Before buying my current main tuner,
the MFJ 993B, I read some reviews, and did some tests, but there was
very little in the way of actual subjective test information out
there. As a result, I decided to do a few of my own, using the sort
of antenna people in highly compromised situations might end up
having to use. This particular antenna is a half size G5RV, with 10
foot extensions on each end, and centre loaded to provide some
efficiency on 80m. It is supported at the centre at about 35 feet and
the ends about 3 feet lower. Not a DX death ray, I'll grant you, but
surprisingly effective... I got a 55 report from Philadelphia on 20m
not so long ago. Most likely because the US station had a big beam
pointing towards me, but a contact is a contact.
ATU: MFJ993B, LDG Z11 v1.4
Rig: Yaesu FT897D, 10W carrier
Antenna: G5RV Jr (with loading coils &
10' extensions)
Feeder: 10m Westflex
|
Band |
Frequency |
LDG |
MFJ |
Actual |
|
80 |
3.645 |
> |
1.0 |
5.7:1 |
|
40 |
7.079 |
< |
1.4 |
5.2:1 |
|
30 |
10.105 |
< |
1.0 |
5.8:1 |
|
20 |
14.175 |
< |
4.0 |
2.6:1 |
|
17 |
18.125 |
< |
1.0 |
8.6:1 |
|
15 |
21.150 |
< |
1.0 |
12.7:1 |
|
12 |
24.930 |
< |
1.0 |
12.4:1 |
|
10 |
28.200 |
< |
1.0 |
2.6:1 |
Lowest SWR: 1.1:1 @ 3.490 Mhz, indicates that chopping off a foot or two might be a good idea.
Good results from both, I think you'll
agree.
Interestingly... the LDG sometimes
found 12 and 15m difficult to tune, as I'd imagine the low point is
quite sharp. If I tuned a higher band first, and then dropped back to
the lower band... i.e. 10, first, then 12 or 15m, it tunes it without
hesitation, but the other way round, it sometimes misses it and hunts
for a while.
