Posts: 1663
Location: Kodiak, AK | Both schools of thought are correct...you need a decent antenna AND the power to push it. But I'll say this, if you're on LSC, Erie, Ontario, etc, there's plenty of repeaters that you'll not have any issues talking to anyone you'd need to talk to. I have a Lowrance 850 that's several years old, and a simple 3 or 4' whip antenna and I can talk to Sector Detroit (Detroit River) from the St. Clair River and have great comms; enough for me to help execute two separate SAR cases from my boat and be in comms with Sector, Station Shores and Station Port Huron. That's the entire St. Clair flowage from a 10 year old radio and a whip antenna. Likewise, I can talk to Sarnia CG radio from open water almost to the South Shore of LSC. No, I can't talk to Buffalo, but I don't need to.
If you want the 8'er, go for it. But other than going offshore in the ocean, or being along the North Shore of the GL where repeaters aren't as frequent, you can communicate just fine along the populated SE part of the GL. And if you do get the 8' glass antenna, remember it has to be UP to work. I see guys with 8' antennas trying to transmit with their antenna in the down position.
Edited by esoxfly 2/5/2014 6:17 PM
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