ABBREE Tacticool Ham Radio Antenna Performance Test and Review
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 23 ก.ย. 2019
- In the months since I made the first ABBREE video there has been alot of discussions about them. Some hate them, some love them. Some claim they have a horrible match to your radio. Who is right? Well, I think I might have an objective way to rank their transmit and receive capabilities.
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My wife absolutely refuses to be seen in public with me with a ham radio on my belt. I can't wait to show her this antena when I buy it.
I purchased the 42 inch antenna a few months back and brought it to a local club meeting. It was supposed to be more of a joke than anything, however, we were all impressed at how well it performed.
Yep, I did the same thing. The ABBREE on my TYT UV8000E, I use the 18 inch antenna, works great. Had increased the range of my TYT. Also I have always used a speaker mic. Took it too a club meeting now several of the members have bought them in different sizes.
Just got my license and the 8 watt Baofeng, hoping to reach out to the repeater near me with the 24"
Why do hams think these foldable antennaes look weird or like a joke? To a non-ham they look cool and professional.
Davin it’s because they are very large and heavy for practical use on a handheld (HT). However, this same style of antenna is widely used in the military but is used on a much larger and heavier radio.
I got the 42 inch for my baofeng APRS hotspot to improve the sensitivity. and it work pretty well for receiving, maybe after this clip, I should try not to unfold it at all.
Hey Josh I use one of the 42 in on my plate carrier. The trick is to use a short piece of coax between the radio and the antenna and a tiger tail. About 3ft of extension works well. Also, don't try and weave the antenna through the molle. Just run the antenna through one section of molle and secure with velcro one wrap. If you do it this way, you can have the antenna and tiger tail weaved in the back and the radio in a pouch on the front. That way you can still mess with the radio, without touching the antenna. You can do the same thing with a backpack. Anyway great video and hope this helps.
Ken I like the idea of the tiger tail, makes clear sense to me...going to made the mods to my plate carrier as well...good info
Thanks for the tip. Will make this mod to my plate carrier.
Yep that’s what I do too
Can you show a pic of what u mean?
Whats a tiger tail? Looking to route my antenna the same as you on your plate carrier.
Hey Josh. Thanks for the review. Keep it up. You are a treasure and asset to the HAM community. Don't let anyone tell you differently.
Ham community? HAH! You kids and your silly radios. They'll never take off!
Agreed !
Been waiting for the comparison! Thanks so mucha!
This might be what I've been looking for for our CERT team. Good video!
Just ordered one, 42 inch! Thank you so much for this updated review @HamRadioCrashCourse!
Been waiting on this one. Great video!
yours is the best, systematic, well documented, different scenarios test! love it, thanks!
Love your video"s Josh!Thank you for all you do for Hams!!You Rock!!!
great review! thanks for making it. I already got one ordered from wish but still couldn´t test it properly. keep on with the good work!
Definitely enjoyed the video and the testing setup you made to see how the two brands of antennas compared across VHF, UHF, Transmit, and Recieve. For me, this is the type of content that I really enjoy.
Been waiting for this vids forever, thanks
Thanks you for doing the testing of these antennas. My first impression of these was just a novelty but after watching this I may have to get one.
Because of this video, going for the 18' antenna. Keep up the great work 👍
The was a blast down memory lane for me. We used the tape antenna when we trained in NTA (Okinawa, Japan) for short range and the Whip antenna for long distance. Wow ..... Nice video Bro.
Great reviews ... keep up the good work!
Semper Fi !!!
Great info. I am currently studying for my technician license and will probably for my general too. This stuff is still foreign to me. I just found your channel and had to subscribe. Keep the info coming!
Thanks for the tests on these, I will proberly get one for QRP field contests VK3HJW.
I bought both the 24 and 42 inch versions before watching your video. Glad to know it wasn't a complete waste. Thanks for what you've been doing, helping beginners like me.
Some serious work man, thank you for the great content.
Great review. New at ham radio and I've learned a lot on your channel. Thank you.
Thank You! Very Good Job! Excellent as always! Keep up the great work! Oohraah!!!!
Thanks for the review, Josh! I’m going to check out the 18” antenna to see if it will give my old Yaesu VX-170 HT some new life, along with a new battery pack.
I just got a 72Cm version of another brand today and got great results. amazing that I just stumbled on your excellent review tonight. BTW, I was using a Baofeng.
I have a 24 inch abree and I'm glad you tested so I can know how it's preforming
Looks like a lot of effort went into that video. Thanks for all the hard work. Intersting results. 73 de 2E0IEH
Great video, thank you. I was contemplating buying the 43 in. For field use and now I'm sold. Thanks again
Thanks for watching!
Keep up the great work you do...because of you and a few others ( Ham Radio Concepts, W4EEY) I got my Amateur Extra...you're an Elmer to lots of people out there...😊 73 AC3FB
I literally just bought a 18.8 inch antenna due to the reviews of the abbree,thank for your help.
