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Reviews For: KB9VBR 2 meter J-Pole antenna

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

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Review Summary For : KB9VBR 2 meter J-Pole antenna
Reviews: 27MSRP: 29.
Description:
This is the original KB9VBR all copper 2 meter J-Pole antenna. Ruggedly constructed one piece design, this antenna will last practically forever. The specs for the two meter version are as follows: Overall length 69 inches, radiator 58 inches, matching stub 19 inches. An S0-239 connector is soldered on at the point of lowest SWR.
Product is in production
More Info: http://www.jpole-antenna.com
# last 180 days Avg. Rating last 180 days Total reviews Avg. overall rating
00274.8
AC9WM Rating: 2020-11-20
Great Hassle free Product!! Thanks! Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
Great product. Easy to get, Easy to use. Thanks!
W8SFC Rating: 2019-12-11
Copper tubing J pole design for 2 meters - solid performer! Time Owned: more than 12 months.
I purchased this as a base antenna for my FT2900r, and it has been used daily for three years now. The copper was bright and shiny in the beginning, and is now a brownish patina but that has had no effect on the performance of the antenna nor the signal output. I use this radio three days a week for net participation and net control station service. I have not had any bad signal reports - on the contrary most of the comments have been asking what kind of station I have because they like what they are hearing on the other end of the repeater.

I am not a technical expert with a lot of antenna analyzers or expertise in using them, so I base my comments on the results and reports of other operators. What I can tell you is I have about $39.00 invested in this antenna and it just flat works. You can spend a lot more for an antenna for 2 meters, but I don't think you will get more performance than this antenna gives you.

I can report that we have had many incidents of severe weather with some winds reaching in excess of 60 mph since I installed it, and it has given me zero trouble. Other 2 meter antennas should be this durable and reliable, as well as inexpensive.
N9SSU Rating: 2019-01-31
Nice quality product Time Owned: more than 12 months.
Nice workmanship. Top notch receive and transmit. Lower noise than most antennas. The great quality of this antenna led me to use one of his 6 meter sticks which was not that good and I reviewed that separately.
KX4O Rating: 2016-10-12
Good value with gainflation specs Time Owned: 3 to 6 months.
Strong Value:
Having built and tested many J-poles in the past, I can confirm you will be hard pressed to procure the materials for as little as Michael charges for his J antenna models. Sure you can save a little money by building your own, and that's fine, but rest assured you won't pay much for Michael's labor.

Gainflation:
Much has been said about the J antenna community especially with regards to functional antenna knowledge. Sadly, Michael reveals his lack of antenna expertise with the stated electrical specifications of 3 dBi for the traditional J and 6 dBi for his SlimJim model along with statements concerning differing takeoff angles. All this despite the overwhelming evidence the two antenna topologies perform almost exactly the same plus the fact Fred Judd, the SlimJim designer, never made such claims. Woodchuck mistakes by antenna rookies are one thing, but Michael is a manufacturer of note in the antenna industry and should know better than to promote misleading specifications. This is especially true with the body of measurements available to view on sites like the Wikipedia J-pole article.

Hams are easy/Others less so:
Most hams know they are getting a 2-2.5 dBi (freespace) antenna from Michael despite his inflationary claims - they won't care. I won't be surprised if a LPFM station takes him to task concerning his FM broadcast models since accurate antenna gain information is a critical input to the broadcast propagation models used to establish the station's license - needless liability exposure. Tread carefully Michael!

Conclusion:
If one ignores the stated gain specifications, the KB9VBR J antennas are a good value.
W8ARR Rating: 2015-05-12
Excellent Antenna Time Owned: more than 12 months.
I've owned one of these for 2 years now. The construction details are excellent. I handle traffic on one of the VHF nets here in Columbus. I have pulled in repeaters that my Arrow 2 mtr doesn't hear. I highly recommend this antenna. I just bought a 6 mtr J-pole from Mike. I hope it works as well
KF7UDU Rating: 2015-05-11
Good price performance ratio Time Owned: 6 to 12 months.
Yes, there are dual band antennas out there with more gain, but at double or triple the cost (and far more), less sturdy, anywhere from 2 to 4 times the length and if using radial rods, a far wider footprint also. For what this does at it's cost is a bargain.

I regularly talk to 4 base stations simplex that are 15 and 20 miles away. One is using KB9VBR's j-pole, one is using a home brewed copper j-pole and two are using other verticals. I am using the KB9VBR slim jim (and have the take down j-pole for camping). I live at 1150' ASL and the other stations are at 100' or less. The slim jim is up 24' on a pole (21' of galvanized then 4' PVC with a length of bamboo that fit perfectly inside PVC to stiffen it up and a PVC cap on top). Works great with the other stations as the slim jim has a lower take off angle than the j-poles, as Michael's information points out. Repeaters out to 50 miles are no problem and a couple are up to 70 miles away, still no problem. Of course VHF is an obstacle/terrain picky beast and your results WILL vary.

Our simplex QSO's are usually using only 5 watts. Excellent copy and no need to bump power up any more than that. One station is using 25 watts, but only becasue his Kenwood TM-281a only turns down that far. I have talked to him when his Icom HT was plugged in to the j-pole and at 5 watts, the difference is noticable but negligible. SWR never above 1.2:1 all across 2m band on either my slim jim or j-pole. Using 50' RG8, no choke used.

KB9VBR rates the j-pole at 3dbi and slim jim at 6dbi. At least he is honest and does not leave the 'i' qualifier off his db rating. So dbd is somewhat less. He also points this out on his j-pole information.

Painted mine with a simulated 'hammered copper' look paint. Looks great in addition to working great.
KB1KVL Rating: 2015-04-27
More Than What I Expected Time Owned: more than 12 months.
I bought the KB9VBR 2m J-Pole over a year ago. I didn't expect too much. I figured I'd use it for the local repeaters. Was I wrong! This antenna hits almost as many repeaters as my Diamond did. I said almost. When I put it up on the roof, I could only have it at 20' to the bottom of the antenna. I checked the SWR. It was flat across the 2m band. For curiosity, I checked it on 440. I didn't expect much because it was advertised as a 2m J-Pole. It was near flat across 440 as well. I never touched any of the adjustments on it. Why should I? If it ain't broke don't fix it.

Would I recommend this one to a relative or friend? You bet your bippy I would!

73
Ken
KJ4JSN Rating: 2015-04-12
does not have 3 db gain Time Owned: more than 12 months.
I have built many 1/2 j poles and they work great .But they do not have 3 db gain witch some people claim.Modle any j pole for 2 meter 6 meters with nec2 or even just look in the ARRL antenna book.3db gain I think not still a great antenna and fun to build 73s
N4KVE Rating: 2012-11-15
GREAT SMALL ANTENNA Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
I have limited space because I live in Condoland, so I needed a small antenna I could use on an indoor porch. Mike also makes a UHF version of this antenna, & it works really well. I'm very happy with the performance of this antenna, & it's very well made.
KE3JH Rating: 2012-11-04
great Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
I got a jpole for 1.25 mtrs and it has a great swr at 50 watts and got the repeaters better than i thought it would so real happy and didnt cost an arm and leg. I made one for 2 meters works really good and better on 70 cent.