Mistrustful, Suspicious, Untrusting, Weery, Distrustful, Leery of Alliteration by Me Jim Heath W6LG 

As a member of the cult of W6LG!!! I say hallelujah and AMEN! Truer words have not been spoken. 👍👍

Now THIS is why I watch! He cuts through the prestidigitation like nobody else. Thank you Jim. 73 OM

Oh yes! Oh yes...

Straight talk from a great Elmer. Thanks Jim and 73.

Probably great advice for most product reviews on RU-vid. Thanks Jim.

Many thanks for excellent advice. Returning to Ham radio after a 30 year absence, I watched a lot of the "talking faces" that we didn't have "back in the day" and I agree with you completely. I grew up in a family that didn't have excess money for entertainment, so part of my teenage entertainment was attending county fairs. Not to spend money, but to watch the hawkers selling everything from gizmos to lotions. I marveled at their techniques ... and bought nothing. Of all of today's RU-vidrs, most are like those carnival hucksters. Only a couple can be trusted. THANKS Jim for your fine advice.

You never disappoint with your knowledge and down to earth explanations, thanks for making these videos for us and sharing, we appreciate you, 73

I think the “influencer” crowd does some amazing things for the hobby. When you have no other way to get information and don’t have an Elmer, they are a great resource. At its base, this is a science hobby. This is a great video explaining that learning the science is much more important than letting someone figure it out for you. Don’t believe marketing. This is good advice in any field!

Same applies across the internet. It is full of empty headed "influencers" who are only in it for the money.

I came across this by chance looking at old cb radioes. This advice can be applied to every aspect of social interaction.

Thank you for saving us "newer" operators from disappointment and frustration. Take care, Jim! -73 KQ4KIO

Many thanks - part 2. Upon my return to Ham radio, I again focused on QRP and CW (something to do with keeping costs low). It seems to me antennas are an extremely important part of the QRP station and I began antenna experimenting. No, I didn't buy expensive pre-built antennas. I make my own, and I have a huge box of discarded experiments. The thing that amazes me is how many "new and different" 9:1 baluns can be introduced in a year. C'mon! A 9:1 is as common as dirt, and putting it in a new package doesn't make it new, different, or better. Same goes for 49:1s, EFHWs, EFRWs, or any other variation of age old antenna forms. EVERY one of them can be made to work, as demonstrated by "talking faces" that gush weekly on the shiny new thing that arrived in the mail. Once we actually learn a bit about our technology, we know what works and it isn't the new stuff we see every week on RU-vid.

Superb…spot on…great advice….it would be interesting to see a list of trust worthy reviewers / contributors ….I’ll start with W6LG and Lord Callum

W6LG… the best RU-vid Elmer of 2024! Keep up the good work Jim.

Jim - you gave a great lesson on theory and application and how they relate to real antennas. If nothing else, it will help people understand and make better choices. Years ago I built a J-pole antenna for 2M and put it on my room and connected it with 100' of new RG-58. Checked the SWR in my shack and it was 1:1. Wow... too good... went back to the antenna on the roof and disconnected and rechecked SWR, still 1:1. The antenna SWR falacy is real and sells. I think we all know if someone markets with enough glitter and promises, they could sell liters of river water for $5. Stay Safe 73 WA4QGA

Just getting started in this hobby and this is probably the best video I’ve watched! Thank you!

Don’t forget that when you have questions for the designer of this product that he just repeats back that it’s patented and should be used as intended, and to check the spec sheets whether it would be ok to use in heat/attic.

Very good video! I'm a no-tuner-guy, I only build my antennas that resonate on the frequency I choose, I had to learn from hams like yourself that explain how it works! It can be so simple to build an antenna yourself, just take the time to read, listen and understand what happens, RU-vid and many,many websites are full of info, I just found another one right here 👍😊 73' from Nijmegen, the Netherlands

I absolutely agree Jim...these "influencers" are in the hobby for 15 minutes and speak with such conviction and authority. They think they are doing the hobby a service when in fact often it is quite the opposite. I think their main objective is to get as many subscribers as they can and never mind the quality or accuracy of what they produce. Unfortunately this is the world we live in and it's up to us the sift through the minefield which is social media. Personally I have identified several reviewers as irrelevant.