Hi Josh. I live in the UK, I drive for a living and listen to podcasts whilst behind the wheel. Recently found your podcast and have listened to quite a few so far. They’re quite enjoyable. Thought I’d try and find some of your TH-cam vids. I’ve only been licensed for around five years but spent 23yrs in the Army in Communications, HF, VHF some SHF and also satellite work too.
Just thought I’d say hi! All the best from across the puddle! 73’s.
Karl, (not Karlos)!
The Josh out here just BLASTING HIIT workouts and low-carbin' it. Killer video!
When I was in ROTC back in the 80's our backpack radio had an antenna almost exactly the same as the Abreee except it did not have the rubber coating(I think it was anodized). We used it when on the move.
If the Abreee is anything like the military one, it was like two tape measures attached back to back.
Amazingly the Voyager mars probe used the exact same method for it's soil scoop. The arm it was attached to was made just like the antenna, and ran between two rollers when it was retracted. This type of mechanism can be amazingly strong if made right.
When not moving we had a over 10 foot segmented tubular antenna with a cord down the center attached to a spring... It took a while to take down, but could be put in service in just a few seconds.
Thanks, Josh. I could only imagine that the antenna reeks havoc on the connector at the base of the radio.
Way better review than the first. Thanks!
I'm buying the 42' to keep on my backpack. Walking around campus it'll be folded because our repeater is on campus. Hiking out of town I'd love to have that extra performance on a budget.
I enjoy this channel.
Thank You Man!
I originally bought the 42" ABBREE because of your other videos on them. It is a bit unwieldy, but for the performance and the price, I can deal with it. Thanks for the great comparison.
Abbbbreeeeeeeeeeeeeee! Rules!
Wow! That 42" really pulls in the signals.
Very nice comparison. I currently have the Nagoya 771 and it's worked great. I'll have to invest in the 42" here shortly.
Thanks again Josh, for the great demo.
73 - John - N7GHZ
Great video Josh👍
Thank you for your finding ! I was curious to this myself!
I have the 18.8 and the 42.5, love them both. Here is a trick, if your 42.5 inch antenna has problems where it folds, hit that area with some heat from a blow/hair drier, it will shrink the tubing down a bit, and should help the antenna stay unfolded. I attach my 42.5 Abbree to a tactical back back and use a short cable to attach to my radio, I also use a speaker mic. Great channel, you introduced me to the Abbree antenna. 73's, stay safe.
Got the 42 incher today and put it on my Bangfang which had a 771 on it. Instant difference. Excellent RX on 2 and 70, TX better on 2 than 70. Interesting that your 70 test on the folded 42" yielded better results than unfolded. Thanks for all the great videos. I learn a lot from them.
Just ordered all of the antennas, this will be fun!
Awesome. Thank You for your time and expertise
Those abree antennas are basically tape measure material with shrink tubing on it!!
Great video, excellent work on the comparisons. 🤠👍
I so wanted the signal stick in the mix on this one! You got better results than I did. Though my tests were very unscientific just using a crossband repeater and a couple of fengs. It would be interesting how this stacks up against a rollup j-pole in this kind of test. 73, K2RRT
What a brilliant video ! thanks for putting this together - i've ordered my 42" abbree - only now have to wait for it to arrive in January ! aggh :D
Thanks for watching!
Excellent video!!!
Very surprised! When I saw these antennas I thought they were a gimmick. Great video!
I didn’t know About the knockoffs when I bought the Luiton 15.5” but it seems ok so far. Awesome video!
Great show thanks England 🏴
Another great video sir, thank you...!!!
I picked up two 18" for my UV5R and they seem to work quite well. I might try the 24" eventually but I wouldn't want to be any more tacticool then that.
I am knew to this and just got my radio. so thx u for the videos. they help me alot to learn everything I need to know. :)
Thanks Josh, actually made sense to me. I just can't find a useful way to use those big things, I guess maybe on a mobile base for fieldwork.or maybe on a mobile repeater? Anyway thanks for the video. appreciate it.
Bob/Okc
Great Review, thanks!!
I enlisted the help of another ham across town with an O-scope and did the same thing you did...except we did a cycle using rat-tail/tiger-tail's ('counter-poise') and what we learned was the ABBREEEs improve your 'receive'...the 'rat-tail/tiger-tail' improves your transmit. I check into several nets on Saturdays while I'm at work in the field and often I can't hit the repeater without the rat-tail/tiger-tail installed when I'm out on the fringes or between tall buildings. Technical testing shows it....field testing confirms it. (I carry a Baofeng UV82HP at work....fyi)
Great video! Very informative.
Thanks for the real world test. It works great with my MTBR Squad radio
OUTSTANDING EDUCATIONAL VIDEO !!
Great informative video, thanks!
Thank you for sharing with us.
Thank you so much for this video. I am getting myself one of these antenna.
Great review
ThankYou Josh!
We used these tape antennas in the Marines. AT-272A Tape Antenna
more reviews like this one please, i was really suprised at the old nagoya . real life not lab room. that guy was really interested in what you were doing, though i think if you had talked to him at that moment hed have run to the nearest swat team hihi
There are so many gems in your comments. I just learned what a tigertail is.
Excellent video I might get the 42" one.
Alan in the UK
Great reviews!
