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write your own review of the Cushcraft R-5.
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KE7UXE
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Rating: 5/5
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Sep 25, 2011 10:25
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Reliable Pile-up Buster
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Time owned: more than 12 months
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I acquired this used for $100.00 about two and a half years ago. It is up 8 feet on a pole stuck into Arizona dry ground and among a bunch of misquite trees. I have worked all over the world on this antenna. With the 300+ watt Swan 700cx it is great fun to bust pile-ups on the first call. I use a tuner to tweak the antenna but it easily tunes flat on all five bands. It would be fine without the tuner. It can be noisy but not annoyingly so.
It has survived some pretty nasty wind storms and the desert heat. Handles 500 watts no problem and is rated for 1500 I believe.
I recommend this antenna where space is a premium or stealth an issue. It is great fun for DX.
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VE3PMA
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Rating: 5/5
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Aug 21, 2011 11:40
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Excellent antenna
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Time owned: more than 12 months
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I'm on my second R5 (the first was hit by lightning and the matching network was fried). It's mounted atop a 40 foot tv tower and has withstood some very strong winds. In the 20+ years that I've had the R5s I've worked every corner of the world with them and broken many pile-ups with only 100 watts. Most of the time it will outperform my G5RV, but some days in some directions the dipole performs a bit better. Overall, an excellent antenna made with top quality components (both of mine were made in New Hampshire).
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K3LU
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Rating: 5/5
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Nov 22, 2009 03:53
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Over 10 years and going strong
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Time owned: more than 12 months
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I recently took down my R5 after being in use for over 10 years. The UV on the matching unit had deteriorated the black box a bit and the fiberglass on the vertical had begun to deteriorate as well but a few maintenance tips found on the net and some elbow grease, I think the R5 will be in service for many years more.
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N4HNH
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Rating: 5/5
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May 24, 2009 20:09
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Great vertical antenna!
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Time owned: more than 12 months
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I have owned a Cushcraft R-5 since December 30, 1994. I purchased it for $279.95 from HRO. I assembled it in a couple of hours, taking special care to accurately measure the length of each section for the center of its respective band. I installed it on the roof of a two-story house using a chimney mount. The base of the antenna was probably at approximately 45 feet. I temporarily mounted it on a short pole at a few feet above ground level and tested the SWR. The careful assembly work paid off. The SWR was perfect on all bands right from the start.
The R-5 is a vertical so it often has a higher noise level than a typical dipole, especially on 20m. But sometimes the R-5 is also the best performer, especially for DX.
I moved from that QTH to my current location in 1998. I removed the radials but left the main part of the antenna intact. I mounted the R-5 to the corner post of the back deck of the house by modifying the chimney brackets. The mast extends to base of the antenna to 15 feet above the deck. I tried it out and the SWR was stillperfect on all 5 bands. It still operates today and does a fine job. My new QTH is near some power lines that generate lots of noise - enough that it even bothers my OCF and 160m dipole. The R-5 therefore picks a bit more noise in this area than before, but it is mostly 20m that has the noise problem. But the signal strength of the received signals with the R-5 are usually strong enough to overcome the noise. I am in Georgia and I often hear Mexican stations at 15-20db over S9 with the R-5.
The housing of the matching section appears to be discolored from the years of exposure to sunlight and I noticed recently that the gray section above the matching unit looks like it has melted a bit. I suppose it may have overheated from the sun, because I run no more than 800W into the R-5 and it is rated for 1800W.
So 15 years later with zero maintenance my R-5 still works well. I have thought several times about replacing it with a newer model but each time I end up changing my mind. The R-5 has never failed me so I'm not going to toss it aside until it decides it is ready for retirement. If it fails tomorrow I would not complain.
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PA0FRI
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Rating: 5/5
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Aug 29, 2008 06:57
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Still going strong
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Time owned: more than 12 months
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My R5 is mounted (4 years) on a 12 m mast. It provides useful DX performance. I did comparisons with my open wire feeded inverted V dipole (2 × 17m) on 20m, at 1500 km V = R5, more than 1500km R5 > V. The SWR with about 10m coax cable: SWR = 1 on respective 14.165, 178.120, 21.185, 24.980 and 29.035 MHz.