A real game changer!

I agree with you Jim. We can't take these product reviews as gospel. While influencers offer useful information, their opinions aren't the final word. A lot of their subscribers treat the reviews as the absolute truth, without considering things like potential bias or fully understand the product. Reviews can be helpful, but shouldn't be the only factor in purchasing decisions.

Great Videio Jim! you have been my Elmer for at least 10 years. I was the one sitting in the back of the room. I have been using the Rocklin rover for for one year now and it kicks Butt! Thank you for all of you great advise and guidence.

Quality is its' own advertising...knowledge is power. ❤

Great video and great advice as always, Jim. Speaking of antennas, I purchased one of your excellent High Sierra Sidekick antennas about 15 years ago, and it still performs as well as when I bought it. The condition is still great considering its age and the number of times it has been on and off my vehicles. It's a shame that your antennas are no longer manufactured. A couple of years ago, I tried to get a spare contact spring just in case the installed one wore out. After searching the internet, I found what I believe is the original manufacturer, but even though they had a supplier in the UK, they would only sell the spring in bulk. Fortunately, I haven't needed to replace anything on the Sidekick, which is a testament to how well you made them. Thank you for such a great piece of equipment and for the wealth of knowledge you share with us. 73 Peter G7PKU, Nicky G7PKV and Eirinn M7EAF

Glad to see you doing well, Jim! Never bought into the purchased portable coil hype. Did build my own using a website I can no longer find (K6LEM, or something similar ending with LEM) which provided loads of scientific information and exact dimensions with a calculator for building efficient coils at various points along the antenna. I made a 60%-sized 40m dipole with coils roughly midway down the line, and it performed really well. I think maybe it was around 1 s-unit less than a full-sized dipole, but it meant I could mount it vertically on my 12m long Spiderbeam pole. I was able to mount all of this up on top of a 12 story builiding. You might remember we spoke to one another on 20m (I was using a sickly moxon homebrew) from that same roof, once. HL1ZIX

I want my Rocklin Rover .! Thanks .73

Serious man talking serious. Many thanks sir.

A video FULL of truth...thanks, Jim. RU-vid reviews do tend to be ignorantly positive, ill-tested, and full of bad information. They tend to throw the word "resonance" around in a way that fully illustrates their misunderstanding of what resonance is. Ham radio, with its associated costs, is prime ground for confirmation bias. Very few want to admit that they wasted their money so tend to exaggerate the performance of radios and antennas. Thanks for the honesty!

My Rockland Rover was dead on 40 meters.....Im sending it back!

Jim kudos to you for you shining light on this. I know Callum has talked about this as well. I have had discussions with two RU-vid creators in the past month about this same subject who have been given product by manufactures and how to handle those reviews or whether to do them at all. Where there is an incentive for someone to promote a product, like the need for content creation, the "coin driven" individual, it's free so I must give it a good review or they will not send me more, or to stroke one's ego, be very weary. Reviewing equipment is a very technical process, most do not have the experience, knowledge, and tools required to do a proper evaluation of most gear. Opening a box, checking just the power output or the SWR is not an evaluation, no more than kicking the tires and listening to the radio is a way to shop for a car. Very few of, I will use Jim's term, "Talking faces" have the bona-fides let alone the equipment to review gear. They get a shiny box they open it, they gush over packaging, turn it on and give it a thumbs up... move to the next shiny box. There are a few on RU-vid and you know who they are by the level of content they give, that are trustworthy. If you see them building, providing in depth explanations with verifiable information, showing successes and failures of their own experiments, and have cited their sources for data... then they are more than likely in the trust-worthy group.

If you really want great reviews you simply put money in the gift box. It works for local politicians as well. Although they seem drawn to posh dinners and drink tickets at sporting events. Greetings from New Mexico!

...Jim, as always, thank you for "truth in advertising...caveat emptor!" Blessed to see you still setting unsuspecting hams free with truth! 73!

Bahahahahaha I was just reminded of your WTF antennas!!!!! The Rocklin rover, I love it!! Glad to see you looking better Jim, 73 from Jeff de WD8JM

"Move over Rover, let W6LG take over !!! " Thank you again Sir for another truthful and to the point video. Best and 73 de W3HLS, john

I just worked outer Muldavia on my Rockland Rover. Got a 40 over signal report and I was full quieting into the repeater...thanks for the activation Hi Hi!

