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Reviews For: Tram 1480 VHF/UHF Collinear Base Antenna

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

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Review Summary For : Tram 1480 VHF/UHF Collinear Base Antenna
Reviews: 54MSRP: around 70.
Description:
2 Meter/70 centimeter two piece omni. 5/8 X 2 VHF (6dB) and 5/8 X 5 UHF (8dB). 200 watts with a SO-239 connector.
Product is in production
More Info: http://www.k1cra.com
# last 180 days Avg. Rating last 180 days Total reviews Avg. overall rating
00543.9
KD5BLZ Rating: 2022-02-18
Awesome Antenna Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
I recently purchased this antenna.assembly was easy. SWRS are 1.1 to 1.4 I have it up about 22 feet and I can talk simplex any where I need to. The biggest complaint I read about was water getting into the antenna. I purchased this antenna from Home Depot for 66 dollars minus my Veterans Discount. To prevent water getting into the antenna. 1. I purchased 3M Marine Silicone 5200 this stuff is extremely sticky and makes a excellent water tight connection. It is not cheap for 3 oz. 2. Since the antenna is white. I purchase white electrical tape wrapped the connections from the bottom up. water runs down his so starting from the bottom is best. 3. I used white Liquid Tape over the electrical tape. This will provide a 3 layer of water tight connect not counting the gasket that tram has on the antenna. Over kill maybe. But my signal is excellent. (There are weep holes hat the bottom so do not seal the weep holes.)
KK4QAR Rating: 2021-09-13
Band per buck ratio outstanding Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
This is identical to the x200.
The assembly was a breeze and took less that 15 minutes.
Dead flat on both bands with less than 1.5 vswr. During assembly, make sure you seat the elements fully and tighten. Water proof the center and coax connector, add some dielectric grease to the mating components and you are golden. I purchased mine from RWantennas for $49.00.
KA9WDX Rating: 2021-05-30
Assembly OK, Works OK, No Signal Difference Than The Tram 1481 Time Owned: 6 to 12 months.
I've had two of these, and one I had taken down and had placed a Tram 1481 in its place, and then sold the first Tram 1480 to my best friend, but while talking to a distant station about 50 Miles away, neither he or myself could tell any difference in signal strength between the Tram 1480 and the Tram 1481 being mounted in the same place, on the same mast, at the same height and using the same power level.

I didn't have a chance to check the SWR on either the first Tram 1480, or the Tram 1481, but this time, buying a second Tram 1480, I was able to check the SWR.

The SWR on VHF is showing 2.12, with a forward power of 24.30 watts, and a reflected power of 5.80 watts, so it could be better.

The SWR on UHF, on the other hand, is better at 1.37, with a forward power of 26.81 watts, and a reflected power of 0.52 watts, so the antenna is better matched to UHF than VHF.

I almost want to choose the Needs Help choice, but it seems to work Good, so maybe I'll choose OK as a compromise between the two.

I think that it's a pretty good antenna for the price, and when tested against the Tram 1481, talking to a guy about 50 Miles away from me, neither he nor I could tell any difference in signal strength, comparing the two antennas, removing the Tram 1480 and putting the Tram 1481 in its place.
W5MW Rating: 2021-05-06
get more than what you pay for Time Owned: more than 12 months.
This wasn’t the easiest antenna to assemble, but it out performs my Comet X50N for less than 1/2 the price. I get 1.1 swr at 146.520. and a ton of gain on UHF. I put together a 1481, but it’s so huge, I don’t want to replace this one with it.
N5SCG Rating: 2021-05-05
GREAT antenna for the price Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
Easy assembly. Sealed joints with FlexSeal.
Mounted it about 23 feet base on the house, house is elevation 31 feet, then it sticks up another 8 feet, so about 60 feet above sea level. Oh and we are one of the few 2 story houses around and sea is 1000 feet south, 1 mile east and 1 mile west. So my only problem will be north.
SWR is in the 1.5:1 range throughout the 2 meter band and MURS.
70cm band and GMRS is around 1.25:1.
At some frequencies 1.0:1 even in 2 meter!

Used NanoVNA for scan tests and confirmed SWR with MFJ-874.

HIGHLY RECOMMEND!

I would have preferred the gain on the 17 foot Tram-1481, but my son is right, we live in a hurricane zone, so an 8 foot on top of the house is more likely to survive. I do have a 22 foot Diamond CP610, but it is mounted much lower, around 10 feet. So tips are about the same elevation.
KO4PJW Rating: 2021-03-16
Great antenna for the price Time Owned: 6 to 12 months.
Bought this to try out the dual band verticals before I drop a load of cash on a Diamond or some other expensive brand. SWR is in the 1.5:1 range throughout the 2 meter band. 70cm band is a bit lower in the middle. As with most of these antennas swr increases with power level to some extent. I was using an ED Fong which has very low swrs. It did not get out as well as this antenna. I am well heard on every 2m net now and do not require a relay. It is 30 ft in the air. I will be sealing it as suggested but am pleased with it thus far.
KJ6BSQ Rating: 2020-07-27
Great inexpensive base antenna Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
Purchased this antenna a couple months back for $55 on Amazon and mounted it about 20 feet on the house. I've been very happy with the performance for the price.

I don't have the ability to test SWR, but it seems okay. I assembled it using silicone seal at the center joint, as others suggested. I left the bottom open, as suggested by the manufacturer. We'll see how that does over time.
N4CMB Rating: 2020-05-20
Either Tram is Junk or I got the wrong antenna Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
I ordered this antenna shipped to me for about 50 dollars. I said Hey if it has the Gain that it says its does awesome. When the Tram arrived it had the wrong connector Per the order it should have been a SO-239 however I was shipped with a N so I figured ok well they mis shipped me They probably grabbed the wrong one when they shipped it and shipped one with a N-Type No big deal well I followed the instructions to letter. Line by line. When I Tested this antenna I was getting >9SWR.

I was only getting 1.5SWR with the same cable same radio same location on my SBB5. This antenna is junk would never buy it
K7TCE Rating: 2020-01-20
Could not be assembled as shipped Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
Having assembled Diamond antennas before, I paid special attention to the need to properly connect the upper and lower radiating elements.

On my unit, the upper element wire from the loading coil (#14) protruded too far into the coupling assembly (#15) such that the (not provided, MIA) set screw (#17) closed down on the wire. The wire left no room for the pin (#16) from the lower radiating element to fit into the coupling assembly. There was just enough room (1/16") for the assembly to sit over the pin, which may be what others have done possibly explaining many reports of poor/erratic performance.

In addition, the only screw/bolt left after assembling the rest of the antenna was too large to fit the threads for the support pipe assembly (#10).

If Tram would implement some quality control, the 1/2020 price of $51 vs a Diamond X200A at $120 would make this a good buy. The machining quality seemed reasonably close to my Diamond antennas.

I purchased it from Amazon, and they immediately issued a return authorization.

KD5RYO Rating: 2018-04-22
so good i bought another! Time Owned: more than 12 months.
This was my first base antenna when I entered the hobby back in the early 2000s. It performed very well and when I moved, I was sad to sell it but I was unsure about my future setup.

Nearly a decade after I sold it, I decided to put up a commercial antenna and I was elated to see that this model was still produced. I purchased the second one new and put it up on my gable. It's about 30ft off the ground.

I have made tons of contacts at varying power levels with this antenna and it will continue to be my base antenna of choice for years to come when I'm not experimenting with home builds.

As other reviews mentioned, you'll need to make sure you connect the interior parts of the antenna before putting it up or you're going to have a bad time!

I highly recommend this antenna.