See for repair and maintenance my homepage:
www.pa0fri.geerligs.com or
http://www.xs4all.nl/~pa0fri/Ant/R5/onhr5eng.htm
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KK8ZZ
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Rating: 5/5
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Aug 28, 2008 16:46
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Sturdy Performer - 6 years
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Time owned: more than 12 months
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This old dog was just a great radiator for years. I mounted mine about 6-8 feet off the ground on a pole driven in the ground and later moved it to the roof. It was MUCH better on the ground !!
Finally a near-tornado broke the aluminum near the base and she tumbled to the ground. I got 6 great years of performance from it... I understand that the newer models are not as good? I sold the remainder of the GOOD parts to a fellow at Dayton this year who had access to new aluminum.. I have no doubt that it is radiating good RF again today!
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KC6WGN
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Rating: 5/5
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Jul 11, 2008 10:42
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5/5
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Time owned: more than 12 months
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A friend of mine gave his R-5 to me for 7 years now.It works for me good antenna for small space and with home owners covenant. Im satisfied with the performance. Just 10 feet above the ground by my patio. I run with barefoot and linear 800 watts no problems. Contacts local or dx no problems.I can them and hear me. I give it 5.
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K1YPB
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Rating: 5/5
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Jun 14, 2008 18:54
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Decent Antenna - Very Durable
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Time owned: more than 12 months
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I have owned my R5 for going on 18 years. I took it down once to clean it up and move it to my vacation property in up state New Hampshire, when I purchased my R8 about 8 years ago. It is a decent antenna. Works fine and is very reliable. It has with stood many harsh New England winters, and has maintained its adjustments. It is well made. I really cannot complain about it as it has delivered exactly what it was designed to do. I like it because it does not need radials, and it is easy to install. I replaced it with an R8 at the home QTH because i wanted the extra bands the R8 provides. I recommend it to anyone who needs a limited space antenna.
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WY8M
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Rating: 5/5
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Jun 14, 2008 11:28
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Good for what it is
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Time owned: more than 12 months
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I've had my R5 for about a decade now. I bought it used from a friend. It is up 24' to the base, and is away from other vertical metal objects by at least 20'. My R5 is tuned for the CW portion of the band.
I have not had to take the R5 down to do any maintenance at all in that past decade. That says something right there!
For what it is, the R5 works great. The R5 is a zero-space no-radial vert that get you onto 20-10M. Given the little real estate it parks on, the R5 performs well.
However...
My 135' RadioWorks Windom (with 22' vert section) will outperform it on all bands except 10M. On 10M, it's a wash, with one or the other RXing better depending on how the signal is coming in (polarity/angle).
BUT, that's compairing apples to oranges. Most suburbanites and hams in general do not have the ability to put up a 135' long wire of any kind, let alone a 70' tower bristling with aluminum. Ergo, the radial-less verticals become an atractive option.
The R5 does not work as well as my Windom, which does not work as well as a 270' Windom, which does not work as well as a 3-element tribander, which does not work as well as a TH7.
The R5 is good for what it is (limited space antenna), but in teh bigger scheme of things, if at all possible, get you a RadioWorks Windom, biggest you can, and put that up as high as you can.
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W5LXG
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Rating: 1/5
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Mar 21, 2008 09:42
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Horrible performance
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Time owned: 0 to 3 months
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My R-5 was mounted on top of 40' tower,clear of objects. Below the R-5 was an 80 meter dipole which cost $6. With a tuner, the 80 dipole dramatically outperformed the R-5 hands down. No matter if DX or domestic contacts. I think someone from Starksville, MS went to work for Cushcraft.Discussions with CC about the antenna when no where. One of the most expensive antenna mistakes I've made. Luckily, I found a buyer and recouped most of my money. Beware of this dog.
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