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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
K9DH Rating: 2011-11-14
Good product but be aware Time Owned: more than 12 months.
I have owned the MFJ-259B for several years (>5).
I have enjoyed using it; but thought I would pass along this short story:
While trying to use this Analyzer, it gave me readings all over the place. Using fresh batteries did not help. I discovered a bad solder joint had opened on the connection between the SO-239 coax connector and the circuit board. When I gently compressed the fittings, the unit worked somewhat better. There was only a blob of solder connecting that SO-239 to the board and it appeared to be a cold-solder joint.
Moral: If this happens to you - get a screw driver and a solder sucker and you may fix the problem - mine works now. 73s!
KJ4OHT Rating: 2011-10-21
Excellent product ! Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
I bought this product brand new from one of the dealership a couple months ago. Too bad, it was a defected one as all the needles went only 2 directions... all the way up or all the way down. I called and talked to the MFJ tech. and they said it shouldn't be like that... Anyways, I got a new replacment a few days later and this one worked fine.
After reading the instructions, I tested and fine-tuned all my CB's antennas back down to SWR 1.1 to 1.2 instead of the meter from the radio or other SWR meters. You see all the REAL numbers instead of just needles. Then my 2m roof top, glass mount and my homemade HF dipoles with 70cm/2m/6m/20m/40m all-in-one antenna. Every freq. are in between SWR 1.1 ~ 1.4 range. I thing without this antenna analyzer, I can't get this accurate reading for my CB & HF radios. Besides, I also have a Yaesu 120 self-tuned antenna, b4 you can only tune it only by the radio and without knowing what the SWR is...
but now you will say " Wow, that's the reading" I think keeping one of this analyzer handy shouldn't be a wrong move unless they don't want to get an accurate reading on their antenna.

The only thing I will say bad for this analyzer is if you run on batteries for portable works, you better keep another extra set. Anyway, great item and should be get higher than 5 !
K0YQ Rating: 2011-08-30
Excellent device Time Owned: 3 to 6 months.
Recently upgraded my crusty old 259 to the 259B. Build quality is excellent, worked perfectly right from the box, and the B model has some nice additional features. This is as close to an indispensable item as there is in my shack.
N3WAK Rating: 2011-08-09
Outstanding! Time Owned: more than 12 months.
I've owned my MFJ 259B for about two years. This device makes tuning your coax-fed antenna relatively effortless. I also keep it in the shack hooked to my back-to-back Alpha Delta antenna switches (which permit me to switch between 3 transmitters and 4 antennas). At TX position 4 I have the 259B attached with a short coax jumper. This permits me to effortlessly and quickly check the SWR on each of the 4 antennas each morning, before I operate. A great product! It's also kind of interesting to use it to show where my various antennas are resonant--for example, my 160 meter inverted L also has an exceptionally low SWR at 51-53 mHz, which I wouldn't have known otherwise. One of the other raters described this as "invaluable." I quite agree. 73, N3WAK
AD5IW Rating: 2011-07-10
invaluable Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
Bought one a month ago and tested every antenna I have - including the one on my airplane. I was shocked at how bad my attic antenna tested. It always was a poor performer - but now I know why (off band resonance).

Been a ham for 40 years and this tool is absolutely essential to figure out your antenna.
W3QT Rating: 2011-07-09
Follow-up review to March 3, 2011 Time Owned: 3 to 6 months.
I can't understand why so many people are down on the 259B. Mine is miraculous! I've had it for TWO DAYS, and already it promises to pay for itself a thousand fold. Here's how.

I decided to play around with it with some coax of known properties so I could get used to using it. I took a 6' jumper cable and decided to use the 259B to determine it's length. Well, to my surprise, the first time I ran it through the analyzer I discovered that I had been wrong. That 6' jumper was actually 1702.8' ! Well, that seemed a little off so I ran it again, and it had grown! It was now 2653.1' ! Hey, I figured this was pretty good. So I tried it a third time and, to my surprise it had grown again to 4235.5' ! I then stopped because I wasn't certain there would be enough room in the basement if that jumper kept growing and growing! Oh, and yes, to be fair, you have to multiply these numbers by a VF of .66 to get the actual length, so don't be too envious, my coax really didn't grow by as much as the numbers at first seem to suggest!!!!

So I've had my MFJ-259B two days, and already it doesn't work. I called MFJ and the genius in service told me, "It isn't supposed to do that." So if any of you are wondering, it isn't supposed to work that way! Duh!?#! He told me to send it back for them to look at - at my expense of course. So now I've paid $17 more than the purchase price and it's somewhere between here and Mississippi. My fear is that my journey with this item is just beginning.

The bottom line is this - well, you fill in the bottom line. I know what I'd say.

