A home-built OTA antenna that is small and simple. Save a few $$$ by building your own DIY Stealth Hawk.
The StealthHawk is my favorite 1st DIY antenna. Easiest build with solid channels. Done in 5 minutes. Saved a ton of $$$. Comparable to any $50 indoor antenna.
The DIY Gray-Hoverman is better, but takes more time & materials to build. How much better? 4-5 bars of signal strength on the Gray-Hoverman vs. 3-4 bars on StealthHawk.
Template used
DIY YouTube Videos:
My Build:
Skill Level: Easy. Cut and bend copper wire. Results: As good as any of the $50 store bought indoor flat antennaTime: <1hr
- 5′ (60″) of wire (6-12 gauge). Copper, steel, aluminum. Thicker the better!
- Bare copper at [Lowes @ .99/ft].
- Aluminum wire at hardware, hobby, Amazon
- Steel coat hanger is ~12 gauge wire
- 75 to 300 Ohm UHF/VHF Matching Transformer. [5 pack for $4.99]
- Optional, as I have seen some forums say you can just splice coax end for minimal signal loss.
- 6′ of RG6 coax cable. Keep is short to 6′ or 15′. Longer lengths = signal loss.
- Scrap wood. Screws, Washers for mounting.
Instructions:
- Cut a 60″ length of copper, aluminum, steel wire.
- Bend to shape with hands, pliers. I soldered for a more clean sharp angle look.
- Connect. Scan. DONE! Enjoy FREE TV.
- optional solder method:
- I cut the straight lengths, wrapped thin copper hobby wire and soldered the ends.
- Do whatever works for you to get the proper lengths/bends. ????
Quick Build. Ugly, but works fine
SCREENSHOTS:
http://pages.videotron.com/paudio/antennes/index.html