Which fibreglass pole for Amateur (Ham) Radio? SPIDERPOLE, DX COMMANDER OR OTHERS? 

A well made video and I'm glad that you kept the microphone fault in. It's refreshing to see an honest video of how ham radio really is.

Don't feel too bad about the mic, I learned a HUGE amount from the excellent video. Getting on the air was the least important part of it. Stuff happens but the rest of the video was great and I've made copious notes. As a learner, this was great help.

Good vid. I actually tuned in precisely for the poles so I found it successful, and it was nice to see troubleshooting in progress. Nice and simple setup with the battery box as well. Cheers

Hi Mike, just watched your video. As an M7 who has never used or even seen one of these poles before, I found this very interesting and informative. Thanks to you and your camera man Sri for a great video. David.

Just found this video. Good Info. I have a pole ordered from Callum. Glad you found the tx issue and fix.

I enjoyed that video. The comparison of your poles is what brought me here, so the rest was a bonus. Great! The difficulties with the mic is a great motivation I'm sure to get into morse. It's not difficult, it's just like riding a bike really. It's easier with a paddle than an pedal though.

Excellent video, thanks for taking the time to do this

Great video thanks Seeing the poles from compressed to up and working was what I wanted so the vid was a great success The issue with mike was in itself educational - glad it's not just me that gets frustrating problems - very reassuring.

Thank you for taking the time to make this video; it helped me figure out my pole situation. :) :)

I work portable quite a bit and saying portable after I call a DX station they will generally have all "part the way" for you. Makes me feel special. Great video!

Thumbs up for the honesty.

Enjoyed the video Mike shows what happens in the real world glad you got it sorted looking forward to the next 73

Great video on the difference between the poles, great information and still shopping for a POTA setup! That wrap looks awesome and serves it's purpose!

Excellent real world vlog. We all actually live in a far from perfect world, with no luxury to playback through an editing suite. So l welcome your honesty...lt actually sets you apart.

Great video. Just found your channel. Looking forward more videos. Thank you, RB - Highland, Indiana

Nice to see your setup Mike and showing the various weights of each pole. I find using cable ties to secure the element and feeder to the pole makes it much easier to handle and lift the pole as you will not be having to lift the wire and UnUn at full stretch. Thanks and 73.

Very helpful! I just got my 12m mast and an planning all kinds of applications for it, including half wave verticals on 20m and above.

Nice kit and nice attempt. As you said, “The best laid schemes o' Mice an' Men, / Gang aft agley.” Enjoyed the video even when it all goes bollocks. Keep videos coming. 73 W0YVY.

This vid was just what I was looking for, a comparison between poles of different price and quality👍 Not actually seen a Spiderbeam first hand but it's obvious where the money goes and worth it IMO. That business with the faulty microphone brought a smile to my face. Not because it ruined your day Mike but because I've been there and done that! 73😁

Hello Mike. Thanks for the awesome QSO on the Mohoy Hub. Really enjoyed the conversation. Pleasure to meet you in the air. Impressive setup on your Station and likewise your Mobile Setup. Well, this was the video I mentioned that I watched. Put in a thumb up and also subscribed to your Channel. Stay Safe. 73 Ruben Tiosejo KD6CWI

Good information none the less!

I use poles almost every time I go out QRP with either my 817 or Clansman PRC320. I tend to use poles less their top two sections as this reduces the flex considerably and offers a good stable platform for my homebrew resonant inverted V's. I tend to buy the cheaper ones as to date I have had excellent service from them. Maybe one day I will get one from Richard at Sotabeams. Thank you for sharing.

Nice set up for the antenna

Everything on here is of great value to me, many thanks for the video 73's M7MJW

Really good video Mike despite the mic trouble, these things always seem happen when away from the shack, SOTA pole looks a grest combination between height, strength & weight, wonder how it compares to Callums new DX expedition pole, for pure might though the spiderbeam seems king and will just laugh at most wind forces providing you've got the strength to get it in the air. Great to have you back. Hope to catch you on 2m again sometime soon 73s M7HCK

Great video, I'm in the market for a pole - so very useful, thanks. This is why I've stopped buying new Yaesus, their stock mics are arse! Kenwood mics work and work... & so do their rigs. Even the cheaper ones.

Hi Mike, good video. Spiderbeam poles are definitely a great choice. I knew your antenna would resonate a bit lower than you hoped as it is a bit long. I learned this after using the 49:1 toroid transformers for my end feds. The end fed i use at home is like yours but its length is 9.8m long and another i have that covers up to 40m is 19 metres in length. That vertical set up you demonstrated would have been good for 10m as well due to the harmonic relationship. 10 has been open quite a bit this summer so hope you get plenty of contacts. 73 Sid MI5UTC

LOL, check is in the mail. Very good demonstration, thank you...j

Thank you. Until seeing your video I knew very little about portable operation. Very helpful. 73 KC3GLL

It's a good informative video, things goes bit wrong when it's technical stuff, all round it's a nice video

Its actually a very realistic video. We saw a nice comparison of the three fiberglass beams. Then, Boom! An issue crops up! Just like with so many other things. You kept your cool and moved into diagnostics. Eventually, you isolated the issue. Good CQ'ing! :)

Great vid

Enjoyed your video mate. Gremlins have struck no problem.

