Shark 2M/6M/70CM Magmount 48" Whip Antenna
Description
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Customer Reviews
Overall
4
Seems flimsy but tuned well
Review by
JACK
The magnet and base of this antenna seem well made, are non-scratch and the magnet holds well and removes easily.
The whip is very flexible, which has pros and cons, but I was expecting something stiffer from a brand like Shark. The text description of the part here on GigaParts does mention it is flexible, in fairness. The metal bulb on the top of the whip did come off while I was unpacking the antenna, but I stuck it back on. Time will tell if it stays on.
The set screw and hex wrench don't quite seem to fit together and always seem to be slipping. The set screw is very short, and I tried to find a longer one at a big box hardware store. It does seem to be M3 or M4, nor #6. I am curious to see what the size and thread count are. Note there is only a single set screw, unlike on Shark Hamsticks which have two. The coax is generic RG-58 and was bundled very tightly when it arrived. Maybe too tightly. There does not appear to be a way to replace the coax with a different type, if you desired to do that. The PL-259 on the end seems very lightweight and flimsy, but works. I cannot tell if the base is doing any impedance transformation or not, I would have to compare theoretical impedance for the whip length at each frequency.
For 6m the antenna had a fairly broad response around 52 MHz with an SWR of about 1.3. At 2m, the SWR was about 1.5 to 1.7 in the center and less than 2 across the band. At 70cm there were SWR dips on either side of the band, but the best inside the band was about 2.5 to 3. I did some playing around with moving the whip about 5mm at a time, but it will not extend very far to lower the resonant point.
All in all, I'm looking forward to using it on 6m and 2m as a 5/8 wave. For 70cm I will likely use a dual band whip with a coil.
The whip is very flexible, which has pros and cons, but I was expecting something stiffer from a brand like Shark. The text description of the part here on GigaParts does mention it is flexible, in fairness. The metal bulb on the top of the whip did come off while I was unpacking the antenna, but I stuck it back on. Time will tell if it stays on.
The set screw and hex wrench don't quite seem to fit together and always seem to be slipping. The set screw is very short, and I tried to find a longer one at a big box hardware store. It does seem to be M3 or M4, nor #6. I am curious to see what the size and thread count are. Note there is only a single set screw, unlike on Shark Hamsticks which have two. The coax is generic RG-58 and was bundled very tightly when it arrived. Maybe too tightly. There does not appear to be a way to replace the coax with a different type, if you desired to do that. The PL-259 on the end seems very lightweight and flimsy, but works. I cannot tell if the base is doing any impedance transformation or not, I would have to compare theoretical impedance for the whip length at each frequency.
For 6m the antenna had a fairly broad response around 52 MHz with an SWR of about 1.3. At 2m, the SWR was about 1.5 to 1.7 in the center and less than 2 across the band. At 70cm there were SWR dips on either side of the band, but the best inside the band was about 2.5 to 3. I did some playing around with moving the whip about 5mm at a time, but it will not extend very far to lower the resonant point.
All in all, I'm looking forward to using it on 6m and 2m as a 5/8 wave. For 70cm I will likely use a dual band whip with a coil.
Overall
5
Reach 30 Miles on VHF
Review by
Tory
Got this antenna about 5 months ago and have been able to hit 2 meter repeater 30 miles away on my Yaesu 2980-r. Reception has also been clear.
Magnet has never moved; even at 75 mph.
Couldn’t be happier!
Magnet has never moved; even at 75 mph.
Couldn’t be happier!
Overall
4
Excellent on 2m, not sure about 70cm
Review by
Dave
I was hoping that this antenna would perform on both 2m and 70cm but reports on my signal seem to suggest it doesn't do well on the later.
There weren't any specific instructions on making the antenna work on 70cm. It only says, " may require minimal cutting of whip for optimal performance"
The antenna does tune narrowly in the 444-448 range with an SWR of about 1.5:1. However, real world performance is lacking.
If anyone can provide insight, it would be appreciated.
There weren't any specific instructions on making the antenna work on 70cm. It only says, " may require minimal cutting of whip for optimal performance"
The antenna does tune narrowly in the 444-448 range with an SWR of about 1.5:1. However, real world performance is lacking.
If anyone can provide insight, it would be appreciated.
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