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Reviews For: MFJ-259B

Category: Antenna Analyzers

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Review Summary For : MFJ-259B
Reviews: 238MSRP: 259.95
Description:
HF/VHF Antenna Analyser
Product is in production
More Info: http://www.mfjenterprises.com/products.php?prodid=MFJ-259B
# last 180 days Avg. Rating last 180 days Total reviews Avg. overall rating
152384.2
K7AAT Rating: 2008-12-13
Great piece of gear Time Owned: 3 to 6 months.

Wished I had purchased one years ago instead of dragging my feet for years. An extremely useful piece of ham test equipment... able to provide many different functions I need ... and well built ( not always the case with some other MFJ products. ) I've had many pieces of MFJ gear over the years and this is one of their best.

YU7BH Rating: 2008-12-13
great pcs. of equipment Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
In Serbia mfj259b cost more than 500$ with taxes. But, it is very useful pcs. of equipment. Finally, after a year of hard work with my square verticals, I've got tool for precision and valid tune. Result: triangle of array verticals for 40 m with 9 position, and front/back ratio more than 25 db's!

Thank you MFJ!
M0MGF Rating: 2008-12-09
Dont see the problem Time Owned: more than 12 months.
I have had the tunere for a little over a year now, and in that time period have given it a good testing with numerous wire antenna and yagi builds.
This little unit has performed flawlessly throughout, and has aided me in acheiving resonance on all my antennas at the spot where I want to operate from.
There are other sweet little tools included with the unit, such as the cable testset among things.
The build quality is good, made with a nice thick metal casing. One thing that does feel look slightly strange though is the back and the overlapping lid to the battery compartment.
I would recommend this unit to all amateurs for aiding in antenna construction.
K4ELO Rating: 2008-11-23
Great instrument Time Owned: more than 12 months.
We all know MFJ quality is hit and miss, but I have no complaints about this model.
It does what they say and does it well.
If you like building or tuning antennas, you have to have one of these.
Best MFJ product I have ever purchased, and the most useful.
WA0RJ Rating: 2008-10-25
I love this thing! Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
I was worried about purchasing this unit due to the risk of MFJ quality. Mine worked perfectly first time. It was easy to use. The instruction book could be better. It doesn't explain all the features very well and there is no illustration of the unit showing all the features. Some of the jacks are not explained anywhere. I resonanted a TAK-TENNA with it, and am I ever glad I had it. It was a life saver. As others have said, make sure your discharge any static in your antenna feedline before attaching to the 259B! Every Ham needs one of these beauties. It will save you so much time and takes the guess work out of your antenna projects.
NJ2H Rating: 2008-10-17
Initial Problem Time Owned: 3 to 6 months.
I'll give this a 5 as a terrific value and the most important accessory that I own. But I was another victim of MFJ quality. When I got it, it didn't read anything. Since it was new, I sent it back and waited and waited and waited. After a bit over 4 weeks I called the service department, got a really nice guy on the phone, and he said he would fix it that day - and he did. Turned out to be a bad antenna connector! Nonetheless it has worked great for months now.
KD6WAG Rating: 2008-09-05
EXCELLENT Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
Works perfectly! The new models now have a little "on/off" protector around the switch as was "wished" for by other hams.

I liked this one because the only difference between it and the 269 is the "UHF" tuning capability. Also, the 259B has an 8-bit analog-to-digital processor, while the 269 has a 12-bit. Big deal! For an additional $100.00, I do not need the UHF option. I'm never going to work on an antenna that is higher than 2 meters. This analyzer works from170MHz down to 160 meters. The 259B is perfect!

I tuned all of my hamsticks with this unit. Boy, I didn't realize how "outa tune" those little "HF rubberducks" were! This analyizer was sooooo simple to use when it came to helping me tune the antennas.

Every shack should have one of these little monsters. Just make sure that prior to connecting your coax to the unit, you discharge any possible static electricity that may have formed in your antenna line. Just touch the center element AND ground shield of your coax cable (or ladder line, random wire etc...) to a grounded piece of metal. I use the metal chasis of my power supply or a pipe in the ground when out in the field etc.... Then hook up the coax line to the tuner immediately.

As per the instructions though, make darn sure when using a balanced line antenna (wire dipole without coax cable), you DO NOT use the analyzer on AC power. Use your little 12V DC batteries instead. Other than that, it works like a champ. I opened mine up and all the soldering joints were perfect. Pretty good MFJ stuff. I was surprised!
N4ZAW Rating: 2008-08-03
Absolutely Indispensable!! Time Owned: 6 to 12 months.
I've been licesnsed for many years, and my first "love" of the hobby is antenna design ---You know, "Making mop handles radiate" and such. They (antennas) fascinate me! When I first got my ticket, I purchased the MFJ-249B (metered version). It werked flawlessly for 12 years... Well, almost! I dropped it early-on and broke the cheesy nylon battery holder, so after a recalibration, and from that day forward, I had to drag the ole trollin motor battery out using the adaptor with alligator clips that i made for it, or the cig lighter adaptor for mobile use, or the meter illumination plug in the shack (which happens to use the same jack size). I CANNOT COUNT the time, money and grief that "cheap" gizmo saved for me,not to mention the "entertainment factor" of seeing my latest frankenstien antenna plink the repeater on the other coast of Florida! HI:)
But alas -- The inevitable happened. That's right. It was bound to happen sooner or later --- I hooked the puppy up to the trollin motor backwards and smoked it!! (Sniff).. I gave it's charred remains to KF4UTH who is well-on the way to restoring it with the help of a friend of his.
I ordered the MFJ-259B to replace it. My ONLY regret is that I should've gotten the 269B, as I just bought my first 440 rig.


Now to address "MFJ quality control", or lack thereof. Internally,my 249 model looked like it had been assembled by my red-headed step-child. Not that it bothered me, because as I've stated, it performed flawlessly. The 259B is a different story inside. Factory assembly looks "factory" in all aspects. Still, I could CARE LESS one way, or t'other, provided it continues to serve my purposes as well as my old smoked 249B did.
Don't let the horror stories of MFJ build quality scare you away from what may very well become the most useful tool in your shack. Their "limited 12 month warranty" they provide with ALL thier products (which,BTW, I've never had to use on any of my MFJ goodies,and I have lots) is there to protect you.... Or spend at minimum, twice as much for something you may,or may not have to ship-back for repair anyhow.
Speaking of returning broken toys..Let me tell you about my ICOM -- Na! Nevermind :)

K4AHA Rating: 2008-07-21
Another failed MFJ Product Time Owned: more than 12 months.
The unit worked fairly well for two years of very light use.
But like so many of MFJ products the build quality is very poor.
The unit failed (no surprise). The meters read 1/4 scale no mater what.
I just wish they would improve their build quality even if they had to increase the price a bit.
MFJ has some very nice people. They own the ham accessory market. I just wish their products matched the quality of their people.
W8NSI Rating: 2008-05-28
259B works great for my needs Time Owned: more than 12 months.
I have owned my 259B for several years and love it. I use it all the time when experimenting with antennas. It was just what I needed when I set up my 4square phased array for 20 meter to assure that each vertical was set the same. I have used it for other antennas to find where they are resonant. Takes all the guess work out of it. Would I like an Anritsu or one of the other pricey boxes? Yup but I live on a budget and the 259b allows me to do it.