Hi Mike, I carry a spare mic just for the CB. Thanks for the demo of poles, I was just thinking about getting one and making an aerial/antenna instead of buying one or two aerials. Especially for portable use. But I may need to put one up and take it down when not in use as I have not not permission to put up an aerial. But I am still working on it!

I really appreciate this. I Have been looking for a suitable pole here in the US but finding suppliers is, sadly, harder than one would expect.

Thank you for all the info in this last video. It was very helpful Tyson ve7tye Vancouver BC

Hi Mike I've subscribed m8 m7dnm I met you in pipework Swadlincote 👍👍

Great video. Thank you for making it. Recently I purchased 3 Spiderbeam 12m poles. They are amazing and have allowed my to get my OCF Dipole up higher than my old set up. Keep up the good work. JJK N6NRO

Thanks for the poles-comparison Mike. I have used several variants of fibreglass poles, and was surprised recently to find that at least one of them was not innocent at RF; I slung a ladder-line slim jim for 70MHz against the mast, and it de-tuned it significantly. Makes me suspect that there might also be loss introduced by the mast. Sorry, I can't remember which brand of pole it was! But just thought I should spread the word that you can get caught-out by this.

I use a 12m Spiderbeam telescope pole both for portable work and for my base station. They offer a good length and easy handling for one person. A longer pole is not easily manageable. I also have a 15m pole, and believe me, it is a bear to work with. The 12m Spiderbeam pole offers good length, is not too heavy (but not for backpacking!) and one person can set it up. I also use a variety of EFHW antennas for the bands from 6 to 20m, all commercially built. I tape the wires along the pole using simple masking tape. It is cheap, light and suprisingly strong. This helps keep the pole standing more vertical, and the wire doesn't billow out and get caught on things, like tree branches. My antennas are from the German company www.lambdahalbe.de. They have no tuner, but rather a matching stub with slider, so you can adjust the resonant frequency as needed. This is practical because the different ground will affect the SWR at frequency. Less equipment to carry, and makes everything lighter. They cost about 30 Euros a piece. I also have a multiband (10,15,20, 40, 80m) antenna from the dutch company www.hyendfed.nl. They have a matching box. No tuner is necessary. This particular antenna is 23 meters long. I have configured it as a sloper using my Spiderbeam mast, but you need a lot of real estate for it. I have also tried an inverted "V" and inverted "L" configuration, I had the best results when the antenna was deployed straight, either as a sloper or horizontal. These antennas are a bit more pricey, but they are well built and they work. Of course, you could simply build a 49:1 or 64:1 unun and get some good antenna wire and make them yourself. Now that I know they work well, I will build my own for the experience. Vy 73! David DM3BC

Spiderbeam is the way to go, very well made product , the dx commander thing couldn’t even hold my 17m half wave endfed wire up so I scraped it.

Glad you solved the radio Problem great channel I'm going to sort mine out on my 12 days off work I have a dipole and a vertical DX80 with the add-on pack interesting for sure RG 58 was no good for the SWR but I've got some RG8 Super xx so cross finger's DE 2E1FUE have a good day loving the video's very well explained 😀 👍

Mike try not to forget a 12 volt soldering iron and a test meter. ( I nearly forgot) Plus some solder. Always comes in handy. Thank's for the video on the poles though. 73 de John - G0WXU.

Very informative video regarding the poles etc. Shame about the audio problem hope everything turns out ok when you get back home.

It’s interesting you don’t have eyelets at the top of each Mast. I have all the ones (save for the DX Commander) plus a couple of Jackite poles. They all have an eyelet at the top. In each one, I have a short length of Kevlar cord with a pull. This makes starting the deployment of each one quite simple (grab the pull) and it gives each one a place to either affix a wire or suspend a wire in the case of an inverted L or Vee (or one of my doublets). My Spiderbeam is the most used mast in my inventory. I enjoyed this video.

Thanks for the video, just bought an EFHW and wondering how I’m going to get the thing up in the air - Spiderbeam pole it is.

Good work Mike, how rare is that with the mic! It has helped me not to leave a spare HF radio at home which I do too often.

