My DIY pentalobe antenna

[Reflection]

Hello all,

Today I decided to build a new antenna. I have built a 3-lobe and 4-lobe cloverleaf/skew planar using the design that was created by IBCrazy. I figured I would use the same measurements and build a 5-lobe antenna. I thought I would share it with the group. Special thanks to IBCrazy and all his contributions to the community.

Hope it helps the DIYers out there. Took me about 45mins doing it the first time.

Note: I have not tested it yet. I will try it this afternoon.

 

[LuvMyTJ]

Nice job.
Results?

 

[Reflection]

Thanks. I waited all afternoon but the drizzling has not stopped. I don't have time tomorrow so looks like I will not be able to test this until Wednesday. I will post my results once I test it.

 

[Reflection]

I had a chance to take my P2 with new antenna for a quick run. Went up 90m (limit due to airport restriction) and out 700m and still had clear video. I lost sight of the bird around 300m, so 700m may be enough for most people. I live in a densely populated area so was hesitant to take it further. Not sure what the limit is yet. I may have some time to go to the park and test it tomorrow.

 

[kenjancef]

What gauge wire, and what kind of coax did you use? Sorry if I should know that... curious to try it myself.

 

[Reflection]

In my case I used 19AWG copper wire. As you can see, I left the insulation on the wire and only stripped where I needed to solder. 19AWG is thick enough so that it holds it shape well. Although I've read that thicker wire is not as efficient.

For the coax I used the leftover from what I cut off a patch antenna (see my Diversity Patch Antenna Mod post). I believe it's RG-58 coax.

One thing I would do differently is cut the coax a little shorter. Right now I have to screw the antenna to the P2 but can't point it straight down. If I point the antenna down, then it would touch the ground. I've read that ideally it should be one wavelength in length, so around 54mm.

Still, I'm happy with the results for a first time build. I'm going to build some more for fun. I have a spool of 20AWG and 22AWG wire here so might as well give it a shot.

 

[kenjancef]

Thanks for the info... I got a busy weekend coming up, but I might try it for next weekend, my first REAL attempt at soldering... oh yea... I guess I gotta get a soldering iron.. .lol...

 

[Reflection]

These antennas are very forgiving to make. Once you get the hang of it, it's not difficult at all. And you can experiment and make a bunch of different types. And it costs under $2 to make.

 

[Reflection]

I went to a friend's house yesterday and flew up to 1000ft (max limit set) and out 3000ft and that's when my video started degrading. It was a cloudy day but I'm still happy about my DIY antenna. The FPV video was good enough for me to track down a balloon that I lost while chasing. Because of the wind, the balloon disappeared in a couple of seconds. It was just a speck on the screen but the FPV video was clear enough for me to detect it. This was about about 2100ft away.

Almost crashed my P2 today while chasing a balloon | DJI Phantom Forum