty that It was hard to read but it still worked nice project I'm going to build me one thanks
Just bought a J pole from you on ebay yesterday and stubled on this video! Looking forward to using it! Great video! Small world!
Glad you enjoyed the video and thanks for your purchase.
Fabulous and very helpful video. Thanks so much.
Interesting and well explained video and I am going to try and build my 2 meter beam from the instructions here.
Great video! Thanks for putting it together.
Wow. Super video and tutorial. Building one of these as I prepare for QuartzFest 2020.
This is a very informative and clear video. I built this antenna with one minor modification -- instead of soldering coax directly to the feed point, I instead soldered an N-type socket, and use an N-type to SMA cable to connect to my HT. (I have bad luck when it comes to stripping and separating coax. My approach ain't pretty, but it works.) I also covered the tips (last 1/2 inch) of the elements with electrical tape to avoid cuts and scratches.
Analysis with a NanoVNA showed my version had an impedance of 52 Ohms and minimum SWR of 1.1:1 at 148.5 MHz. The SWR increases rapidly from that minimum, but still seems reasonable within the 2-m amateur band. On 70 cm, the antenna has an SWR of 1.6:1 at 449 MHz. I'll try playing around with the spacing of the driven elements to see if I can bring the resonant frequency/ies into the right range.
Built one this afternoon. Thanks for the video!
Thanks for the video. I just finished building this antenna. My regular 17in omni on 2 meter was only receiving at 1/3 scale this receives at full scale, full quieting to a repeater. I'm really amazed that this works, now I just need to tune it so I can Tx with it. Great video and thanks for the parts list on your blog, I took a picture of the list and found everything at home depot. The list does say 10Ft of PVC I got away with 2 2FT pieces, I'm not sure what the extra would be for unless you were making a stand for it.
Glad to hear the antenna is working well for you. I mentioned 10 feet of PVC in the parts list as that's the length you usually but the tubing at the home improvement store. But really any amount of scrap tubing will work, it doesn't have to be a certain thickness or diameter.
That looks like too much fun. Going to Harbor Freight to get my free antenna tape measure
Just got back from harbor freight.
Good luck building. Edges are sharp
@@frankwc0o I'd go with non-metallic paint
Hi from IU4OOB. I’ve just built mine and it works great! It doesn’t look as good as your but it works. Thx a lot!!
i made this antenna a week ago and its strong its about 80km thanks KB9VBR
Thanks for this video. Excellent project.
What a magic project, many thanks ~ ZL4MB - New Zealand.
Great! I really enjoy your videos and the detail you put into them. I'm going to build one of these to try to work the FM satellites. For us new hams, can you put together a video on how to prep the RG-58 cable for a project like this?
I'm going to try this one. Looks like a fun project to get started with.
Super good video, thanks for making and posting it.
Very clear - thank you! Project for this weekend 😎🙏
Just made it today - works a treat! Cheers!
Great Video! liked and subscribed. Your method of instruction was easy to understand even for a Newbie like me. The video was well produced and easy to follow. I built my first yagi today. Thank you KB9VBR. 73
Built one today. I don't have the means for tuning so i just measured and assembled it as precisely as i could. I was able to receive voice from AO-92 (VHF downlink) and SO-50 (UHF down) loud and clear. However, it is not a magic wand! and I was NOT able to transmit successfully to a friend 1 mile away through medium dense forest/trees (this is not surprising). Without so many trees blocking, I was loud and clear TXing at 4 watts from 1 mile. Don't expect to beat the laws of physics or anything with this, but even without tuning you'll be able to recieve MUCH better than you might with the rubber ducky. Tune it for best possible TX capability!
Thanks VBR for the awesome design! de N0CALL ;)
Great idea, I will make mine soon! Thanks!!
