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| Reviews Summary for Arrow OSJ Model J146/440 |
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Reviews: 107
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Average rating: 4.8/5
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MSRP: $39.95
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Description: Dual-band aluminum j-pole
Wtih better quality SO239 - 3/8-24 Connector. All Stainless Steel. Better Threads and a more precise hole size for the PL259 connection.
As of 4-10-05 All OSJ's will have the new connector.
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More info: http://www.arrowantennas.com
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write your own review of the Arrow OSJ Model J146/440.
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KB3RPE
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Rating: 5/5
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Nov 19, 2009 09:11
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Good antenna...
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Time owned: 6 to 12 months
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Bought it a while back, went together easily in "no time", very solidly built. 1st install in garage rafters & now up about 20' +/- on chimney. Hits 2m repeaters 50+ miles away easily, great reception. Big "bang for the buck"!!!!
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W6GEE
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Rating: 5/5
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Oct 11, 2009 22:21
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Does the job and then some!
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Time owned: 0 to 3 months
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I had a Yaesu VX5R kicking around the shack that I thought I'd get up running on 440 for a "fixed" station. I didn't think I wanted to be too serious about this so I just wanted to throw up a simple antenna a la J-pole with some lossy RG58 coax I had collecting dirt in my storage shed. While ordering a speaker mic from HRO, I asked about dual band J-poles and got the lead on this one. Not too expensive, so what the heck if it didn't work, so I took the plunge.
After getting things up an running, I was shocked at the exceptional performance of this antenna! I'm now getting into all the 440 repeaters in my area, and into a lot of not-so-line-of-sight 2m repeaters about 70 miles away. All this on a measley 5W HT! 2m performance with my HT and the OSJ is comparable to my fixed 50W rig and Cushcraft vertical (the "big" antenna).
SWR on 2m is 1:1 to 1.2:1 across the entire band. I don't have an analyzer for 400, but judging from the performance, I suspect the SWR on that band is low as well.
Great buy and great performance without busting the bank!
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KB3KLQ
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Rating: 3/5
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Sep 29, 2009 18:08
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I have to agree with AI4WC...
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Time owned: 0 to 3 months
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Received this antenna a couple of months ago, and when I opened it, I marveled at the quality of engineering. This is truly a beautifully-built, well-machined antenna. I think I just got a bad copy that was out of spec.
Everything was great on 2 meters--low SWR across the band, usually close to 1:1, but never more than 1.5:1. On 70cm, it was a different story altogether. SWR was around 2:1 at the lower end of the band, but up to 4:1 at the upper end of the band. Ugh! BUT I had a 50' run of RG-8U between the radio and the antenna.
So I called Al. Very courteous, and very professional. I was impressed that he even took the time to field customer service calls. He immediately said the coax was the problem and that the antenna needed no trimming or tuning. Fair enough. A 50' run of lossy RG-8 coax seemed the likely culprit.
So I bought 50' of Belden 9913--I can't do any shorter because I'm renting the house and cannot drill thru walls. Hooked it up to the antenna (making sure all the elements were tight and the coax was snug). Same story. 4:1 SWR at the upper end of the 70cm band.
I'm sure I got a bad copy, and that others' experiences are more typical, but I didn't want to go through the process of sending the antenna back while waiting for another to arrive only to be disappointed again.
So, I plunked down $99.95 for a Diamond X50A. Installed it today on the same run of 9913 coax the J146/440 was on. Getting SWR of 1.5:1 or less on 2 meter, and close to 1:1 on 70cm. I guess it wasn't the coax after all.
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K2AFY
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Rating: 5/5
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Sep 22, 2009 11:36
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Rugged and best bang for the buck
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Time owned: more than 12 months
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In my old house I had the Arrow Jpole in the attic and it did a great job. 3 years ago bought a new house and had to have one of the nice looking white fiberglass antennas on it. Well the wind took care of the new antenna went to the shed got the arrow out and mounted it on the roof. I have been through several strong storms and it is still working like the day I bought it. I have been recommending this antenna for quite some time. Once again it has proven its value to me.
