Building antennas is one of the most useful and cost-effective projects a ham can undertake. Getting
some metal in the air for only a few bucks can bring you lots of satisfaction and leave you more money
to buy more radios.
2-meter Quarter-wave vertical. Want to build a 2 Meter antenna that works great that costs just a few bucks? Check out the video.
2-meter / 440 dipole. Here is a dual band antenna that you install as a vertical or horizontally polarized antenna.
Check out the video.
2-meter 'Slim Jim' for 300-ohm twinlead. Got some old TV flat lined in your garage that you've been thinking of throwing away? You could
build a J-pole antenna for 2 meters that has some decent gain over the rubber ducky
antenna that came with your HT. There are lots of versions of this antenna on the web. Some
even use copper piping and are very durable.
Here's the link
Dual-band VHF/UHF 'Slim Jim'. This is another version of the 'Slim Jim' that also works on 440.
Here's the link.
10-meter dipole. The Technician Class license gives you some privileges on the 10-meter band.
Check out the video.
Multiband dipole antennas. Here is a YouTube video that compares several types of dipole antennas. If you plan on buying
or building a dipole antenna,
this video is a must-see.