Excellent video (and honest). A rare combination when many are just shills trying to sell product on youtube. Been looking for a fiberglass pole and your demos were the best I've seen. Keep it up Mike. Your videos are a breath of fresh air.... thumbs up and sub. de KQ1K

Nice video , greetings from Belgium 73 👍. ON4LBF Albert

Awesome video! Thanks. I love watching this kind of stuff. I've been playing around with EFHW antenna... just a piece of wire and a balun core. I use multi-tap UNUNs and never need a tuner. If you or anyone wants to see my EFHW for 80 that cost me $3, search on '80 EFHW & Mullti tap UNUN part 1 of 3 Intro & Demo'. Antenna experimenting is fun!

Really a very informative video!! I was wondering if any of those would be sturdy enough to handle a Alpha Delta Parallel Dipole Antennas DX-EE in a inverted 'V' configuration? Thanks in advance!

Enjoyed the video Mike and all the information on the poles . And I am glad that you found the problem was the mic itself . I have used these microphone alot and have never had any trouble. I also have a YAESU FT-991& FT-450,FT-840 all have the same mic. As you can see I am definitely a YAESU man. I was wondering what was the name of the battery that you was using with the FT-991and the balun name . Thanks for all information .73 AE4OY WILLIAM Peacock, SR. EM-81UF

Excellent video! I’m curious, what wrap did you use on the FT-991A?

If you ever want an instant counterpoise for portable operations out of the car you can simply use the car itself. Or possibly the fence but the fence will most likely be on the long side, the car is insulated from ground due to the tyres which can sometimes help.

Good video Mike. I went to set up my local clubs station at a museum last year. everything set up hirch free until radio turned on.... no power. After much humming and haring i wiggled the power lead at the radio end .... sparky! Investigation.... some bright spark had pulled out the powerpole plug by the cable.... A btute force and ignorance fix with my 'magic' screwdriver (40 years of faultless service) managed to wedge the bare wire in hard enough to be servicable ... Since then not been impressed with bright sparks, or powerpoles.

Nice video!! I have just one question: Why don't you use a ground on your wire antenna? 73's from Brazil! PY5CAP.

Hope Shri is also a call sign holder back in india. Nice Video, 73 de VU3GDP

So am Sri (VU2SFJ) ;-))

I had the same problem - once time my Yaesu dynamic mic has died... I thought dynamic mics are reliable... I installed chip electret tablet mic inside the Yaesu hand mic housing. To achieve good audio I used cork from Shampagne wine, cut it proper way to fit sizes of a dymamic mic and drill a hole in it for mic and wires. There is a mod how to solder electret mic for Yaesu MH. Also I have spare soviet military mic DEMSH , I made it some time for 817, it gives strong iron voice :)

Great video and good learning curve that next time bring a spare microphone. 73

I like the fiberglass pole you used on your transceiver in this video. What is the product name or part number? Can I get it online? Thanks, Enjoyed the video.

Excellent glassfibre demo. New-fangled coputerised radio? Not so much.

I was looking at poles and EFHW antennas. Just built myself a 6 x 2.75m section telescopic antenna out of drawn aluminium tube. Trying to work out how to mount it for semi portable use. There is enough length for a quarter wave on 7MHz or even a 5/8th on 14MHz. Once I get it in the air, I’ll have to figure out the matching unit Bummer about the mic. You should have busted out the key.....like a _real ham_ :-)

Thanks for the video, which type/brand of coax are you using for portable operations?

It is reassuring to the viewer when sometimes a plan does not come togrther. Shows that it is not magic. :-) I wondered if you would expect any effect of letting the wire spiral down, or up?? the mast to keep it in check from the wind? Thank you.

I like the wrap idea! Where'd you find it?

Its like Murphys law when one goes portable HIHI, I had a similar audio/modulation issue but much worse. I was flying from Sweden to USA, rented a car and drove 8 hours to the outer banks of North Carolina to camp at Cape Hatteras only to enter enter the 2019 IOTA contest in single operator Phone only. Guess what, the FT-920 would key but no audio. I had to spend the weekend on the beach instead. What a bummer. Now personally I don't like end fed ½ antennas with ununs, I believe there must always be a counterpoise. In this particular case what I would do if I were you is to (prep at home first) open your back door on on the edge on the inside drill a hole in the metal of the chassi and install a lug where you can connect a ground wire, potentially with a wingnut instead of a regular nut hihi and your halfway would be an awesome mobile antenna using all of the metal surface of your vehicle as a counterpoise. Or I would stay with a ¼-wave antenna and just have 2 radials, or perhaps a vertical dipole. I use similar poles quite a lot for vertical antennas, both in permanent installations and portable. I usually use what my friends call a Wet vertical, if there is no high trees I use a pole. I have also a 12m Spiderbeam pole that I put up a inverted-L Wet vertical on. It was in the back of my yard, very small yard so it had immediate my 2 story house to the south and radials ranging from only 3m to 8m on the ground. I worked a 80m DXCC and more on that. Funny that my support pole costed me more than 20 times my antenna. Thank you for good videos. Ill be watching more. 73

had the same with 817 73 m6ltv nige

As we say in here in the States.... shit happens, it was still an informative video on the pole setup.