Appreciate your frank and spot-on commentary. Returning tp ham radio after 40 year absense and browsing RU-vid, my BSEE informs me the scare crow was right - some people without brains do an awful lot of talking, don't they?

This is one of the reasons the ARRL dumbed down Amateur Radio by eliminating the Morse Code requirement and published all the questions and answers. Most all Hams today are Appliance Operators and are easily sold expensive junk because they can't make their own stuff.

Great advice, even beyond Ham.

So true Jim .. Thanks!

Great Video Jim, right on!

I've always been all-in on alliteration, but in the future I'll be super suspicious! Great episode, as always, Jim. So good to see you looking strong and clearly enjoying yourself. 73!

Another reason to build your own. I still need to learn more about the nuts and bolts of how antennas work.

This advice would be pertinent to anyone for any subject. It's always funny when there are reviews of anything where you see the same object come up across multiple "reviewers" all within a week or two... dead giveaway.

Jim, the technical aspect of "Q" and the trade offs are important to understand for sure. Every now and then I still find car audio speakers with the blazing red letters "500 WATTS peak to peak". Technical context is very important. I would like to differentiate, you are highlighting "marketing scams" and not directly or even indirectly intimating high/low "Q" is good or bad per'se. You provided the technical overview of "Q" to assist in understanding how the marketing magicians spin the illusion of value when in reality there is little to no value for the amount of money requested. If a home brew antenna made of coat hanger and aluminum foil works because that all that available at the time, great! Trying to sell it to others for $1K dollars, that's the point you're emphasizing. I really enjoyed this one, It seems to me "Q" is one of the most overlooked/misunderstood principles in relation to antennas today.

73's Jim de N6JRZ. Great advice as always.

I fully agree but it always comes back to the buyer being knowledgeable enough to sort through the weeds. There are a handful of very good You-Tubers that I completely trust. Time proves all things...

Thank you Jim ! All the best W3VIC

Perfect! 👍 Thank you for staying this! Maybe read an antenna book and build your own as you're learning about why that is designed like that.

Great video. I live in Rockland Ontario, and I definitely want a Rockland Rover.

I have always been and I will always be, Elmer Jim. Happy Weekend into Rocklin CA & 73 de Your biggest Fan from across the Pond 💯👍🙋‍♂

This is exactly how I feel about every magic coil and efhw antenna on RU-vid. I couldn't agree with this video more! 73

LOL You will get a lot of orders for the Rockland Rover now 😄 Thanks, so true.

Jim, you are a great Elmer.

Warren T Ratt to Faisel (in An American Tale) "Whaddya wanna believe, Kid, what you see, or the look on my face?" 🤣All the Best, Jim! 73 DE W8LV BILL

I couldn't agree more. Good to see you again Jim. 73

Good to hear from you! Good advice, Jim.

Excellent and well-timed👍 video, Thanks Jim!

Never be leary of the Trusted... Thank You Jim

The best antenna is the one that you have at the time

Very well said! This why I make my own. Thank you

Well said! That's one reason I never buy the latest and greatest as soon as it hits the market. I like to get multiple reviews over a period of time and try to find out if all the hype is accurate.

Most products, a good ham operator can hit the ARRL Black books and look at the design of the product to figure out if the product will do what is says, especially antennas. I think the newer ham operators have gotten away from looking at the design and mentally asking question how does it work and are just buying a box of widgets thinking the manufacture would never lie and that they tested and it will work.

Spot on Jim. Thats how i did with my DXComander, 100 videos, loads of live data, before i got it, sure it is a monster antenna, and i love it, but yeah dont just trust the first and best. And Jim stay safe.. 73 de OZ5ZX

Now I have to follow that great advice Thanks Jim

True knowledge for sure. Thank You and 73, JR

Another great video from the great W6LG. So many of the current crop of RU-vid hams are simply driven by three things: 1. their own ego (who wants to watch and hour maybe two of them blathering mindlessly?); 2. RU-vid clicks to earn them money from RU-vid; 3. Getting freebies to play with. I now ignore most of the flashy, loud guys and stick to watching you, K4OGO and KB9VBR. Glad to see you're still looking good. VK4BOB

I use a 17' ground-mount EFQW telescopic stainless-steel whip with radials at 15 watts on 20/15/10 meters to great effect in my POTA activations. Cost was about $100, all in. No fancy (expensive) coils. Just good radio science that I learned on my own. It takes me about 10 minutes to set up and another 10 to break down and pack up, which means more time operating.

