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| Reviews Summary for Scorpion Antennas SA-680 |
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Reviews: 26
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Average rating: 5.0/5
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MSRP: $699
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Description: SA-680 covers 10 through 80 meters.
Length retracted: 39 Extended:57
3 inch diameter coil with 10 gage tinned copper wire wound
at 6 Threads Per Inch.
Mobile or backyard typical vswr 1.5:1 or less.
Antenna rated at 1500 watts PEP
Weight 18 Lbs
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Product is in production.
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More info: http://www.scorpionantennas.com/antennas.html
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VK6LOT
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Rating: 5/5
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Aug 27, 2010 03:51
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This is a fantastic antenna if i could give it a 10 i would
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Time owned: 3 to 6 months
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Ive been using the SA-680 now for 5 months mounted on the rear of my 4x4 proberbly not the best postition for it but boy does it perform well.
on a recent trip around VK (Australia) with a group of hams it clearly outperformed all other antennas some well named and 3 of us using identical radios.
last weekend whilst mobile heading to our clubs portable setup for the international lighthouse weekend Lighthouse AU-73 i was able to relay a few calls that the clubs antennas were struggling with yet i could here them clearly.its definatly a heavy duty antenna and ideal for our rugged conditions in the outback of Australia.
And the support from Ron is just outstanding if only we could get service like that from suppliers here in VK.
This truely is a fantastic antenna if i could give it a 10 i would
73 VK6LOT
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K0WJ
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Rating: 5/5
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Jul 9, 2010 17:11
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Scorpion Wins
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Time owned: more than 12 months
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The results for this year's (2010) 3905 Century Club's Mobile Shootout have been posted on the club's website at http://www.3905ccn.com/newsite/files/pdf/shootout-2010.pdf. I'm not going to get into any philosophical discussion about which antenna is better than another, because the results speak for themselves. And for those that just can't seem to put any faith into these Shootout results, I'll offer two stories.
On the way to this years Eyeball (and Mobile Shootout), I worked a station in California that it seems few others on the net at the time could hear in order to verify my contact. Then WB1I spoke up who was in North Carolina at the time and "Roger'd" the contact. Two days later, WB1I posted the second highest score in the Shootout with a Scorpion SA-6160 antenna. My Scorpion SA-680E scored slightly higher to garner first place. So, to reiterate, Scorpion scored 1st and 2nd in the Shootout. This is partially due to the quality of the antenna and partially due to Ron Douglas' knowledge of sound installation practices and his ability to pass that info to his customers.
After the Shootout, most of the Eyeball attendees went mobile in either Louisiana or Mississippi on that evening's net. I checked in no problem with the net control station in Michigan, others had to be checked in via a relay station in Florida. What I noticed was that the stations scoring lowest in the Shootout could not be heard by either Net Control or the relay station and had to be relayed in by myself or another station at the Eyeball site. This somewhat validates for me, the value of a Mobile Shootout and that the Shootout results can translate directly to on the air situations. I cannot conceive of working mobile without my Scorpion antenna. Why anyone would put up with the frustration of not being heard by the target station and having to depend on relay stations for communications seems way too counterproductive to me.
Give me my Scorpion antenna and I'll talk to who I want, when I want. It doesn't get any more fun than that.
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W9WTF
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Rating: 5/5
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May 29, 2010 23:09
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Excellent!
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Time owned: 0 to 3 months
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This is one big, beefy antenna! Plan well on how to mount it. Once I built a platform in the back of my truck to install, I was amazed at the stations I could hear! From Illinois I've worked Moscow, Australia, and many Central and South American stations, as well as Europe. I can't wait for the cycle to ramp up! Well made with good materials. I had a simple question and Ron NI7J sent me his phone number. We talked for about 15 minutes. He not only answered my questions, but gave me great advice and ideas. I wish other companies were so helpful!
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KC0W
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Rating: 5/5
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May 5, 2010 10:25
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Great Antenna
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Time owned: 3 to 6 months
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Installed a SA-680 in the center of my Silverado's bed & have been very happy with the results ever since.
My previous mobile antenna was a HI-Q which I was not real happy with. Customer support from HI-Q was even worse.............
As always, ground, ground & then ground some more. You can't go wrong with this antenna!!!
Operating 100% CW Mobile from North Dakota,
Tom KCĜW
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VE7HRA
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Rating: 5/5
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Feb 26, 2010 18:04
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best antenna and service
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Time owned: more than 12 months
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I have enjoyed my Scorpion for 2 years now. Construction is the best. I have owned 2 other mobile motorized antennas and this one leaves the others in the dust.
I have checked into the BC Public service net (3729)many times from Yuma Az. with no problem. The recieving station was in the middle of BC, which is almost 2200 miles.
In Quartzsite this year at Quartfest 2010 we had an antenna shootout. My 680 won the 100 watt "screwdriver" mobil mount I won the event over a couple of the better known antennas. In the run what you brung I was 3rd, beat out by a fullsize dipole and a marine antenna. The recieving staions were in the Bay area and L.A.
I did have a small problem with the antenna and sent it to Ron to have a look at it. He fixed the minor problem upgraded everything to today's standard and shipped it back to me in BC, all at nocharge. I did expect to pay the shipping but Ron said no, he would pick up the tab.
How much better could this man be?
Ron is a super guy, and a great boost to Ham Radio and Scorpion Antennas. If I could give a 10 out of 10 it would have it.
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W0RIC
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Rating: 5/5
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Feb 26, 2010 15:03
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Great Antenna!
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Time owned: 0 to 3 months
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WOW! What a fantastic mobile antenna!
