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Reviews For: Cushcraft A4S

Category: Antennas: HF: Yagi, Quad, Rotary dipole, LPDA

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Review Summary For : Cushcraft A4S
Reviews: 28MSRP: 628.42
Description:
A4S Specifications Frequency: 10, 15 and 20 meters Elements: 4 Forward Gain: 8.9 dB Front To Back Ratio: 25 VSWR 2:1 Bandwidth: 500+ kHz. Power: 2000 watts CW Longest Element: 32 Ft. (9.75 m) Turning Radius: 15.5 Ft. (4.72 m) Boom Length: 18.5 Ft. (5.48 m) Boom Diameter: 2 inches (5.1 cm) Wind Load: 5.5 sq. feet Connector: UHF Weight: 37 Lbs 16.8 kg)
Product is in production
More Info: http://www.cushcraftamateur.com/
# last 180 days Avg. Rating last 180 days Total reviews Avg. overall rating
00284.3
WB5OAU Rating: 2004-08-24
Good antenna! Time Owned: more than 12 months.
I've enjoyed my A4 for two years now. It was quite used (read: OLD!) and I took the time to
clean the traps and replace any corroded hardware.

Since that time I've had no problems with it, through the humid steamy summers and occasional
ice storms found here in central NC. I do have
the 40m kit and it works OK. I've had no mechanical problems either.

Keep in mind this is on a very old antenna that I purchased used.

I wouldnt hesitate to recommend this antenna. Replacement parts are available if you follow the procedure on the website. Do NOT expect to be transferred to anyone to chat about anything...it won't happen. The parts did arrive quickly and as described on the web.
VE1MC Rating: 2004-02-28
Poor Quality - there are better products Time Owned: more than 12 months.
I live a few miles from the ocean and my antenna's are exposed to winter gales and plenty of salt spray. Initially I had a 3 element quad on a 40 ft tower. I replaced the quad (damaged in an ice storm) with the A4S. At first the antenna performed as advertised and I liked the 40 meter capability. It only took a few years before the performance deteriorated. The traps were always causing me grief, especially after fog or rain. It was very difficult to maintain an acceptable SWR. The fibreglass centre insulator had to be replaced on two occasions after failing to survive winter gails. On both occasions this meant a climb up the tower to secure the free wheeling driven element. After 10 years of Cushcraft frustation I replaced the A4S with a Force 12 C3SS. The Force 12 does not have any traps, the SWR is flat on 10/15/20 & works great on 17/12 meters with the internal tuner. The Force 12 has survived 3 East coast winters without any difficulty. At the time I bought the A4S I also purchased Cushcraft's R-7 vertical (was a sucker for punishment). I have never been able to operate the R-7 without a tuner. I also had a Cushcraft Ringo Ranger 2 meter vertical that broke in half after a few years of operation. Oddly enough I spoke with a ham in VK-land shortly after I installed the Force 12. He had the identical station I had & had also switched from the A4S to the C3SS because of trap problems and poor center insulator quality. It is highly unlikely that I will be purchasing anything from Cushcraft again.
M0HDX Rating: 2004-01-26
problems TRAPS Time Owned: 3 to 6 months.
the performance of the a4s was very good when it was working,i kept getting problems with the traps and intermitent high swr and it spent more time lying on the floor being repaired than it did up in the air..if you like to take your antenna down every couple of weeks and mess with traps the a4s is the one for you.
N0BJJ Rating: 2003-01-30
Performance=5 Mechanical=3 Time Owned: 3 to 6 months.
Installed my A4S in November of 2001 on a 60 ft. Rohn 25 tower. The SWR was as advertised with the measurements given in the manual. Good bandwidth and on-air performance was excellent. There was never a question of whether I could get through a pileup. Then came the January 2002 ice storm here in Oklahoma. (87 days later) Both the director and reflector broke in two where the U-bolt goes through the element. The driven element was bent but not broken. It only required one section to be replaced. Fast forward to September 2002. The antenna is repaired and once again up 60ft. onto the tower. Again excelent performance and one happy Ham. Fast forward again to December 2002 and another ice storm. (89 days this time) This time the reflector broke again as before but this time the driven element broke also at the U-bolt. I am now looking for an antenna that has better mechanical structure. I would much rather spend time on the air than climbing towers. So if you live where there is no ice, it's a great antenna. You could not ask for better performance from an antenna with only an 18ft boom. However, in you live in an area that is prone to ice storms, I hope you like climbing your tower and repairing antennas.
KC6VCH Rating: 2002-03-23
Great antenna Time Owned: 6 to 12 months.
I wrote a review a few months ago and I had a problem with the antenna. The problem was I had a bad connector. Now the antenna is performing well on all bands.
K1HC Rating: 2001-12-11
just OK Time Owned: more than 12 months.
I had mine for several years but I always had problems with the traps. So, I sold mine and bought a Force 12 c-3. I have to admit that the A4S had better F/B ratio, but I don't have to mess around with traps anymore.
VE3LLL Rating: 2001-12-11
a big gun Time Owned: more than 12 months.
Worked great untill I moved to a new QTH (then I had restrictions) A majority of DX stations could not believe I was working with under 100 watts. The 40m. add on kit is well worth it although the one problem in our climate (ice snow) was the fact I had to replace the element support guys twice and had to make (support)one for the reflector. Assembly was easy with good instructions but the x hats where a tad toyish. I was impressed except for the lack or warc
AC6YD Rating: 1999-11-21
Excellent antenna for the price Time Owned: unknown months.
I've had my A4S, with a 40 meter add on kit up since May of 99. It's increased performance over my old vertical is stunning. It has a broad usable band width, especially on 15 meters were it's usable width is well beyond factory specs. Assembly is time consuming but the instructions are simple. I only had to call the factory once for a small missing part. The 40 meter add on REALLY works well. I have experimented with stations in the 1000 to 1500 mile range and they all can see 4 to 7 S-unit change when rotating the driven element from null to optimal. I would certainly tell a friend to buy one of these and not worry about them being disappointed.