Sage advice Jim, so many products that claim to defy the laws of physics. I also see plenty of VHF/UHF handhelds that are promoted for having 50 miles or so of range, hardly typical in everyday use. A young ham being swindled on their first purchase may be permanently put off the hobby. 73

Thanks for the great advice Jim!

Sage advice as always. I have learned over the years that if they don’t buy it with their own money and everybody suddenly is reviewing it at the same time it’s probably not going to be something I should be trustful of. Then add the amazing superlatives and even more red flags go up.

Thanks for the advice and the reasons why.

@jim w6lg it’s great to see critical thinking being promoted in this day and age. I would like to add that there are agencies that a manufacturer can purchase services from, who hire freelancers to buy and review products, with the review having to be approved prior to payment to the freelancer. Unfortunately this goes on in broad daylight on platforms like upwork. So even the reviews can be gamed, if the manufacturer desires and is willing to take the (low) risk of being caught. Here’s another thought- I feel that you are one of very few who are in a fantastic position to recommend, from your empirical experience and perspective, what general antenna test parameters matter. To me it would be great to see more direct comparisons in real time like some folks do, while receiving a weak station and switching back and forth between antennas. And equally importantly, do the same testing on transmit, using WSPR or ft8. I like ft8 because the number of reports will be high compared to WSPR. Keep up the excellent promotion of critical thinking!!!

"It's a GAIN changer!" But not in the way you would want! It's so funny, I see this on the electric guitar channels all the time. A new, very inexpensive, ahem, "Debut" model comes out, and they all give it rave reviews!

Thank you Rockland! best company to deal with..

Great Job Jim ...Thanks for posting...."Rockland Rover" Love it...if you ever hit the CB band would be such a great handle...that is so cool...

Research!!! Great advice Mr Jim! Thank you

After training and decades of investigation, I *still* want empirical evidence (actual measurements) of how maximum radiation relates to resonance and lowest SWR. While at it, the relative radiation with a "tuner" inline, though you can't use a modern emitter because a true test wouldn't have AGC and fold back. Optimally, the raw data would be available for analysis, along with enough information to duplicate the testing setup.

I thought most of this was common sense up until the past 2 years or so. Yes , re invented wheel. Amazingly enough, most of these talking heads are all in the same group together. I just couldn’t make myself a part of it. In the end , people remember your honesty and willing to teach them. If they are teachable. Kool aid is on every corner in this business my friend.

i feel like you are talking about the company I just tried to buy a screwdriver antenna. lots of video but no stock whatsoever

I want to work the world! I need a Rockland Rover! I love the flame decal! I'm convinced! Here, take my money! Oh, which brand of radios does it work with, or is there only one? Or doesn't it need a radio? These hams, if they actually are hams who are getting free stuff by babbling nonsense on their RU-vid channels piss me off. I doubt if they could explain what radiation resistance is, yet they are confidently lying about antennas and other radio gear. I had one tell me that a ridiculous bow-tie antenna was a Yagi-Yuda. (I assume he looked up Yuda's name so he could sound knowledgeable.) I pointed out that it was NOT a Yagi, and he told me I was WRONG! He said it had to be a Yagi because the guy who designed it called it a Yagi. I told him it wasn't because I'd read read everything from the ARRL Antenna Handbook to Kraus and half a dozen other experts on the subject and designed and built my own antennas from Longwave to helicals to Yagi's.He still told me I was wrong. You know what his channel was doing? Selling courses for people to get their ham licenses! That was a picture from the course to show what a Yagi looked like! I've made a few pointed comments on loading coil videos. I pointed out that electrons and photons can't see the label on a loading coil, and a coil on a low dielectric-constant form that's made of the same diameter as the commercial one, with similar wire with the same spacing between windings works exactly the same or better than the outrageously expensive loading coil. The difference being between $5 and however much the coil company can charge. Then I point out that a ham license is a license to build, to experiment, to learn, and that they got the license so they don't HAVE to get ripped off by unscrupulous vendors like happens to CBers. I figure it's the duty of Elmers to help new hams avoid being caught by unscrupulous vendors, but it's difficult to do on RU-vid unless one has a channel like yours. So thank you.