Your build is very similar to the way I typically make them. I like to dip the ends of each element in that liquid plastic stuff they sell at hardware store for coating tool handles. It makes the ends more visible and prevents the ends from scratching or poking anyone. Also, I always put a cross on the director end as well. Once you’re close to a hidden transmitter, it’s often easier to zero in on the location using the null on the reflector end, so the extra cross allows you to hold the antenna ‘backwards’.
Very good video, the pace was great. Simple down and dirty Yagi and you could easily add a couple more elements for 9db of gain.
New Sub! Going to attempt this for hilltop repeater work in the UK. 👍🏻
Enjoy your videos. Great stuff.
Great video by the way, looks fun to build!
Really very well done! Thank you, Will make one, KM6IKH, 73...
Love the use of the Lowel light stand. Thanks for the videos.
Got that stand years ago when I bought my Tota-Light. It's near bullet proof.
Could you do a vidio for 220 mhz for repeater use thanks KA7EGC Salt lake City Utah.@@KB9VBRAntennas
Very helpful video and easy to make.
Love that music. Ham radio with some swing. Liking your videos a lot man, informative, and well made.
"It don't mean a thing if it ain't got that swing. "
Great video and great antenna, I am getting into Satelite Communications and this works splendidly. I was able to receive communications from AO-91 on an 89deg elevation passes from horizon to horizon loud and clear.
After following your instructions it works great! Any plans to put out a video on building a 70cm Yagi?
Great video!
That looks like a fun build!
Great video and idea, thanks for sharing, super cool. stay safe and 73's
A very nice build of a tape measure yagi antenna. I wanna build one myself after I get my Tech. license and a HT.
Awesome work. 👍
Nice build, I think I’ll try it.
This looks like a fun project for when I get home. Thank you!! Just found your videos and they are very informative and easy to follow. One question is what stand
did you use to hold up the Yagi at the end of the video?
W4CEC here......I am building a couple of these for the Legion Club, WF4TAL. I think this is fun!
Just built five of these antennas with my students today and they work great! Sadly, the cost of each antenna was $40 😢 Darn inflation! Thanks for making these videos!!!
They shouldn’t have cost that much. Harbor Frieght tape measures are cheap and work great.
Thanks for the wonderful, clear, concise video! I'd like to make one of these to attempt voice contact with the ISS from my Baofeng handheld - talking to space on a shoestring, if you will. I will be transmitting on 144.49 MHz. Would I need to make any changes to the measurements outlined in your video, or do I just need to find an SWR meter and "tune" to 144.49 by adjusting the driven element gap? Thanks again!
Thank you for this video. I will build one this week and try and get a QSO with the ISS next week. "73" W3CDW
Great video! By changing the gap you would change the distance between the elements but leave the length of wire the same length ?
Michael thanks for the outstanding instruction. I plan on building this for SOTA activations. Do you think you could repeatedly roll this up in a Fly rod case for strapping to a backpack?
These DIY antennas are great for qrp camping or for use in direction finding fox hunts
Turned out nice.Good video. Tks
Excellent! Thank You!
Love this antenna idea! Any thoughts on making a 70cm version? Or making this a dual bander by putting 70cm 90° off from the 2m elements?
I like how you you use one tape measure to measure the other tape measure.
Nice video, and thanks for the quality J-Pole. I'm wanting to build a Yagi for the GMRS band. My question concerns the hair pin match. Is it only required here because it's a 2-meter build, or would the same apply to a GMRS build?
UPDATE:
Picked up a MicroFox (15mw output) and built a couple of these using an active offset attenuator. I use them specifically to teach scouts for Merit Badge Requirement #9, partake in ARDF, but I also use it as a DEMO for a variety of youth events.
I set the FOX a distance away, and show them how to use the setup. My attenuator offsets the main frequency by 4MHz, making it cleaner to find the fox.
The original antennas still work, but I am building a couple more so multiple sets of Scouts can look at the same time.
I also have a few full power HTs (6watt) that are crossband I have used for a greater distance fox hunt.
However, this is still, as far as I am considered, the gold standard for the homebrew Yagi.
