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Reviews For: Ameritron ATR-20

Category: Antenna Tuners/Matching Networks

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Review Summary For : Ameritron ATR-20
Reviews: 16MSRP: 459.95
Description:
1.2 KW 1.8 - 30 MHz Roller Antenna Tuner
Product is in production
More Info: http://mfjenterprises.com/collections/ameritron/products/atr-20
# last 180 days Avg. Rating last 180 days Total reviews Avg. overall rating
15164.8
W2MNS Rating: 2022-10-29
A great simple to use tuner Time Owned: more than 12 months.
Purchased mine used on Ebay and got screwed. This was hit by lightning. Would not tune up my vertical. Also the serial number is 0005. wow. A friend of mine took it and went thru it. Had to replace meter and lots of small parts which were obtained thru Ameritron. Fortunate that roller inductor and capacitors survived. Total cost of parts was under $80.00. Friend repaired it and would not take a penny for his labor. It is working perfectly on all bands I work on and tunes flat. Super easy to use, and I love it using an Sb-200 and a Collins 30l-1 amp on 2 different radios and also a Johnson Valiant. Super great Tuner. Takes a knockin' and its still rockin.
KF5YUB Rating: 2022-05-22
Great VSWR Time Owned: more than 12 months.
Purchased in 2015. Got the ATR-20 back after having Ameritron replace the roller inductor within the first few weeks. They recalibrated it also. I bought the ATR-20 to go with the Ameritron AL-811. Now it tunes the IMAX 2000 10-20 Meters. Prior to being fixed it only tuned the IMAX on 10 and 12 Meters. Smooth and properly working. It's great on the Cushcraft R7 and other Band specific antennas.
Now with the ATR-20 I should be able to tune more effectively, even "Coat Hangers" Hi, hi. The Peak Hold is accurate. The Power is accurate. I like this tuner. I can see exactly what my reflected power is and my VSWR. Nice "flat" or less than 1.5:1 with almost no to 1.5 watts reflected.
I do recommend this tuner.
N4ECW Rating: 2020-07-14
It's Exceptional And More Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
I believe it would tune a rain gutter! I used it to tune a 20m RadioWavz Double Bazooka stealthily mounted in the lanai of my Florida condo. Although the antenna is flat and resonant on 20m, bazookas, except 80m ones, are generally single band specific.

My first opportunity to make use of the ATR-20 was on Field Day 2020. I made solid contacts on every band from 160m to 10m with consistent 5/9 reports. Every band that I used had a flat SWR with a 600 watt output level.

I was shocked at how easy it was to use; and, how quickly you could changes bands and retune.

It would be hard to believe that any ham would be disappointed with this tuner!
K3TD Rating: 2020-04-18
Impressive performance on a short OCF dipole Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
I have an OCF Windom type antenna for 40-10 meters and wanted to get on 75/80 without having to add an antenna for that band. I have been using the ATR-20 for a while now and am able to tune it easily and quickly between 3.5 - 4.0 MHz with excellent measured SWR and on air results. Antennas significantly shorter than 1/2 wavelength are a challenge, so I wanted a T-network tuner with a roller inductor for maximum tuning range. Also wanted something that was rated for higher power even though I am using 100 watts with my IC-7610. A good friend recommended the ATR-20 and uses it regularly at 600 watts with good results. Build quality is excellent and the inductor and capacitors are stout. Also, the manual is thorough and includes instruction on how to configure and look for the best match per band. I am extremely pleased with the performance of the ATR-20, and would feel comfortable using it at mid-power ranges 500-800 watts.
WA4LJJ Rating: 2018-01-22
This tuner would tune a bucket of salt water! Time Owned: more than 12 months.
I bought this ATR 20 tuner year ago when I got my ALS 600 amp. It wasn't cheap but it is worth every penny. The roller inductor is smooth and I have every tune position for my CW frequencies on a sticky note taped to my desk for quick reference. I quickly adjust the transmitter, antenna and the inductance to the sweet spot and I'm ready to go. The power and SWR meter is easy to read. This is a heavy, solidly built tuner which will be the last one I will ever need.
AA2SM Rating: 2010-12-30
SMOOTH Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
Had my tuner for 3 weeks now. Smooth and easy. What a differance from the MFJ I owned. Worth every penny. Tuned up a a few of my wire antennas with ease.
K7PSA Rating: 2009-06-08
Great Tuner Time Owned: more than 12 months.
I bought my ATR-20 about two years ago. I use it with my Icom IC-746PRO and my IC-745,and my AL-811H AMP ususlly at 600 TO 700 watts. It tunes Inverted V, G5RV,and homemade Dipoles with ladder line feed no problem. I have never had any trouble with the tuner at all, I think it will tune any antenna. 73 Bob,K7PSA
NF6V Rating: 2008-12-04
Great Product Time Owned: more than 12 months.
I've had my ATR-20 for about 3 years now and have used it on a wide variety of antennas with power (on the meter) up to 900+ watts and have been totally satisfied. I love the quality of construction (no problems as others have posted) and the true peak power feature on the meter is very helpful.

A bit pricey but a fine product.
K1FU Rating: 2008-06-28
Pricey, but works well Time Owned: more than 12 months.
I use it with dipoles hanging in trees, my tuner in my IC-746 couldn't handle them. I find the sweet spot and then activate the Icom tuner if the swr is a little high. If you can't tune it with the ATR-20 it can't be tuned.
WI7B Rating: 2008-01-17
GREAT! Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.

I'm not sure why an ATR-20 review hasn't been written in 2 years. This is a fantastic tuner. For those of you who have difficulties with MFJ equipment, don't equate Ameritron with MFJ.

Purchased new, the tuner is solid and the power/SWR meter reads the same as the power setting on my TS-480S. I set 30W, I read 30W into a 50 ohm dummy. I set 100W, I read 100W into a 50 ohm dummy. At that relative level, it's repeatably accurate.

The built-in antenna switch with either direct, feedthrough or tuner-coupled output is another bonus. The finest feature is the continuosly tunable roller inductor for exciter powers <30W. I'm finding sweet spots I never had with my older tuner's 12-position inductor, and with increased tuner efficencies (max capacitance/minimum inductance). And the setting are extremely repeatable over all bands.

It's a hunk of change (~$430), but worth it.

73,

---* Ken