Upgraded from a smaller screwdriver (200W)antenna to the Killer Scorpion. Initial signal reports are outstanding. Worked several DX stations the first day. F5, 9K2, and 9Y4D. All reports 59 + 5-20db over 9. DX'ing from the mobile makes driving enjoyable when heard.
The support from Ron is excellent. Great company to deal with.
On Ron's advise, I had a custom made "L" bracket welded to the car. See the design at http://www.scorpionantennas.com/images/Antenna-mounting-bracket-2.jpg
73 & Good DX
Rick
W0RIC
www.w0ric.com
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K0WJ
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Rating: 5/5
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Jan 15, 2010 17:12
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Further Testing of the Scorpion SA-680E Mobile Antenna
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Time owned: 3 to 6 months
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On November 28, 2009, I setup a similar environment to test my Mobile Antenna installation's effectiveness as was setup at the 3905 Century Club Shootout that took place this past summer in Vista, California. The exact same equipment that was used at the Vista shootout was used at the receive site. I set up the range to mirror my original score of 160 and then tested several other scenarios as documented below. Of course the exact ground conditions were a little different and the air certainly was not representative of the 15% humidity of Vista in the summer, but all other conditions were relatively the same. The range was wide open like we had in Vista with NO obstructions within two wavelengths of the actual range. The frequency used was 7.178 MHz with a Bird Watt meter verified 10 watts of transmitter carrier output using the CW mode.
Whip...Top Hat..Overall..Measured
Length..Config...Height...Voltage
..4'..........4'.......12' 11...160 mv
..4'..........3'.......13'.........151 mv
..4'..........2'.......13' 10...148 mv
..3'..........3'.......12' 1.....140 mv
.186"......none...24' 5.....145 mv
Observations:
The 3' Top Hat scored 9 mv less than the 4' version while raising the overall height by only 1 inch. That would seem to be the way to go except that it is a more unwieldly configuration for the full-time mobileer. The masts used were from the BugCatcher people at GLA Systems and are quite heavy requiring guying which I do when in motion. A better solution would be to employ a 4' whip and a light-weight 3' top hat, although that scenario was not available for the test. That is probably what I will begin to use full-time as the 4' mast/3' top hat above yielded a score only slightly down from the 4' top hat scenario. I will be manufacturing a hub that is 1½ in diameter out of aluminum that fits over the lower 4 or 5 feet of a 102 whip (everything above the lower 4 or 5 feet is cut off). One sixteenth inch piano wire is used for the spokes, but I could only find it in 24 lengths locally and I need 36 lengths to achieve a 35 in diameter top hat. This arrangement is very light weight and very conducive to maximizing the performance of the antenna below it, regardless of manufacturer. Of course, the better the antenna, the better the performance. I should also add that the position that yields the best efficiency possible is about 5' above the coil, however, since my SA-680E is so tall, 5' would have probably pushed past the 13' 6 legal maximum for shootouts. In many other environments, the 5' whip would work just fine. I believe these measurements will translate well to other manufacturers' antennas, but no antenna, regardless of the price you pay for it, will yield good results if mounted poorly. Ron Douglas of Scorpion Antennas understands the importance of proper antenna installation and can answer all of your questions with patience and professionalism - unlike the brand "X" or "Y" or even "Q" manufacturers.
I just took delivery of my second Scorpion antenna. This one is the first ever SA-6160E. I can't wait for the snow to melt so I can get it installed - maybe within the next week or two.
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KI6RJW
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Rating: 5/5
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Jan 9, 2010 20:09
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Excellent
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Time owned: 0 to 3 months
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I thought long and hard prior to buying this antenna, it was a big expense after all and I wanted to set up my new complete mobile one time only, not by trial and error. I had talked to Ron on the phone a few times with some very pointed questions and Ron took the time to answer every question I had in detail. This antenna is built to last, overbuilt really, but that way you knowit will last forever and Ron will stand behind it if anything does happen to go wrong. I installed this on a custom made bracket on a 2007 Dodge Ram 2500 4X4 long bed and mated it with the Kenwood TS480HX and the Turbo Tuner. The whole set up works like a charm. I would highly recommend anyone considering the expense of a new antenna to seriously consider this antenna.
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KC7WVE
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Rating: 5/5
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Dec 6, 2009 12:30
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The best antenna
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Time owned: more than 12 months
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I have had this antenna for over a year, before I owned a High sierra and other different antennas, but the perform on the Scorpion antenna is the best; it is a great Customer service. Ron is a great person to talk on the phone or in person; he takes all the necessary time to answer your question and to make sure you understand all the details.
I talked to a different station in the USA and out side the country and the results are fantastic, people don't believe I am in mobile with 100 watts out put. SWR in all the bands are very low.
Until today, I never had to open the antenna for any maintenance like others do.
This antenna maybe expensive but you really pay for an excellent antenna and a very good customer support.
Remember, this is a steel antenna. It is not cheep aluminum.
Thank you very much Ron.
Felix
kc7wve
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K6DTK
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Rating: 5/5
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Oct 20, 2009 23:10
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Terrific Antenna and Customer Service
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Time owned: 3 to 6 months
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While the quality of the antenna is superb, it is the customer service that Ron delivers, in addition to a great product, that makes the Scorpion Antenna such a great buy.
There is nothing light or medium duty about this antenna, including the packaging. I use the antenna at camp during our back country 4WD expeditions and nothing but stout equipment will survive.
If there is any one thing that I would emphasize, it is to carefully read and re-read the information about mobile antenna installation that Alan K0BG has compiled. Between Ron and Alan, there are none better.
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