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This is a follow-up to my March 3 review. MFJ was very helpful. Upon sending the unit back to factory at the request of their technical help people, MFJ replaced the problem unit with a new unit. It works fine now.
K5TGS Rating: 2011-06-25
A Great Value Time Owned: more than 12 months.
I have had this analyzer for over a year now and find it to be a great asset to most any antenna work. The unit is well built and handles being used in the field very well. I do use their case which, to me is also a good investment. I have had the opportunity to compare measures to units that cost far more and am very satisfied with it's accuracy. In summary, this is a must if you intent to do any antenna building or repairs.
AI4HO Rating: 2011-05-30
7 years now, no signs of itt giving up yet. Time Owned: more than 12 months.
Can't believe its been 7 years since I bought this at Dayton Hamvention. Mine has been dropped, used, abused, I've had buttons come off, put back on, and it just keeps right on going. Am I getting that 7 year itch to try something new? I doubt it it, I hop this keeps going for at least another 7 years before I have to retire it. Realize of course, that if my current 259B ever dies then I'll darn sure get another. I keep the batteries fresh, change em every 3-4 months if need be, but I can get almost 6 months out a set of fresh alkaline batteries of good quality. Currently my 259B is on loan to a friend who hasn't broken down and bought one of these great tools yet. Hear's to at least 7 more years out of my 259B!

de Mark
W3LZK

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Earlier 5-star review posted by AI4HO on 2009-08-05

I can't believe its been 5 years since I bought this great piece of gear. I got this at Dayton in 2994 when I was technically nit a new ham being licensed in 1995. But I was a new ham in the fact that I had only been active in the hobby for about a year. I was told by a friend that I "really" needed one of these gadgets, that it makes antenna work a whole lot easier. Antenna work?? I don't know nothin bout antennas, you'll learn he told me. Well that was 5 years ago, ya know what? I did learn about antennas and a lot more, like having an MFJ-259B antenna analyzer will make you everybody's friend. Hey Mark can I borrow your analyzer> Hey Mark I'm working on my antenna, can I borrow your analyzer for the weekend(which turns into a week or more).

I have had absolutely NO problems, zero, nada, this analyzer has worked FB out of the box. I usually use store bought AA batteries, which last extremely well. No I don't use this every day, but when I need it its there ready willing and able to do what I ask of it to do. It seems like I go in phases with my antenna work. For a while I'll go without having had a need of the 259B, then there will be the times when it seems like all I'm doing is working on my antennas. Either its my mobile set up which ny the way is in its 3rd incarnation of a mobile HF set up. Or I;m working on my 40 meter dipole like I was last week, or maybe its checking SWR's on my newest antenna my 2nd (sold the first) GAP Challenger vertical antenna. It never ends what this little beauty does, and how handy it is to have around.

So its been a 5 year relationship that looks like its going to go on and on. I think when I bought mine I paid about $260 for it, thats $52 a year, I'd say I've gotten my monies worth out of it. You can spend upwards of $500 for an analyzer that has all the bells and whistles, but why, unless your either in the business and have need of something that is quite possibly lab grade or you are one that only the best will do. I appreciate that I really do, those folks that can and do work on and build commercial grade antennas have need of equipment that wont fail when they need it. On the other hand, I've take this to every field for the last 5 years, to help with tuning our antennas, hasn't failed me yet, I change the batteries maybe 3 or 4 times a year or when ever it needs it. You could do a lot worse than to pick up an MFJ-259B, I've never had a piece of MFJ gear that I've bought new fail. That is not to say that I haven't bought a piece of MFJ gear from someone that had totally trashed the piece of equipment and I've had to repair it, but that is true of almost anything you buy used, not everything but a lot. Any way folks, if you find an MFJ-259B at a decent price, check it out, if it works as advertised get it, you wont be sorry.


73 de Mark
W3LZK
N4EYZ Rating: 2011-05-29
Great Investment! Time Owned: more than 12 months.
Been a Ham for 32 years and wish this great device came out 31 yrs ago! Every Ham should own one. No it's not a SiteMaster (I'm a SiteMaster ibstructor btw) but it's not 10 grand either. I used mine to tune a 7 mhz rhombic for a Christian broadcast group in Sudan some years ago. Almost didn't make it out of the country when Customs Inspectors inadvertently powered it up during baggage inspection! Digital Freq display caused a few nervous moments! My only suggestion to MFJ would be a power switch that would not lend itself to accidental power ups.
K4FX Rating: 2011-05-07
Excellent Time Owned: 3 to 6 months.
I have had my 259B for about 5 or 6 months, I like it a lot, it saves a ton of time building antennas.
I will not be selling mine anytime soon ;-)
73,
K4FX