Review on 📻 SMA209J Stubby Soft 3-inch Dual Band Ham Radio Transceiver Antenna for Baofeng, Wouxun by Amy Cook

I have a BF-F8+ and need a shorter carrying antenna that is out of the way. The rubber that covers this antenna is very thin and flexible (feels like silicone) as is the antenna underneath, so ergonomically almost perfect. I haven't tried it with an antenna analyzer yet, so only rough tests so far. I scanned the frequencies 136-174 and 400-520 MHz. Noticed frequencies at slightly weaker constant gears. I compared this antenna (just over 2 1/2 inches) to the standard Baofeng antenna that came with my BF-F8+ (sorry I don't know the model but it's just over 4 1/2 inches) and the Baofeng that I also received from Revain (just over 6 1/2 inches) - here is the ASIN number for the last item (B00CCEL7O0). The longest baofeng antenna seemed to outperform the standard medium length baofeng which seemed to outperform this antenna. Antennas, the more weak transmissions it could detect when scanning - this is what is usually expected of longer antennas, but I was surprised to see that they all work the same and I'm glad I took this antenna hiking. need 10-20% more power, I can always connect a longer antenna This antenna fits my baofeng pretty well, but there is extra brass on the bottom of the connector (the unthreaded part) which is not present on my baofeng antennas. This will contribute to a gap of about 1/8 inch between the outside plastic part of the antenna and the radio. This antenna includes a rubber washer, but it's nowhere near as thick as it needs to be to fill the gap for my baofeng. Although there is a gap, the threaded portion of this SMA connector seems to rest against the bottom and fit snugly into the connector on the radio - I can always trim off the excess brass or put a thicker rubber or plastic washer onto the hardware. I guess. save if it bothers me.