What is the power supply you are using please ? I’m looking to power my yeasu ft840 whilst portable

Stick a spare radio in the boot. Murphy always catches you when you least expect it

Maybe I missed it but who makes the black thick wall pole looking to put up a 1/4 wave 40 meter dipole so I’m looking for a good quality fiberglass pole. Thanks Brian. From Oregon

Don't laugh it must be something in the water😖 I was up Winter Hill last Wednesday and took everything needed to play Radio but forgot the main item the Radio😀😀, go on you can laugh now. all good fun 😊😉👍👍

What are thoughts on using military camo net poles? The ones that are 4 ft. long and stackable. I'm thinking of buying 8 of them at $10.00 each.

I need a pole for a permanent home antenna install. Is there a particular brand you prefer? I want quality over cost.

What about the counterpoise for the antenna?

My mic lasted two weeks i did the vk3ye mic mods on my 817 857 an991 more audio and more of a unch 73 kg6mn

Cheap fibreglass fishing pole from a tackle shop made by Ron Thompson does the job don't be fooled by fancy names on Which is just a cheap basic roach pole if you want to go stiffer and spend more money go for a basic carbon fibre one the only problem is conductativity due to the construction.

What Earth/Ground did you use?

A PROPER go bag should have a back-up for the back-up's back-up, so if the back-up should pack-up, one stil has one's back-up, back-up.......

No ground? I guess your a fan of RF on the coax!

Yaesu mics can fail but they are easy to fix.

🖤🔥🙌🏼✨

100 pounds for the spiderbeam, mmm makes sense why they are about 600 buck in Australia

I guess it was your day to do only digital.

Why don’t you put the pole in the holder THEN extend it, that’s what I do!

Your set up for digital, need to switch

This guy brings a lot of stuff he doesn't plan on using.

The mic is probably on warrantry i love my 991 oh i had to replace my finals kg6mn

I have one of the spiderbeams, and I really do NOT like it. It's the 12m tall pole, but unfortunately, you can't really put any weight on the top of it if it's fully extended. I had a dipole center-point at the top of this mast and the stupid mast just bent over. After talking to the company about this problem, they indicated that I needed to lower the mast by two segments to keep it from bending. Well, what's the point of it being 40' tall if the top two segments are not even usable? Sorry, but that's stupid. I already had a mast that was 35' tall that worked fine and didn't bend. Sorry, but the spiderbeam is a waste of money.

I must say I always take a spare mic with me when I go portable! A 22 min video setting up a station to not make contacts! Could you not have grafted this video onto the front of another where you actually work some HF? Do you think that's why people have been a bit negative, maybe they feel like they've had their time wasted?

Awesome video! Thanks. I love watching this kind of stuff. I've been playing around with EFHW antenna... just a piece of wire and a balun core. I use multi-tap UNUNs and never need a tuner. If you or anyone wants to see my EFHW for 80 that cost me $3, search on '80 EFHW & Mullti tap UNUN part 1 of 3 Intro & Demo'. Antenna experimenting is fun!

Awesome video! Thanks. I love watching this kind of stuff. I've been playing around with EFHW antenna... just a piece of wire and a balun core. I use multi-tap UNUNs and never need a tuner. If you or anyone wants to see my EFHW for 80 that cost me $3, search on '80 EFHW & Mullti tap UNUN part 1 of 3 Intro & Demo'. Antenna experimenting is fun!

Awesome video! Thanks. I love watching this kind of stuff. I've been playing around with EFHW antenna... just a piece of wire and a balun core. I use multi-tap UNUNs and never need a tuner. If you or anyone wants to see my EFHW for 80 that cost me $3, search on '80 EFHW & Mullti tap UNUN part 1 of 3 Intro & Demo'. Antenna experimenting is fun!

Awesome video! Thanks. I love watching this kind of stuff. I've been playing around with EFHW antenna... just a piece of wire and a balun core. I use multi-tap UNUNs and never need a tuner. If you or anyone wants to see my EFHW for 80 that cost me $3, search on '80 EFHW & Mullti tap UNUN part 1 of 3 Intro & Demo'. Antenna experimenting is fun!

Awesome video! Thanks. I love watching this kind of stuff. I've been playing around with EFHW antenna... just a piece of wire and a balun core. I use multi-tap UNUNs and never need a tuner. If you or anyone wants to see my EFHW for 80 that cost me $3, search on '80 EFHW & Mullti tap UNUN part 1 of 3 Intro & Demo'. Antenna experimenting is fun!