I just bought the42 inch abree ,the AA she’ll for the uv5r, Gordo’s tech book, 2 771’s and the 3800 mah uv5r battery from your amazon link. Thanks for posting your amazon link.
SWR numbers are not provided as they could artificially imply one antenna is better than another without considering the testing apparatus that was used when the antennas were developed, which all differ. The radio was in low power output for all tests, pretty impressive at .5 miles I would say. The 24” antenna is actually referred to as the 28” on Amazon. 🤙
You should do a test using a wire counterpoise, maybe different lengths and/or dual band counterpoise.
I disagree with your logic here: your test may not match the manufacturers, but if your test is CONSISTENT, then your results should be considered valid. i.e. the tests need to be precise, not accurate. Thanks for the video.
@@iNowHateAtSigns Your consistent test may artificially show one antenna better than another. e.g. what frequency you are testing for lowest SWR would be affected by your testing apparatus.
I have one that is use on my GMRS ham-o-can. It literally fits inside the can with everything else, and works great!
Which one? The 18"
Alllllwaaaays wanted to know what these antennae were and whether or not they could be used on civvie amateur radios.
Today is a good day! :D
Love your vids, man!!!
Keep-up the good work!
Hi that was awesome I'm getting a 42"abbree antenna for my uv5r
Great testing
Excellent review, Josh. - Julia, KF8JBB, The Mom Ham
Ditto that Julia!
Thank you both!
Excellent review 👍👍👍🇺🇸
Got got the 24" and 42" antennas. I have no problems with keying up to a repeater 20+ miles away. I've also got on to a repeater 40 miles away with my Baofeng UV-9R plus and UV-5RTP.
Thanks,greetings from Belgium.
I have the 42", and as far as it developing a memory, I've noticed that if you just leave it unfolded for a few days it will perfectly straighten back out.
Good tip!
I bought the 42" after your last video.
great test thanks
UNCLEDOUG HERE I ALWAYS INJOY YOUR VIDEOS !! KEEP THE GOOD WORK UP !! THANKS
Thanks for watching!
Thanks. The Abbree 28.3 inch comes with a sma male connector now I know what to order.
Try the 42" out the top of a ruck sack. Camelback used to make rucks with a top side flap for a water hose to feed through perfect for sticking an antenna through. 42" is great for still having a lot of the radiating element clear of obstruction. You can always slip the antenna out the side of a top flap of a ruck.
Great video
Mine is in the mail. I can't wait
Great video, 73 de 9A5WA
Excellent video. Honestly, every time I use the 42” abbree on my 2 meter ht I’m completely impressed. I’ve talked miles and miles with it. And it’s so clear. Anyway, thanks for the follow up test. KI7WJP
Its strange that those antenna are looked at as being weird when people use them. The US military uses similar antenna on PRC-152a and other such radios. I am looking at buying one for my radio. Great video, I am learning a lot from your channel.
I just bought one and i am getting started in ham radio just bought one theses antennaes only to find out it is a knock off works perfectly fine compared to.the one that came with my ham thank you for the information
It is a killer video!!!! Great Job!!!
Thanks for watching!
Thanks for all your testing & reviews, very useful. W5LEG
Hey Josh I unfortunately bought one of the Fake Abbree 42.5" antennas of of eBay for my Baofank 9R PLUS because I had not researched it properly but anyway I fixed it because it would not fit my radio. Long story short, the Baofang Antenna Whip is about 12.5mm or nearly 1/2" diameter at the base & the Fake Abbree 42.5" was about 18.25mm or 23/32" but it had a metal sleeve under the plastic outside diameter which was nearly 1/2" diameter. So to fix it I measured up from the end of the base of the outside plastic about 3/16" & with a razor knife I cut down to the metal sleeve making a 3/16" split washer so to speak. To make the antenna seal up I put about 1" wide flat x 1" long of Heat Shrink Tubing over the end & the plastic split washer I had cut off the antenna that I put back temporarily until I heated the Heat Shrink Tubing to the edge of the Antenna covering the plastic piece I had cut off. Once it was all tight over the end of the Antenna I dug out the plastic piece so that there was now like antenna foreskin that would cover over the radio's connection giving it a perfect seal once the massive antenna was screwed on. I haven't tested the performance of the Fake antenna yet but I'll let you know if you want to compare Fake v's Legit.
Mark, Perth, Western Australia
I'm very glad becuse now I know where to spend my money... THANKS for this video....
Reminds me of the antenna on the old PRC 77 radio I humped in the old army. They were made with several layer of material.
I remember the old prc 77 antennas also. Used them in the 80s and into the 90s actually.
Only difference is that this one is not metallic, properly foldable into pocket size, damage from mishandling, etc...
I repaired 77's well into the 2000's for guard units. They were gone by time I left hood though.
WELL DONE...THANKS AND 73
Josh many thanks for the great video. I have the 42 inch model and it seems to work well, but I'm just concerned it is putting to much force on the small SNA connector on my Yaesu FT3DR radio.
It's funny I rock the same watch! Thank you for these antenna tests, I'm trying to figure out which antenna to get for a Uv-5r