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| Reviews Summary for Cushcraft XM240 Big Thunder 40 meter Monoband |
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Reviews: 9
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Average rating: 4.0/5
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MSRP: $999.99
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Description: Cushcraft's XM240 monobander utilizes rugged Big Thunder
hardware that
combined with high strength aluminum tubing affords the
antenna
outstanding wind survivability. Phillystran boom trusses are
used in the
XM240 design for extra boom stability. The feed system is a
50 ohm direct
feed with dual driven elements. VSWR is flat accross the
band. A high power
1:1 balun is included.
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Product is in production.
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More info: http://www.cushcraftamateur.com
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write your own review of the Cushcraft XM240 Big Thunder 40 meter Monoband.
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N6WIN
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Rating: 5/5
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Oct 19, 2011 07:47
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Great in the contests
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Time owned: more than 12 months
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I bought one of these used and mounted it at 70'. I am continually impressed with it during the contests. DXing has become a lot funner with it too. My Elmer has a 40m rotatable dipole from Cushcraft at the same height a mile away... I feel louder with the XM240.
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AI0O
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Rating: 2/5
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Jul 25, 2010 20:02
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very sloppy construction
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Time owned: more than 12 months
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I put up the XM-240 3 years ago. It worked very well for the first year. Soon after that the swr was infinite and the antenna showed resonance at 20 mhz. After tramming it down we found the following defects: No continuity across the loading coils, loose screws at coils, boom to mast bracket was underdesigned, and catenary was inadequate. I would advise anyne putting one up that was purchased since MFJ bought out Cushcraft to make the following mods before putting it up in the air: Use DX Engineering super duty saddle clamps for boom to mast attachment - throw away the cheap u-bolts, beef up the upper catenary bracket, it bent under the weight of the beam, cut back heat shrink tubing at loading coils and clean enamel off coil ends, replace sheet metal screws with stainless machine screws and stop nuts. It is a good performer but too many corners are cut during manufacture.
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N6KD
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Rating: 0/5
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Jun 7, 2010 08:25
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Parts unavailable
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Time owned: more than 12 months
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I have a XM240 here that has been in the air for several years. This winter, the antenna got damaged - so ordered some new parts from MFJ - Cushcraft sold its ham antennas to MFJ. I ordered parts on Mar 15, 2010 - have called MFJ parts numerous times - been promised parts several times - but never received them. After 4 months, I am giving up. They do not have parts and are not manufacturing them.
Will look at the M3 40 meter yagis.
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PY1BR
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Rating: 5/5
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Sep 2, 2009 08:50
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Great antenna
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Time owned: more than 12 months
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After 9 years I moved to a new QTH where the X240 is already installed and working as before, excellent performance. Although the previous QTH was close to the sea its mechanical parts are in excellent conditions. I still live in a big city so this antenna is the best we can have installed in a top of a building. Before install the XM I was working with a simple dipole. Now a new horizon is opened. It seems like with the dipole no propagation at all and with the XM the opposite.
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VE4MM
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Rating: 5/5
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Nov 13, 2005 15:54
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Excellent!
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Time owned: 3 to 6 months
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Purchased new.
Mounted on a Roof-tower on roof up 30'
Easy to build, good quality and came with balun.
Performance is also GREAT!
Top Marks to Cushcraft!
Michael Mark, P.Eng., BSc EE, Life Member ARRL, VE4MM
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W6DXO
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Rating: 5/5
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Jan 30, 2004 19:50
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Excellent Value
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Time owned: 0 to 3 months
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After living with all manner of wire antennas for 40M I was fortunatre to get the XM240 up this month. Results so far have been excellent. What a difference!
My XM240 sits at 85' (13' above my SteppIR 3 element beam).
SWR is well within the published spec, and the F/B and forward gain numbers seem good as well.
I needed a relatively small footprint 40M beam that was reasonably priced and that would deliver--the XM240 fits the bill perfectly!
73, de harry, W6DXO
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G4RCG
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Rating: 4/5
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Dec 23, 2003 09:50
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Intermittant High SWR
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Time owned: more than 12 months
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I have had the XM240 now for 3 years and its preformed great up until earlier this year when the swr started going crazy for no reason, put a bit of power throught the antenna and it seemed to "rf weld" the problem. After a lot of messing around changing the balun, renewing the pl259 connector,the coax to the switch box, stripping all the elemnets down and rebuilding it back up to find that the problem still existed. The only thing that I had not touched were the loading coils, these are "sealed" (not) with shrink wrap. So took the driven element apart again and looked at the wrap which appeared fine,I checked to see if there was continuaty between, there was not, so when I cut the wrap away from the coils and looked at the screw that holds the coil end onto the element it was covered in white corrosion, I cleaned all his away and made sure the electrical connection was good, now the antenna is working 100% again. I informed cushcraft who were pleased that I had told them of the problem,
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KC2HZW
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Rating: 5/5
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Jul 10, 2003 21:31
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Packs a Punch!
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Time owned: 0 to 3 months
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After working 40M on a trap dipole, I purchased this antenna new. Construction is HEAVY duty, with triple walled elements and beautiful castings. This antenna should last a long time. It goes together quite quickly; a pair of sawhorses will make assembly easy. I spent a bit of time deburring the tubing, otherwise assembly was straight forward. A generous use of penetrox will make assembly a piece of cake and will make it much easier to take the antenna apart in the future should it be necessary. Naturally, this thing is pretty large so it goes without saying that several people will be needed to move it around. Planning first will save headaches!
Performance on the air is excellent. It seems to be pretty quiet and bandwidth is per Cushcraft specs with SWR less than 1.5:1. Front to back ratio is good for a 2 element beam. If you have the space this antenna is worth the price!
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PY1BR
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Rating: 5/5
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Aug 13, 2002 12:56
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Just outstanding performance
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Time owned: more than 12 months
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I had mine for more than a year now (in fact two years). It’s mounted on a 26 feet tower in the top of a 17 floors building. Since the first day this antenna gave me the impression that it would be the real difference while doing DX or contesting. It’s a great antenna in my opinion. The XM-240 is an evolution of the old model 40-2-CD. The XM-240 has a better mechanical design. The RF performance is the same. Therefore, it’s really a successful project. Many friends were astonished with its performance during the first nights in the 40m band. It’s amazing how a simple trapped two elements can do if compared with dipoles, verticals, etc. Almost every DX contact I make people ask me what type of antenna I am using. This antenna is the real plus of my station.
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