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write your own review of the Cobra UltraLite Multiband Antenna.
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WA5KPE
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Rating: 5/5
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Nov 20, 2009 18:08
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Great Antenna
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Time owned: more than 12 months
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I have been using the Cobra Ultralite Senior for about five years. I operate all bands 160 - 10 meters. I use the MFJ 993B Intellituner with a Balun Designs 4115 4:1 balun with about 100 feet of 450 ohm window line which comes directly to the balun which is connected to the radio with three feet of RG213 coax. I normally operate between 50 watts and 100 watts output. I get a 1:1 match on 1.838.000 megaherz. I get similar matches, none above 1.4:1, on all bands. The center insulator is pulled thirty feet up into a pine tree. The ends are pulled about ten feet higher into other pine trees, thus forming a slight vee. The antenna survived 120 mph winds of Katrina only to have an end insulator ripped off by a sixty foot pine falling across that leg of the antenna. The wire and the center insulator held fine. You won't find a better wire antenna.
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KA0JMO
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Rating: 2/5
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Nov 19, 2009 19:34
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Does not work on 2MHz
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Time owned: 0 to 3 months
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I have worked with this Cobra Ultralite Senior (140 feet)for a couple months. I have used a 9 to 1 balun on it with some success, but not down in the 2 MHz. I tried the MFJ913 per Joe's advise and it did not help. The 9 to 1 balun works better, but with placing ladder line rolled up per instructions, it still will not load 2MHz. The Bazooka works fine with YAESU 897D and FC40 tuner, but won't work with the YAESU 2000 and LDG tuner. Will send it back to see if they can fix it so it will work. John Halladay..KA0JMO
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KI6EQW
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Rating: 3/5
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Oct 9, 2009 13:53
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Easy to install, but you better have a good tuner.
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Time owned: 0 to 3 months
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Easy to install in an inverted V 25 ft above the roof. Used a 4:1 DX Engineering balun as recommended. Ran the ladder as recommended, at the length recommend, and coiled as recommended. Hooked it up to an LDG 200 pro tuner. got good swr on 10/15 meters, could not get anything to match within the tuners range above 15. Swapped in a Palstar AT2K, cut off the coiled ladder line, lead in is now about 40 ft. in length, and can get 1:1 on all bands up to 80. As this is the Jr. model I could not get below 2.5 on 160 meters.
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W5WAA
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Rating: 2/5
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Sep 27, 2009 17:02
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Not as good as G5RV
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Time owned: more than 12 months
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I have been making an A-B comparison for just over a year, the G5RV 80-10m (D&G version) is one to two full "S" units stronger on receive and transmit. The Cobra 160-10m is hard to tune, the G5RV is easy to tune. I have tried 3 different transceivers during that time and the results are exactly the same. Although the Cobra does perform better on the 160m band it is very difficult to tune (the G5RV is not cut for the 160m band). I'll be taking the Cobra down shortly, a years test is long enough, going to replace it with a Single Wire Beam as per QST July 2009 issue.
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N1WBD
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Rating: 5/5
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Aug 9, 2009 12:27
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Still runs great!!
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Time owned: more than 12 months
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Still run Joe's original prototype here made out of 14-2 romex housewire after about 5 or so years and still works great!! May someday upgrade to the current Cobra Senior Model. But it might be awhile cause this one still works great.
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KG7UY
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Rating: 5/5
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Aug 8, 2009 22:22
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Update: still working great
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Time owned: more than 12 months
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I have had this Ultralite Senior in place for over 2 years and still working great with no problems. Easy to put up and maintain.
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WX4O
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Rating: 5/5
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Jul 9, 2009 09:35
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Excellent!
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Time owned: more than 12 months
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I've had my Jr. up for 3 or more years with great results. I check in to statewide NTS nets daily. I even cut a lot off the ladder line since I didn't like it strung around, and no change. I use a 4:1 balun fed to 4 feet of RG8X and 100 watts. Have made contacts worldwide with this fine antenna. If anyone has trouble with it, I suggest they are not using a balum - or - they have somehow been using a defective one. I would buy another one.
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KB1PJM
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Rating: 1/5
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Jul 9, 2009 04:33
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Disappointing
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Time owned: 6 to 12 months
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I hung this antenna at about 35' between the trees in my front yard and ran it to my Johnson KW matchbox. I was never able to make contact with anyone on a local Net on 75M. Whatever contacts I did make always reported that my signal was weak and barely readable. The SWR on 40M was never better than 2:1 and contacts on 20M were far and few between. The noise level on this antenna was hellacious! I recently put up an inverted V with the apex at 44' fed with ladder line and the difference between the two is astounding. Perhaps I received a "dud" from the manufacturer, but based on my experience I wouldn't recommend this antenna to anyone. Oh and as far as it's ability to survive the cold ice etc. mine couldn't stand up to Winter in VT.
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W5LXG
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Rating: 5/5
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Jun 17, 2009 19:03
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Still outstanding after all these years
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Time owned: more than 12 months
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My 3rd review/comments on this fine antenna, mine is the Jr. version.
KI4MCW opines not to diddle with the ladderline or let it lay on the roof (or words to that affect). I won't disagree with the premise of not letting ladderline "touch" things, but in my installation, it doesn't seem to matter. A fair amount of ladderline lays in sloppy coils on my slanting roof before it enters the attic. A passing hurricane actually sucked some of the excess ladderline out of the attic and caused it to coil on the roof! My physical situation precludes climbing on the sharply slanted roof, so the LL has to stay put, coiled as it is. My antenna performance seems to be the same this way versus when the LL was neat and proper.
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KB1JXU
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Rating: 5/5
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May 31, 2009 16:17
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Cobra Senior
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Time owned: 0 to 3 months
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Hello
I recently purchased a Cobra Senior designed and built by Joe [K1JEK]. It was installed at my camp in Orwell, Vermont. Given my previous difficulty working ham radio from this location, I had pretty low expectations. However, I was pleased beyond my wildest dreams. First it was very easy to put up . In just a few hours I was QSOing on most of the voice bans with very good signal reports.I really am very satisfied with my new Cobra Ultralite Senior.
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