Nov 8, 2010

Antenna from DealExtreme

I received my US$4.69 VHF/UHF Antenna from DealExtreme (referral).

It's marked Diamond RH701.

Mine arrived with a solid threaded metal plug where the SMA was supposed to be. It doesn't fit the QuanSheng TG-UV2 at all. The package was marked "SMA Connector", but it's not true for my example. I believe that this is a simple mix-up with the manufacturer. It's supposed to have an SMA.  I'll contact DelExtreme and see what they can do for me. They're a very good company and this is the first minor glitch I've had with them. They have an excellent claims service.

UPDATE!! DealExtreme is sending a replacement. They are a great company to deal with.

UPDATE 2 - The replacement antenna, same stock number, arrived today (7 Dec 2010). The connector is correct this time. It screws into the TG-UV2 just fine. but the outer shell doesn't fit quite as perfect as the original antenna included with the TG-UV2. But it does fit.


Defective item
Replacement

7 comments:

  1. I went to the local hamfest recently and asked a vendor for an SMA-F to BNC-F adapter. He handed me one but when I tried to screw it into my TG-UV2 it would not go on. It looked right but the threads were wrong. He said the TG-UV2 "doesn't have a standard SMA connector". I'm not sure what it all means, except it was a good idea to try before buying.

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  2. On my TG-UV2, a standard SMA-to-BNC adapter just screwed right in as easy as it could be. And I confirmed it was making contact and working properly.

    The most likely explanation for your experience is that the flea market vendor was selling the sort of SMA adpater used with WiFi routers. Due to FCC regulation, those products have reversed gender in the center conductor. And once upon a time, there may have even been some with reversed threads.

    There are other possible explanations, but the above seems to be the most likely. I'm going to eventually order an adapter from DealExtreme (I think they offer them), and I'll report back.

    You should probably try again, but avoid WiFi SMA connectors.

    Good luck.

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  3. I got a SMA-F to BNC-F adaptor from Solid Radio, an eBay vendor. The adapter is very short and low profile. I also got a Diamond RH77CA (BNC-M) from Universal Radio Inc. I am using the adapter on the TG-UV2 along with the Diamond RH77CA. I can also use the Diamond RH77CA on my Alinco DJ-580T or one of my portable scanners. Nice to have the ability to move the antenna from radio to radio if I wish.

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  4. Followup: I purchased a SMA-F to BNC-F adapter from BUXCOMM (http://www.packetradio.com/catalog/) and it fit perfectly. Presumably the fleamarket vendor was selling crap. Caveat Emptor, as they say.

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  5. Did this make it better after u installed the new Antenna or was it just the same?

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  6. @juDGEY

    I think I understand what you're asking...

    I bought the 2nd antenna simply as a cheap spare. There's nothing wrong with the antenna that's included with the TG-UV2. It works as well as could be expected. I still use the stock antenna. The 2nd antenna is just a spare.

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