Aaron,
Thank you for the direct info here.
All I know is when I fully connect my connectors to my coax and draw it tight to the SO-239 and coax, it won't work unless I loosen it up, I am going to work on it again today and see if that fixes the problem...could I have bought a bad or just crappy so 239?
This is almost a textbook result of having a shorted-out coax connector.
And, in your case, I'd be looking at the PL-259's on the coax itself, as this is usually where the problem lies.
(although it is possible that you have a faulty SO-239, unless you bought some made-in-China piece off of Amazon, etc., it's more likely the PL-259 to coax connection that is the cause here.)As I wrote earlier:
<snip>
Aaron, it sounds very much like you have a shorted feedline! Unless the coax has been pinched or cut somewhere, it's highly likely it is a connector issue!
My guess is you shorted-out one (or both) coax connector(s), when assembling them onto the coax.
{It appears that this is what Dale, WB6BYU and Glenn, W9IQ, were also pointing you to? And, were trying to get some more info from you, as well.}
So, there ya' go....that's my take on this.
Follow the steps that Dale, Glenn, and the others have been pointing you to....and, I suspect you'll find the bad / shorted connection is no time.

Good Luck!
BTW, no need to go to home depot, nor is there any need to use a nanoVNA, etc....you can "test" your cable, connectors, SO-239, "antenna", etc. for "shorts" and "opens" with a simple ohm-meter / any cheap multimeter....or, you can just have a very close look at them.

Also, no need to worry about your antenna height yet!
Understand that you could just strip-back about 19" of the outer jacket of a piece of coax, peel-down the shield along the jacket below, exposing a 19" piece of center-conductor (and dielectric), make a half-dozen tight turns of the coax approx. where that peeled-back shield stops....plug the other end of the coax into your radio, and you'll receive just fine!
(and, except for the common-mode on the coax when transmitting, it should work decent as a "coaxial-vertical-dipole"....a temporary / emergency antenna, but one that works in a pinch, and you make with a scrap piece of coax and a knife, in less than one minute...)
Hope this helps?
73,
John, KA4WJA