3 ms·

I know this is a joke, but you can get a shocking amount out of a baofeng with a good antenna, a preamp and some good filtering. Whether that's worth it compar

I know this is a joke, but you can get a shocking amount out of a baofeng with a good antenna, a preamp and some good filtering. Whether that's worth it compared to just buying a more reliable radio probably depends on how much you want to DIY.

ProllyInfamous 3y ago
After my third Baofeng handheld [1], I finally had to get a "real" receiver. But the 3B's are still useful for additional listening stations and/or for friends. —73 [1] The volume potentiometer becomes unreliable after regular on/offs. The major concern is that after a few years, some "steps" of volume randomly mutes (with no indication, you just don't hear the incoming).
tecleandor 3y ago
Any recommendations for a substitute of the included antenna? Either a base or a portable.
- tomfanning 3y ago
  DIY: slim jim, J pole (https://m0ukd.com/calculators/slim-jim-and-j-pole-calculator/ https://m0ukd.com/calculators/slim-jim-and-j-pole-calculator...) or quarter wave ground plane (https://m0ukd.com/calculators/quarter-wave-ground-plane-antenna-calculator/ https://m0ukd.com/calculators/quarter-wave-ground-plane-ante...). A slim jim made from 450 ohm ladder line and rolled up for storage, hoisted into a tree by a cord, is a favourite. A NanoVNA will help a lot while building any of these. Commercial portable: Nagoya NA-771 (beware clones) Commercial fixed: Diamond X30, X50 or V2000 colinear. With any upgraded antenna on a receiver with little filtering like the Baofeng, you may deafen it into hearing no wanted signals if operating it in an RF-hot environment. Don't transmit without a licence.
- okl 3y ago
  For portable you could buy a Diamond antenna but beware of fakes (https://forums.radioreference.com/threads/how-to-spot-a-fake-diamond-antenna.243550/ https://forums.radioreference.com/threads/how-to-spot-a-fake...) See that you buy one with the right connector (RP?, male/female). I have an srj77 from diamond on my anytone that fits and works fine. For larger handheld or fixed you could build/buy a yagi antenna that has a higher directionality/gain.
  - jacquesm 3y ago
    That was one of my first computer programs: compute a 'perfect' Yagi for a given frequency. Of course it will never be perfect because you will use tubes with a non-zero diameter and there will be something to carry the reflectors on and so on but it's amazing how close you can get if you cut and space precisely.
- lxe 3y ago
  I've used baofeng as a base for a while. I put a home-made yagi on the roof of a shed and I could communicate with probably a few dozen active repeaters, some hundreds of miles away. Had to rotate the yagi via a state of the art "nylon rope" system.
PM_me_your_math 3y ago
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ProllyInfamous 3y ago

After my third Baofeng handheld [1], I finally had to get a "real" receiver. But the 3B's are still useful for additional listening stations and/or for friends. —73 [1] The volume potentiometer becomes unreliable after regular on/offs. The major concern is that after a few years, some "steps" of volume randomly mutes (with no indication, you just don't hear the incoming).

tecleandor 3y ago

Any recommendations for a substitute of the included antenna? Either a base or a portable.

tomfanning 3y ago
DIY: slim jim, J pole (https://m0ukd.com/calculators/slim-jim-and-j-pole-calculator/ https://m0ukd.com/calculators/slim-jim-and-j-pole-calculator...) or quarter wave ground plane (https://m0ukd.com/calculators/quarter-wave-ground-plane-antenna-calculator/ https://m0ukd.com/calculators/quarter-wave-ground-plane-ante...). A slim jim made from 450 ohm ladder line and rolled up for storage, hoisted into a tree by a cord, is a favourite. A NanoVNA will help a lot while building any of these. Commercial portable: Nagoya NA-771 (beware clones) Commercial fixed: Diamond X30, X50 or V2000 colinear. With any upgraded antenna on a receiver with little filtering like the Baofeng, you may deafen it into hearing no wanted signals if operating it in an RF-hot environment. Don't transmit without a licence.
okl 3y ago
For portable you could buy a Diamond antenna but beware of fakes (https://forums.radioreference.com/threads/how-to-spot-a-fake-diamond-antenna.243550/ https://forums.radioreference.com/threads/how-to-spot-a-fake...) See that you buy one with the right connector (RP?, male/female). I have an srj77 from diamond on my anytone that fits and works fine. For larger handheld or fixed you could build/buy a yagi antenna that has a higher directionality/gain.
- jacquesm 3y ago
  That was one of my first computer programs: compute a 'perfect' Yagi for a given frequency. Of course it will never be perfect because you will use tubes with a non-zero diameter and there will be something to carry the reflectors on and so on but it's amazing how close you can get if you cut and space precisely.
lxe 3y ago
I've used baofeng as a base for a while. I put a home-made yagi on the roof of a shed and I could communicate with probably a few dozen active repeaters, some hundreds of miles away. Had to rotate the yagi via a state of the art "nylon rope" system.

PM_me_your_math 3y ago

[dead]