ANTENNAS

WA5VJB has been busy stringing antennas between satellites — in orbit — and wasn’t able to finish his planned column for this issue. Filling in for Kent this month is Robert Glorioso, W1IS, who describes how he solved some problems in making dual-band J-poles (intended mostly for field use) function well on both 2 meters and 70 centimeters. – W2VU

The J-pole typically used as a VHF/UHF vertical is not the usual quarter-wave antenna with radials. Rather, it is a half-wave end-fed vertical dipole often made with TV type 300-Ohm twin lead that doesn’t need radials1,2. I have been making 2-meter versions of these for members of our ARES group for a few years and they have been successfully used by new hams, formerly inactive hams, and active members as a simple way to get involved with ARES or build portable capability. They are often hung inside or outside a window connected to a hand-held VHF/UHF rig, though hanging it 20-50 feet up in a tree delivers even better results. We recently started using