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| Reviews Summary for Hexbeam: by K4KIO |
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Reviews: 80
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Average rating: 5.0/5
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MSRP: $669
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Description: A six band, broadband, G3TXQ- designed, hexagonal beam with performance on par with a
two element Yagi but a much smaller physical footprint is fully tuned and ready to go. This is a
plug and play antenna, not a kit. It can be assembled in an evening with no measurements or
tuning needed. No traps or coils are required and a single coax feeds all bands. Available for
Bands 20 – 6 meters in various combinations. All steel components are stainless and non
metallic components are UV resistant. Mount on a push up mast or rooftop. The sturdy aircraft
aluminum base plate has never been reported to fail by hundreds of users. A “no questions
asked” 30 day refund offer comes with each beam.
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Product is in production.
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More info: http://www.hex-beam.com/
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write your own review of the Hexbeam: by K4KIO.
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W4ISH
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Rating: 5/5
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May 11, 2013 04:05
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Easy, quick and works
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Time owned: 0 to 3 months
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I ordered the 5 band beam and added 6 meters to it. It is now on the end of a 7 foot piece of sched 80 Al. pipe extending from my 37 foot crank up tower, so It is about 45' in the air. The assembly was straightforward, but tedious for someone like me. I stuck a 3' piece of 1&1/5" sched 40 PVC in the ground, and set the base plate on that for construction purposes. This allowed me to "rotate" the beam as I threaded the wires through the supports.
I constructed it one evening after 6 pm, and the sun had not set when I finished, so the time involved was a little over one hour. The next day I went out and dried it acorn nuts off (It had rained overnight) and painted liquid electrical tape over them to keep the wires from becoming corroded. (The antenna is to be permanently mounted, so I have no plans to take it back apart.) I then spent the rest of the day preparing my tower (which had been tilted over to receive the antenna).
The tower is a tilt-over, crank up tower which has seen service for 40 years. While I had it down, I replaced the cable and winch and painted the tower aluminum, so it should give me another good 40 years and outlive me! I used my tractor with its front end loader to raise the tower up to a point where the top was about 12 feet off the ground. Then I lifted the Hexagonal Beam with my weak left arm (broken last year and in a sling for 6 months -- lost a lot of muscle in that time!) and walked it up a ladder to place it on the end of the mast. That was tricky since I had to juggle it around to keep from getting caught in other objects in the area (my garden, specifically!).
Once it was attached, I used two tractors to lift the tower into place (one to pull it up with a rope, and the other to lift it up with the front end loader) Serendipitously, a couple of friends, also hams, stopped by at this point and helped to put the bolts in the tower base while I sloooowly adjusted the tractors.
I was not able to attach the coax hanging from the antenna to the coax going up the tower until the next day since I also decided to revamp the grounding of the tower and the other 4 wire antennas attached to the tower. Once that was done and it started raining again (we have had over 3 inches of rain in the last week!), I went in to try out the beam. All bands seemed to have a good SWR except for 20 Meters where the SWR was right at 2:1 for part of the band. I listened on 15 meters and heard someone calling CQ so I answered him. He was in Penn. which is extremely short skip from Kentucky. I tried turning the rotor while I was listening to him, and I could not see that there was any difference in signal strength as it turned. It was then that I noticed I was talking to him on my vertical. After switching over to the Beam, the signal came up about 5-7 dB. We had a good QSO, and then a station in Germany broke in to tell me I had a good 5X5 signal there. So the three of us had a QSO since everyone was hearing everyone else (Strange conditions for 15 -- Both short and long skip!)
It seems that the beam works well. It does not have the gain nor the F/B ratio of my previous beam, but that was expected. What I do like about it is that it works almost as well for 1/2 the cost and 1/2 the weight. And I did not have to measure and cut the wires and then try and figure out a way to mount them! Leo did all the hard work, and we have benefited from his work! Thanks!
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WB8RJY
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Rating: 5/5
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May 5, 2013 12:37
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first class antenna
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Time owned: 0 to 3 months
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Assembled in about two hours.checked every thing to perfection.
At 4 feet off the ground I was getting 5 by 9 reports from
All over Europe.On a 40 ft tower swr is 1.2:1 on every
Band.At least 3 s units better than a full wave 75 meter loop
Up 40 ft fed with ladder line on s7 to s9 signals.
When signals are s3 on the hex i cant hear them on the loop.
I will be working stations i could not even hear before.
Very happy with the antenna.Leo is always available to
Answer your questions.
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K2EDW
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Rating: 5/5
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Apr 30, 2013 06:37
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I am extremely satisfied with my hex beam by K4KIO.
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Time owned: 0 to 3 months
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This is an outstanding product. My hex beam was assembled by members of the Orleans County Amateur Radio Club. Everyone was impressed with the quality of the materials, the ease of assembly and the helpful directions. When a question came up, Leo at K4KIO was extremely helpful. The hex beam went together quickly and easily without any problems. It is mounted on a Glen Martin 8 foot tower.
Although I've only had it on the air a few days, I am very impressed with its performance. Running just 100 W, I have received outstanding signal reports from DX contacts.A station I contacted in Germany told me my signal was 10 DB stronger then with my G5RV.
I recommend the K4KIO hex beam most heartily.