The Rockland Rover is reassuringly expensive, so it must be good 😊

I love the content Jim! Sell more best of antennas!

Wow, couldn't agree more. You should only take advice/suggestions from those who have earned your trust.

Hi,good interesting video, you made some good points, Buyers beware 😢, thanks from Rotterdam 73s 🙏🙏

I think we may have watched the same "review" on an antenna. There are so many of these flimsy reviews out there, and they all come down to a culture that values hype over knowledge. Our shared hobby should foster values of knowledge and technical virtue, but unfortunately, there are strong forces out there with neither knowledge nor virtue which tend to be the prevailing winds out on places like YT. There should never be a review of an antenna, power supply, transceiver, or other accessory, without any actual performance measurement. And no, an anecdotal "I worked some DX and got a good audio report" does not cut it. "Low SWR." Please. I know the pain in watching these reviews. I am really glad you made this video and got ~10k views so far on it. You make an important point and we need to strengthen our hobby by revealing these pointless reviews for what they are -- all hype and no substance. 73 OM and keep it up, --E de W6EL

I have $30 antenna's that I made that work dam good. Eyeballing all these other antennas that are high priced makes me suspicious of it right off the bat. If I am sent a $1000 antenna and it turns out to be crap, that will be my review.

Thank you Jim!

And thats why im resigned to studing antennas and building my own. My first was a vertical dipole made from coax for 27mhz and second that im using now is 102' random wire in inverted L configuration up bout 40' and over 4 trees. Third contact was in japan near Tokyo from north texas 20m i thought 100 watts till i found out it was actually bout half that. Good clear signal on both sides. Trying to figure out what im gonna do next. Maybe a magloop i do have a bit of 1/2copper tubbing and an old capacitor from an old tube radio. Should be good for qrp or receive maybe. I just got into radio for the experimentation as it is. If i mke crap i still learn somthing and move on. Thinking of doin somthing lime the dx comander in vhf/uhf for the roof. Im just using stuf i have on hand as im cheap and brokeish. The main thing is im having fun and learning at same time. I cant buy somehing when i can build it for much cheaper price. Thanks ive been learning much from you over the last few years mr heath. GOD BLESS.

Great advice. Thanks!

Always like your info Jim .. keep on keeping on

Name names man, name names!

Hahaha this video is brilliant! The Rockland Rover 🤣🤣🤣 yes we all know exactly what product you are really talking about. Thanks for this video it is excellent advice and the jab at "that product" is absolutely on point. We all need to be very careful with these online reviews and so called influencers. There is more disinformation than ever coming at us.

Keep the humor in it Jim. 73

Jim! nice to see you online. I'm glad you did this video... our current field of newcomers seem to be eager to gobble this stuff and in the next breath dumping on ALL of us older guys.. it's an interesting time... I've been licensed for 40 years and do have an accumulation of knowledge and skills but get dumped on because I'm a 'sad ham'... I'm not sad, but I am old (73) and very active in the hobby... keep up the good work.. I know you're going through serious health issues and wish you the best.. keep it up... we need the voice of experience.. look forward to your next vid.. .

Taking a piss on k8mrd. I hope Mike takes this in stride and learns from it.

Where can I order the antenna ? You convinced me 😅😅. Nice video Jim.. lots of truth into it indeed. 73, YO6DXE.

I find it interesting that the "fastrac process" that seems to be common today regarding the race to get licensed with no antenna knowledge. Fortunately I had two great and knowledgeable Elmers who empasized studying antenna design before spending money on them. W5KAL

Well said. I receive emails to send me yet another Chinese HT. I decline these offers as I am not a review channel. Then a few weeks later I see the radio being ‘reviewed’.

You can get a perfect match with a 50 ohm resistor (as in the rubber ducks that come with many handheld radios). Thanks for the reality check, Jim.

The real question will be how many request you get for the purchase of the Rockland Rover! Hi Hi 73