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Reviews For: Pryme RD98

Category: Antennas: HF Portable (not mobile)

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Review Summary For : Pryme RD98
Reviews: 3MSRP: 30
Description:
HT "Thin Wire" ¼ wave 2m whip antenna
Product is in production
More Info: http://
# last 180 days Avg. Rating last 180 days Total reviews Avg. overall rating
0034
KL2IW Rating: 2008-05-05
Works Great Time Owned: 3 to 6 months.
I love this antenna. I have used this antenna on my FT 60, and it still works like a champ. I live in the remote regions in western Alaska where there is no other reliable communications while being away from the city.

I reached our distant repeater at 35 miles away when I had a good line of sight on low power. On mid power, I was able to do a phone patch from the same location.

Since I do a lot of snow mobiling during the winter, this antenna has been inside my coat, my pocket, and inside my snow mobile pocket while bent or curled or wrapped, but it has worked fine.

Cons.
This antenna will bend when the weather is at -20. Solution: Put your index finger on tip of the antenna to straighten it.

This antenna whips a lot. It might annoy some people. I have not found a solution to this. According to some of the reviews, you can use a shrink wrap.

Caution: I have not over abused this antenna, and I don't plan to over abuse it. I would not even try.

73s, KL2IW
K6LCS Rating: 2006-06-22
Definite Improvement Time Owned: more than 12 months.
The RD-98 BNC (or RD-98 SMA) is an excellent improvement over darned near ANY standard 2M/440 stock duck. It's pure physics: The RD-98 is about 17" long.

When I was involved with bringing these units into the US as sales manager of Pryme/Premier Communications for over two years, there were no QC problems. And now, as a retailer the past 2+ years, there continues to be NO QC problems with the units.

Of course, you contiually drop your HT onto the antenna, and you are going to experience some problems. But if you feel forced to "beef up" the point where the whip meets the body with heat skrink tubing, then you might need to re-think how you are using your HT. You may want to stick with the stock while you're being abusive, and use the RD-98 only under more controlled circumstances.

Flexible enough to be folded into a circle and placed in a ZipLoc(tm) sandwich bag for storage, these antennas are a great enhancement for 2M and/or 440 operations.

Clint Bradford, K6LCS
909-241-7666
N5RO Rating: 2006-06-22
Used to be good-not now Time Owned: more than 12 months.
This used to be a good product except for a tendency to break or bend at the connector, which could be prevented by reinforcing with shrink tubing. Some of the last ones we bought for search and rescue were either shorted in the connectors or not connected. Apparently poor quality control.