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Reviews For: MFJ-1738 Glass Mount 144 Antenna

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

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Review Summary For : MFJ-1738 Glass Mount 144 Antenna
Reviews: 4MSRP: 29.95
Description:
Glass mount 2 MTR antenna, handles 50 Watts. 26" Stainless radiator.
Product is in production
More Info: http://www.mfjenterprises.com
# last 180 days Avg. Rating last 180 days Total reviews Avg. overall rating
1343.8
KF6IIU Rating: 2023-05-25
Poor SWR on 440. Time Owned: more than 12 months.
I've had this antenna on the rear quarter window of a 99 Honda CRV for about 20 years now! It hasn't fallen off but the SWR has crept up to 1.5 on 144 and over 2 on 440. I didn't have access to a UHF analyzer until recently but the VHF SWR was about 1.2 originally. Thru-glass antennas don't need to last forever - just long enough that your car is old enough that drilling holes in the roof for a real antenna is no longer a concern.
AC2EV Rating: 2011-06-20
Not as good as Larsen but a good compromise Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
I purchased this antenna after finding that the Larsen KG144 just wouldn't clear the garage. So, I ordered the MFJ-1738.

Included in the bag is the usual. The transmitter if you want care to call it that is not directly connected to the coax. It has its own connector.

Installation was a breeze, which is good since no instructions are included.

Once installed I hookup up the trusty antenna analyzer and found it to be out of tune. Adjusting the tuning I was only able to achieve 1.4-1.5 at 144.390 MHz turning the tuning coil full clockwise and bottoming it out. While acceptable a "perfect" 1.0 occurred at well below the amateur band.

Still it works well and doesn't hit the garage when I pull in which is what I was looking for.

The 2m/440 has a small pigtail counterpoise and I'm going to experiment with a similar option for mine.

For the price and size and it's definitely nice. Not as good as the Larsen but it works. An on-glass antenna is obviously a compromise.

Note, the Larsen isn't tunable but I found that it had 1.2 across the amateur band so it wasn't needed.

It can be removed with a little effort and you can buy new 3M double sided pads to install on a new vehicle.
K7AAT Rating: 2007-04-08
Fair antenna - not great Time Owned: 6 to 12 months.
"I've had this antenna on the rear quarter window of a 99 Honda CRV for about 7 years now. It hasn't fallen off but the SWR has crept up to 1.5 on 144 and over 2 on 440."

There IS a tuning adjustment on the antenna base, I hope you remember. Touching that up should take care of your SWR problem.

I never liked glass mounts, but had to resort to this one on my Motorhome as I didn't want to drill any holes in the roof. It works fair... better than nothing, but noticably poorer compared to identical rigs with a roof mount antenna. That's not MFJ's fault... just the nature of glass mount antennas.

Ed K7AAT
KA5JHK Rating: 2005-10-06
Still going strong Time Owned: more than 12 months.
This is an update on this antenna. It is still on my windshield and doing a good job. I have found no need to replace it. There are trees that hang low over the roads I travel that bang my other antennas but not this one. I made a good choice buying this antenna and will continue using it.