Hello all

I just knocked up what could be the most DIY range extender going. Just wanted opinions as to if its safe to use/will give me any problems.

Cheers!

The curvature of the shield is crucial.  And your design is poor.  Here's the good news!  You can download templates to make one for free.  https://rchelimenace.wordpress.c ... windsurfer-antenna/

much better! Cheers!

bobasbury Posted at 2016-5-26 22:10
The curvature of the shield is crucial.  And your design is poor.  Here's the good news!  You can do ...

Although looking at it again this is designed for the Standard. will it work with the Advanced if I modify it?

Jakk Posted at 2016-5-26 22:37
Although looking at it again this is designed for the Standard. will it work with the Advanced if  ...

It should, yes.  To test your design after building, aim a laser pointer anywhere on the foil.  The beam should bounce back to the antenna.

You might look into some aluminized mylar, like the kind you get in a survival blanket,  to use as a reflector.  It is wrinkle free. The creases and wrinkles will tend to scatter your signal a bit.

does it help? if it helps, it helps later tonight i'll post a few pics of my two home made ones .. pretty similar. I used pie pans, rather than foil.

The one I 3D printed and used copper tape, helped a bit.. I'd say 5-10% easily.
https://www.facebook.com/greg.tokarski/posts/10207970240147665

made no difference to my range.

You can buy them for $4 delivered on ebay. Why waste your time?



http://www.ebay.com/itm/New-2-4G ... :g:HK4AAOSwEetV-Q~d

dkruseski Posted at 2016-5-27 07:15
You can buy them for $4 delivered on ebay. Why waste your time?

Cause after a few beers it's fun? I like to build and tinker, so something like this is in my wheel house ... No matter how cheap the item may be, I like to create and build things with my hands. It's not core functionality to the drone, so even if it's crap, it doesn't hurt anything. And I learn about it as well. Building some of these got me to research and learn about antennas, the tech of how they broadcast and parabolic reflectors and how they work. Otherwise, I may not have read and learned that stuff (don't quiz me pls) .. And that knowledge is worth way more than $4 in parts savings.

If you were to remove the plastic shell from the stock antenna, what you would see would be a piece of coax cable that had the insulator and shield removed very close to the end,  leaving a tiny bit of the center conductor exposed.  That is what radiates the signal from the r/c.  Parabolic type range boosters work by taking this omnidirectional signal and reflecting it in more or less one direction.  The copper used in the reflectors is mostly a gimmick.  In this application,  aluminum foil,  aluminumized mylar or similar would do just as well so long as it was wrinkle free.  The reflective qualities of aluminum and copper are quite similar in this respect.   Also,  there is no need to put the reflective surface on the face of the range booster.  It will work just as well if you attach it to the back,  or even embed it into the plastic.  The rf produced by the Phantoms r/c goes right through the plastic.  Otherwise,  the stock antennas plastic housing would prevent any signal from getting out.  For anyone interested in getting the maximum performance from any antenna system,  I recommend the ARRL antenna handbook.  It is THE definitive source of antenna theory,  design and information

Try some of these after you finish your cans

dkruseski Posted at 2016-5-27 00:15
You can buy them for $4 delivered on ebay. Why waste your time?

Exactly what I thought LOL

Being very short this time. I had started a detailed explanation and the Wife interrupted me with something stupid as usual.
Using a curved reflector narrows your signal pattern. It is no longer omni-directional. This is OK as long as your Phantom is in the direct path of that pattern.

Placing a reflector directly behind the antenna creates a high SWR (standing wave ratio) a portion of the radiated signal is reflected back into the antenna which over time will damage the final of the transmitter.

I would leave things the way they were designed to be used.

The first ones I made were similar in the fact that they were not smooth, My second set I made I printed the template slightly bigger and used aluminum foil tape, they are awesome and very smooth. Recently I purchased the Copper ones you see on Amazon and I am super happy with them and they look super nice, I got them for about 16 bucks.

The first ones I made were similar in the fact that they were not smooth, My second set I made I printed the template slightly bigger and used aluminum foil tape, they are awesome and very smooth. Recently I purchased the Copper ones you see on Amazon and I am super happy with them and they look super nice, I got them for about 16 bucks.

Here's my homemade ones .. they worked quite well. Pie pans

First try, plastic soda bottle cut in half hot glued to a cut out pie pan. used nerf darts as spacers, rubber bands as holders and clips to keep in place.






Second try i wanted something less ugly .. used cut in half suppliment can and again, pie pans The nerf darts worked well with rubber bands, so I kept that going











I've since purchased a plastic one which actually fits in my backpack, but these really did help. The second one was better for sure.

Keep on tinkering guys, thats what keeps this fun

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