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Reviews For: James Pole Antennas

Category: Antennas: VHF/UHF+ Omnidirectional: verticals, mobile, etc

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Review Summary For : James Pole Antennas
Reviews: 6MSRP: 15
Description:
We do a variety of things at James Pole Antennas. First and foremost, we feature a complete line of ready to use J-Antennas. The frequencies we stock are 1.2 ghz, 70 cm, 1.25 meters, 2 meters/70cm, 2 meters/1.25 meters/70cm tri-band, 6 meters, and 10 meters.
Product is in production
More Info: http://www.jamespole.net
# last 180 days Avg. Rating last 180 days Total reviews Avg. overall rating
0064.3
W1WH Rating: 2011-07-29
Nicely done! Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
Just received my 2M/440 roll-up 450 ohm ladder line antenna. The antenna is nicely constructed, well priced and came well packaged. I initially had some communications issues due to the company's long distance relocation, but they we're very responsive once their move was sorted out. I'll probably post a subsequent review after I've had some time in the field with the antenna.

73, Bill
K6ATZ Rating: 2010-07-17
33 cm custom J-pole works great! Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
A small correction to an obvious typo in the previous review re the bandwidth of a James Pole custom 33 CM J-pole: I'm seeing rock-solid SWR well below 1.1:1 on ~903 MHz repeater inputs and 1.2:1 on 927 MHz simplex frequencies, so after the "3" add a "0" hi hi. In fact, it could be twice as wide but I have no way to test that.

I've got the J-pole mounted about 20' in the air (seated on a small PVC pipe sticking out of a light metal mast) and am hitting all available repeaters. There are few choices for a 33 cm vertical that is truly portable and can be raised as high as you want wherever you are. Commercial groundplanes are generally too big and heavy, and mobile antennas need some metal below them or they won't perform well. This one is "just right", as that freeloading little girl said at the Bears' house.

The antenna was manufactured and shipped out within three working days, is well-constructed and will last a lifetime. I'm planning to apply a little Coax Seal goo around the back of the connector to help in the rare event of a torrential downpour here in CA, not really necessary but it will make me feel like I did something other than plug-and-play. This was almost too easy.

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Earlier 5-star review posted by K6ATZ on 2010-06-29

It’s now over eight years since the last guy’s review, so let me say first that James still manufactures good products, has been very responsive, and shipped my orders quickly. Last year I purchased two antennas via his website’s PayPal buttons and got a telephone call from him within hours confirming details. I’ve been so happy with those I just phoned him and placed an order for a custom job as well.

These J-poles are made with seriously strong construction. I don’t have and don’t know how to use copper pipe welding equipment myself, do you? And nobody even makes J-Poles for sale at some of these frequencies, especially at these great prices!

It’s all about height:

My 1.2 GHz J-pole at 20’ (11’ above a 9’ roof) reaches repeaters 40 miles away and beyond, with no degrading into "R2D2" garbling on D-STAR - which is what my signal often became with a "gain" mag-mount I tried first on a metal area of the roof. SWR is below 1.2:1 across the band.

My 220 MHz J-pole does a similar fine job at 20’. Repeaters are no problem and I’ve made simplex contacts far-and-wide including a 160+ mile FM QSO in the last contest. SWR is 1.1:1 or below across the band.

My 927 MHz J-pole is on the way! I ordered that custom-made – he answered the phone at 3 PM on a Saturday afternoon, mind you, then made it and shipped in about 3 days – and I’m expecting it to improve my signal on 33 cm as well. The 3 MHz SWR bandwidth will be more than enough for any repeater pair.

The higher you get a J-Pole up in the air the more it turns into a perfect isotropic radiator. That means significant gain over an HT rubber duck, mag-mounts, or even 10’ long base verticals if they are mounted low and close to the roof - whatever the manufacturers may claim! You can see what I was up against and how I mounted these J-poles by heading to http://www.k6atz.us and clicking on “Antenna farm 2 – flat roof mounts”.

AC5PS Rating: 2002-11-17
Poor communications Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
The antenna works as good as a 1.2 ghz j-pole is going to work (not very good)but we knew that allready. It took three weeks to get the antenna AFTER my check was cashed. I got an e-mail from him saying "this is my thrid attemted, what is your shipping address"! it was the first e-mail I recieved from him. I sent him my address and phone # asking him to let me know if everything was OK, and never heard from him again, instead heard from his "web master" who had know idea what was going on. This is not a product review but a company review.
N6TZ Rating: 2002-08-21
They Last Time Owned: more than 12 months.
Here are good reasons I like them.
1. Good lifetime near the ocean, unlike aluminum.
2. Paint them flat gray and nobody hardly sees them.
3. The base piece slips into a 1/2 inch steel conduit (EMT) for mounting.
4. Good dollar value.
5. No plastic or "funny" hardware - very simple.
The only challenge is to waterproof the SO-238 connector socket.
What more could you want !
Hal N6TZ
WB9YCJ Rating: 2001-09-24
1.2 GHz Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
Most dont know he offers a 1.2 Ghz version -
(ask for an "N" connector).
Great value and solid construction.
This 1.2 Ghz version is also a great "stealth" antenna.
AD7DB Rating: 2001-09-24
Excellent quality! Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
I bought one of his simplest antennas, a copper J-pole for 2m/70cm. Works great. At hamfests, he actually will make them right in front of you.