It is simple, it is cheap, and it is fast to assemble.
I used my NanoVNA and tuned it to 1.2:1 on 2Meter, and it was also 1.8:1 on 70cm
I use it to contact the ISS Repeater and have had a QSO from FMo5 to EM26 through the ISS Repeater.
NOW THAT WAS COOL!!!
Thanks,
Chris Cancilla
de W4CEC
hey bud just found you on youtube as I am preparing to write my ham licence here in Canada and I must say I find your vids rather interesting so 73s from Canada sir
Glad you found my videos. I'm not very familiar with Canada's licensing procedure, but I bet there is a fair amount of overlap in the exam material. Good luck on the test!
Thanks for posting this...very clear, concise and easy to follow. I do have a question thought...what would the changes be...if any...if this was made with the tape fixed at 90 degrees to how you have made it? That is, the flat side of the tape would be directed to the repeater, not the thin side of the tape as you have made it.? I'm thinking it would fold up better and be easier for transport as the tape could be folded along the boom. Just a thought. Thanks again for posting. de Ian VK3YIC
What an awesome yagi, but i noticed toward end of video how the tape measure fluttered in the wind/breeze!
Would this affect it's performance?
Cheers!
VBQ543
Mick
I like this design!. Do you know if painting the whole thing would ruin any of its characteristics?
Very nicely done. Just one question, what's all that white stuff on the ground? We don't get that here in the desert of Southern Nevada. Looks fun!
Wow, great!
Could you use an antenna as such to transmit sound non-stop to a receiver 15 miles further in an attic? Or would you run into trouble as you are interfering within that frequency and other transmitters? :) I'm looking for a DIY way to have a live broadcast from one point to another 15 miles further, without making a radio (only one place needs to receive it) but it's been quite difficult.. :)
Hi Michael,
I love this antenna design, and im looking at building it.
One question, I want to add 2 directors to it. What would be the final measurements?
Great video! Best one I have seen on making a hand held Yagi Beam Antenna. 73
I'd love to see a build video on a larger yagi, something like 4-6 elements, something that could be hiked up to a summit but be relatively lightweight
I'm not a Ham but seeking info for a directional antenna for different purposes. The measurements you gave were very precise. I'm assuming the antenna you built was designed for a specific frequency. Where can I find out how to change the measurements for a different (but very close) frequency? What kind of frequency range would this antenna manage? Thanks for the great video!
Thanks for posting, this looks really interesting and easy. Quick question, even though the repeater you hit was 60 miles away it was still better for you to use that with vertical polarization rather than horizontal? I'm relatively new to ham radio and still learning. Thanks! WØMDK
Hi. For better results you’d want to match the polarization of the station you’re attempting to contact. Repeater antennas tend to be vertically polarized.
Hey! Very cool build. Do you have this in dual band?
Wow!!! Awesome Video!! I learned quite a bit from your presentation. At first, I thought this guy is a Nerd. Then I moved you up to MacGyver!!! Moreover, you held my attention throughout and you did not speak Too Technical , yet you didn't dumb it down below my IQ. I am new to this and I have Subscribed!!! Thank You.....
Quick Question - Have you ever made a Man Portable Whip/Tape antenna with a measuring tape and Extension Coax RG174 (SMA Female to SMA-Male). I am trying to figure out how to make one - perhaps heat wrap it with a material. Maybe you could show us how on your next video. Thanks again for sharing this information with the You Tube Community.
Neat trick I learned for cutting the tape measure: you don't need any tools at all! If you fold the tape back on itself inwards (numbers touching numbers), and then press the fold flat to make a crease, it will snap and leave you with a perfectly straight line! Unfortunately, I learned this too late to save myself from a half-hour long battle with my dremel (most of it searching for the pieces).
Passed the wind load test too!
My copper J Pole stopped working, got a new one, same issue,, cut the ground wire to my TX/RX, fixed everything