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KD5FOY
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Rating: 5/5
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Aug 20, 2009 15:00
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Superb!!
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Time owned: 0 to 3 months
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1) 18 Aug 09 ordered
2) 20 Aug 09 received, superb packing/shipping
3) 20 Aug 09 assembled in 5 minutes, built like a tank, great finish on product
4) 20 Aug 09 tested, swr(a much maligned, misunderstood, misused metric) excellent.
would buy another without reservation.
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N3OQD
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Rating: 5/5
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Aug 18, 2009 11:26
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summary
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Time owned: more than 12 months
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I got to admit, this is one of those rare jewels. Ultra simple and quite durable and the very least expensive out there. I have had one for several years now and have had different types and sizes of other dual banders, yet I still find myself comming back to this one. It may not have the absolute high gain of other bigger and fancier ones BUT it makes up for it in all other ways. Recently, I went to a local hamfest and bought another one unused for $25. Yesterday, I installed it as a secondary one to my first. Exellent almost flat VSWR on both bands. Across the two bands, I get that low profile "smile" in the VSWR frequency chart. For the gentleman that had VSWR issues, you have to use quality cable with solidly fitted and soldered connectors on each end and mount antenna up and away from other objects. Since buying used cable over the years, and since many hams do not know how to properly put UHF males on the ends, I do my own and have never had failure yet. This antenna will always be a part of my shack until I go SK.
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K2ID
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Rating: 5/5
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Jul 27, 2009 12:50
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Simply Great
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Time owned: more than 12 months
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This is the first antenna I ever bought as a ham and I still find uses for it. It has been in my attic and now sits in the corner of my bedroom. I have brought it with me on trips and attached my HT to it. It disassembles very nicely.
At first when I was asked about my antenna and upon hearing that it was a J-Pole, I did not get good reports. I eventually replaced it with a Diamond antenna but also kept the Arrow and switched between them. After people got used to me having the Diamond antenna they did not seem to notice when I switched to the J-Pole. In fact, they were amazed how well it did. Some hams just think that a J-Pole cannot compete with any of those more expensive antennas with the phoney or inflated gain figures. Well my J-Pole is the only piece of ham gear that I bought when I was first licensed that is still in use. Lean it against a wall, toss it into a tree or put it in an attic and it will not let you down.
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K6SDW
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Rating: 5/5
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Jul 27, 2009 05:56
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Kicks Butt!
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Time owned: more than 12 months
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Finally, after 2 years sitting in my garage I put up this antenna on the roof and it kicks butt........SWR on both bands flat.
Performance exceeds my expections!
Construction is first rate.
Cheers all......
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AI4WC
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Rating: 3/5
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May 24, 2009 14:44
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It's OK
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Time owned: 0 to 3 months
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This is my second Arrow antenna. This one followed the Arrow tradition of beautiful workmanship and tough design. My first try with my old coax was like some others experienced - OK on 2 meters but high SWR on 70 cm. Having read other user's comments, I made a new coax (25 feet) using Wireman CQ118 low loss RG8X mini and silver PL-259's. Unfortunately, the SWR was still about 4:1 on 70 cm. There is no way to adjust the antenna and the coax and the connectors are brand new, so when my order from Cable XPerts for my 25 foot CNT 400 coax comes (professionally pre-assembled), we will see.... Trust me, Arrow makes great antennas, but this one has me stumped, and unless (and until) the professional coax makes a difference, the OSP Model J146/440 gets a 3 from me. Maybe CNT 400 and N-connectors are really necessary, but the antenna and my radios use PL-259's.
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KA6OSX
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Rating: 5/5
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May 6, 2009 14:32
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great antenna
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Time owned: 0 to 3 months
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got it for the ft-817 upstairs,took longer to get out of the box than getting it up.on a mast in the front of the house,so i just had to open the window to put it up.both 2m/440 work great at 5 watts hit machines 50plus miles away,in the sf bay area with all the hills.great little antenna.
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