James wrote:
Any recommendations on this ? I know that an atv would not provide much
of a ground plane, so I think a 1/4 wave would be out of the question.

For optimum performance, a 5/8WL needs a better ground
plane than a 1/4WL. I once provided four radial whips
attached to the luggage rack on my motorcycle which
worked with a 1/4WL vertical. It performed well.

Any recommended "type" (wavelength, etc) and brand for this use ?

On my bicycle, I use a J-Pole made out of ladder-line.
It is attached to a fiberglass bicycle flag pole. It
doesn't need a ground plane. This should work well on
an ATV. You may even already have the fiberglass flag
as is required when riding on many beaches.
--
73, Cecil http://www.w5dxp.com

Thanks to both Merlin and to Cecil. Well, I thought that a 1/4 wave
would rely on a good ground plane more than a 5/8 wave antenna would. I
will have to consider that.

As for a J-Pole, I really don't think that is a high-gain antenna , is it ?
My thinking has been that it is primarily a dipole, mounted vertically.


Thanks again !!


73 de Jim K4PYT

James wrote:
As for a J-Pole, I really don't think that is a high-gain antenna , is it ?
My thinking has been that it is primarily a dipole, mounted vertically.

A 1/4WL is not a high-gain antenna either. Neither
is a 5/8WL with a non-optimum ground plane. A J-Pole
has essentially the same radiation pattern as a
1/4WL ground plane but it doesn't need a ground
plane. If you want gain and are willing to provide
an optimum ground plane on your ATV, then there are
phased-array gain antennas available, e.g. the
Diamond 97 inch NR22L with an advertised gain of
6 dBd.
--
73, Cecil http://www.w5dxp.com