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OD5ZZ
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Rating: 5/5
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Apr 28, 2013 13:54
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Great Antenna
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Time owned: 6 to 12 months
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After being away from the hobby for 15 years I decided to come back and chose hexbeam as my antenna , well what can I say Leo have been a great help , the antenna outperformed my expectations on all 5 bands, I even can tune it on 40m , as a DX'er and I am sure some who is reading this review have worked OD5ZZ highly recommend this antenna , the cost compared to other antennas is minimal , easy to construct , do not let the HEX shape fool you , you need a rotator since it is a directional antenna , I pushed legal limit through my AL -1500 had no problem and SWR on all 5 bands is below 1.3
I highly recommend the HexBeam antenna by K4KIO for serious DX'ing
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KE4QZW
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Rating: 5/5
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Apr 23, 2013 17:26
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SOLID
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Time owned: 3 to 6 months
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I added a Heil PR781 to my setup and coupled with this antenna, I now have some bragging rights. I've had this antenna up for quite some time now and have been working Europe like they are in the next county.
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N7BD
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Rating: 5/5
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Apr 16, 2013 16:01
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1st Class!
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Time owned: 0 to 3 months
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I have had my Hex up and operating for just over one month. I had (still have) a SteppIR vertical with an excellant ground system. May not be quite apples to apples, however: The Hex has absolutely amazed me with the performance. I have it right at 70' and seldom have to call DX more than twice; three times in a pileup and I only run about 550W. In one month I've picked up 21 new countries! Bottom line: For the $$ spent, you can't do ANY better!
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KK4OW
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Rating: 5/5
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Apr 8, 2013 17:14
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Great antenna for price.
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Time owned: 0 to 3 months
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I bought the KIO Hexbeam and could not be more satisfied. It has great quality and is easy to assemble. I have at a little over 25 ft. and it works great. I assembled a Hy-gain av620 vertical
and it was a nightmare but this hexbeam was easier and has a lot better directions and went very smooth. I would highly recommend, great product.
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NN2X
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Rating: 5/5
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Apr 6, 2013 03:58
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Compare HEX Beam Mono Bander
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Time owned: 0 to 3 months
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I have spent amble money, time, and effort..But I have now concluded the following about the K4KIO Hex Beam
I have a 3 element Mono Bander, at 16 Meters (Or about 50 ft)
Also, a Hex Beam (K4KIO) at 13 Meters (Or about 40FT) / (I had a 25 FT Mast and changed it out to a 40Mast)..(Note the K4KIO is a modified Hex Beam)
There is such a slight difference between the Mono Bander and the Hex Beam (K4KIO) it is in reality unmeasurable, this is for Long haul DX and Short Haul communications.. Maybe there is a half S Unit, and best...I will have to assume, that if the Hex Beam (K4KIO) was up at 16 Meters (ABout 50ft) there would be no difference..The point here is the tower, and the concrete, and the heavy rotor for the 3 element Mono Bander, cost with labor 7,000 (USD), whereas the Hex Beam (K4KIO), mast, rotor and labor cost 850 (USD)..
Since most Ham are hard to convince, I offer the following
If any one desires me to do a test on 15 Meters with your station, just send me an emai
(tom.wright@newsat.com)...and we will set up a schedule..
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NN2X
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Rating: 5/5
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Mar 25, 2013 18:26
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Compared HEX With Mono Bander
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Time owned: 3 to 6 months
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My second review...But this time, I had to make some comparisons..I have a 3 Element Mono Bander from High Gain (12 FT Boom) at 50FT, and HEX beam at 25 FT...(You can see on my QRZ WEB Page). There is very little difference, simply stated, and if I had the ability to raise the antenna (HEX) beam to 50FT, there would be no difference..For the record, the Hex beam is about 1 S Unit less then the Mono bander, but it is about 25 FT higher..I am working DX, and local (Look at my LOG)...Bottom line, my tower, and mono banders cost nearly 7,000 (USD), while the HEX beam set up with 70 (USD) Mast, Radio Shack Rotor, and the HEX beam, all less the 1000 (USD)...Amazing...Amazing...If I purchased the Mast for 50FT (100 (USD)..I know for a fact, that the Hex Beam would perform as well as the MONO Bander...(Just 6,000 (USD) Less!)Awesome!
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KK4CIR
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Rating: 5/5
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Mar 6, 2013 12:37
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Best of the Best!
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Time owned: 0 to 3 months
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Before buying an antenna just like anything else you always want to read what people that own the product have to say. I was in the market for a beam antenna and looked at every possible one out there from Mosley to Cushcraft from three bander to 5 band coverage. The price of the antenna is not the only thing that we have to consider, also comes the mounting possibilities based on location and available area as we all well know! I read many reviews on almost any brand out there and could not find one that would have a perfect score based on performance, price, easy to assemble and the whole nine yards! I had my K4KIO Hex for a short two months but I don't have to wait anymore just to prove how great of an antenna this is and what a great performer on all five bands, I got every band with exception of 6 meters. The antenna has very low SWR accross the band and is under 1.5 on all five bands, 20 and 17 being the best at 1.0 flat. I used a push up mast from Rohn and is up about 30 ft. Every signal report that I get is S9+ and sometimes get up to 30-40+! All reports on only 100 watts are S9 or better. Have not used my amp since I installed the antenna and happen to break through pile ups on the first minute of trying. What a great product and I give it a FULL rating of "5". If you are in the market for a beam that is price effective and don't have to spend another 1 to 2K in tower and expensive rotor try this one that you will not be disapointed. Like I said, read the reviews out there and let me know if you find another beam within the price range and capabilities of this on with a 5 rating accross the board. If you would like to see my set up you can visit my web page on QRZ.com and see how easy of intatllation this one would be for you! Thanks for reading! Paul KK4CIR
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