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Hanger/garage base radio

E. D. Eliot

Well Known Member
My old Sportys AM/FM/Air frequencies base radio has seen better days and I want to replace it. Looking for the best reception (range) that I can buy. Any suggestions? Thanks, Ed
 
FWIW I purchased a Sporty's Air Scan II Radio and really like it. I have it connected to an antenna on the outside of my hangar and get very good reception range.

GAQtl_tdyPWG.jpg


:cool:
 
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Oooh, a BT music speaker that'll break in with air transmissions? I like this. I've been meaning to get some kind of receiver for the hangar ever since we moved here like three years ago, but never got around to it. I've just had my A6 hanging on a wall plugged in all the time...
 
To pick up a signal from a greater distance, you will need a better antenna.

I have a BC365CRS in my house to listen to local landing and departing traffic. It works well. I purchased a factory refurbished one for about 1/2 price of what the street price is two years ago. I use an Icom A200 in the hangar with a ham radio 2-meter antenna that has been tuned to air band frequencies.
 
Or build one out of a 3"x3" piece of aluminum, some 12ga solid copper wire (Home Depot) a Female BNC connector or an SO-239 connector. If you use an SO-239 connector you won't need the piece of aluminum but your coax cable will require a PL-259 connector on one end instead of a BNC connector.

Cut the wires to the appropriate length (use whatever local frequency you want to monitor or 127.5Mhz) then solder/hook them up. The vertical radial (A) will be about 22.00" long while the horizontal elements (B) will be about 24.64" long and bent down about 45degrees.

Quarter_Wave_Drawing.png


Put the antenna on the outside of your hangar/home and the increase in reception distance will be amazing.

:cool:
 
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As you can see in this photo, exact lengths and the 45 degree bends are not super critical for a receiver.

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Thank you Galin

Thank you for the diagram and most importantly, the picture! I will build your antennae. Since I can build the antenna but know nothing about antennas, etc., please advise as to what the cable to the radio is. My lead from the antenna to the garage will be about 40 '. Shielded like the TV antenna - think they call it T-6???? Thanks again, Ed
 
Thank you for the diagram and most importantly, the picture! I will build your antennae. Since I can build the antenna but know nothing about antennas, etc., please advise as to what the cable to the radio is. My lead from the antenna to the garage will be about 40 '. Shielded like the TV antenna - think they call it T-6???? Thanks again, Ed
For this application "cheap" RG58, or even RG59 cable will do just fine. If you want to be "fancy" buy a professionally made RG400 cable but IMHO it isn't worth the extra $$$. Also, for "best" reception use at least 3 horizontal elements with 4 being the most common used.

Antennas-Covert-014.jpg


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I can do eight or twelve if the reception will be worth the effort - please advise - thanks, Ed
Each additional horizontal element makes slightly less of an impact than the previous one, so not really. Just make sure the horizontal elements are spaced about equal distance from each other and you will be fine.

BTW for our application horizontal elements are not even mandatory, but they do help for better range reception. So for best reception range, use whatever amount you want with 3 being the recommended minimum. Antenna specifications for radio receivers are not nearly as critical as antennas for radio transmitters.

FWIW I made mine with 4 horizontal elements only because I am cheap, lazy and the construction was easier for me. :D

I assume even something cheap like this should work, assuming you hook it to the same remote antenna.

https://smile.amazon.com/BaoFeng-UV-5R-Dual-Radio-Black/dp/B007H4VT7A/ref=sr_1_6?keywords=vhf+scanner&qid=1579527555&sr=8-6

You are 100% correct. Put this antenna (or an equivalent) on the outside of a hangar/home and any radio will work significantly better.

However, that particular radio is VHF-FM and will not work on the aviation frequencies which are VHF-AM. But make an antenna for it's frequencies and see how much better even that radio works on the VHF-FM band.

:cool:
 
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Or build one out of a 3"x3" piece of aluminum, some 12ga solid copper wire (Home Depot) a Female BNC connector or an SO-239 connector. If you use an SO-239 connector you won't need the piece of aluminum but your coax cable will require a PL-259 connector on one end instead of a BNC connector.

Cut the wires to the appropriate length (use whatever local frequency you want to monitor or 127.5Mhz) then solder/hook them up. The vertical radial (A) will be about 22.00" long while the horizontal elements (B) will be about 24.64" long and bent down about 45degrees.


Put the antenna on the outside of your hangar/home and the increase in reception distance will be amazing.

:cool:

Is there any reason I couldn't put one of these in the attic of a 2-3 story home and use the extra piece of RG6 that is wired to all my rooms in the structured cabling? That would keep everything inside and use my existing wiring.
 
Is there any reason I couldn't put one of these in the attic of a 2-3 story home and use the extra piece of RG6 that is wired to all my rooms in the structured cabling? That would keep everything inside and use my existing wiring.

As a receiver antenna, unless you have a metal roof, it should not be a problem. :cool:
 
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I assume even something cheap like this should work, assuming you hook it to the same remote antenna.

https://smile.amazon.com/BaoFeng-UV-5R-Dual-Radio-Black/dp/B007H4VT7A/ref=sr_1_6?keywords=vhf+scanner&qid=1579527555&sr=8-6

Some of the better quality Ham radios will receive the AM Aircraft band.

YAESU FT2DR is one such radio. They just came out with a replacement that has a better display. It may or may not receive AM airband. I know my FT2DR does receive only on airband and have used it as such at least once.
 
Here is a video on how to build a 2 meter VHF antenna.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HkmD3Sgz7Q0

You can cut the element lengths for a specific frequency or cut the elements to be in the mid-range of the aviation band.

Caution: Any permanent outside antenna installation needs to be properly grounded.
 
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YAESU FT2DR is one such radio. They just came out with a replacement that has a better display. It may or may not receive AM airband. I know my FT2DR does receive only on airband and have used it as such at least once.
IMHO $392.00 is a lot to spend if you are only going to monitor a few aviation frequencies. :eek:
 
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