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Reviews For: Cushcraft HV-4E

Category: Antennas: HF: Verticals; Wire; Loop

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Review Summary For : Cushcraft HV-4E
Reviews: 6MSRP: Cushcraft
Description:
HV-4E Four-Band Low Profile Vertical Antennas are capable of operation on 40-10 meters, with a power rating of 1200W SSB, 500W CW and 500W digital on 40 Meters. The design of this antenna focuses RF energy on the horizon for optimum DX coverage through low angle radiation. It also features a high-angle overhead null that rejects noise and local interference. The HV-4E uses high-tech parallel end resonators for automatic band-switching instead of lossy series traps. The high-Q top-loading resonators deliver less loss and higher gain on 20, 15 and 10 meters. Center loading on 40 meters improves efficiency and lowers the center of gravity, making the HV-4E easier to handle and increasing its survivability in strong winds. The individual resonators are simple to tune for the lowest SWR with ‘to-the-kHz’ accuracy on every band, ensuring no unwanted compromises. Constructed from aluminum, stainless steel and fiberglass, the HV-4E ensures years of reliable service. It weighs 5 pounds and stands at approximately 19 feet tall and features a built-in weather resistant SO-239 Female connector, eliminating the need for a pigtail. Its small footprint, low center of gravity and lightweight design allow for easy installation almost anywhere and its low profile blends in with natural surroundings. Additionally, a Radial Kit and a Tilt Mount are available for the Cushcraft HV-4E. This makes it an excellent choice for anyone looking for a powerful, versatile and affordable antenna solution.
Product is in production
More Info: https://mfjenterprises.com/products/hv-4e-new-cushcraft-40-20-15-10-meter-vertical-antenna
# last 180 days Avg. Rating last 180 days Total reviews Avg. overall rating
3464.3
N8CT Rating: 2025-01-01
Works Good after a little work Time Owned: 3 to 6 months.
I bought this antenna from DX-Engineering knowing about the solder problem on the coil connections, so I did the repair work as I was putting the antenna together. Remove the stake ons, scrape off the varnish insulation from the wire ends, resolder the stake ons and put the antenna together. Follow the instructions and measure carefully and when I installed it, the SWR's were almost exactly what the manual said they would be, all 4 bands were resonant below each band. With the tilt over kit, it was easy to tilt the antenna over and make the adjustments to the wire rods. On 20 meters, I had to cut off 2 inches from each rod, on 15 meters, I had to cut off 1 and 3/4 inches, on 10 meters, I had to cut 1 and a half inches off each rod. SWR is flat on 40 CW, flat on 20 CW, flat on 15 CW and less than 2 to 1 on 10 meters. I tuned it for the CW/digital parts of the bands and am very pleased with how it performs. I have it ground mounted with a few radials for each band laying on top of the ground which I will bury in the spring along with the coax cable.
KP4PT Rating: 2024-08-24
The jury is still out Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
This is a 4 band antenna (40, 20, 15, 10 meters) that DX Engineering announces as having 'enhanced 40 meters performance'.
I have not tuned it yet. However, an SWR graph over the operating range shows that the lowest possible SWR around the 40 meters band is over 3:1 (at ~7.5MHz). Even if I adjust it to move the lowest SWR from 7.5MHz to the center of the band, I'm worried that I'll not get a low SWR in this band. Here is a picture of the SWR graph: https://photos.app.goo.gl/1TcY73xNppqteHde9

The other bands (20, 15, 10 meters) don't seem to have this problem, but I was expecting better on 40 meters anyway.

I say that the jury is still our because I placed a ticket at MFJ and maybe the can guide me on reducing this SWR on 40m.
KX9RJ Rating: 2024-07-26
So far, so good! Surprising performance. Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
I replaced a 35-year old beam with this new antenna, mounted on top of the house, bolted to the chimney. I have the matching MFJ radial kit spread out along the top of the house (8 25-foot radials), 4 down one length, and the other 4 down the opposite length. 40m and 20m are blasting in tonight, got 59+ reports from Florida and New York from my QTH near Chicago. Heard Canada talking in German to Germany on 40m. Heard Costa Rica but couldn't catch his callsign, so didn't try to QSO. I don't know if 15m or 10m are open: I'm not getting anything up there. I maybe didn't get it tuned exactly right on those higher bands. I am using an MFJ-901B Versa Tuner because my Kenwood TS-590S wasn't happy with my SWR tuning. But I want to work mostly 40m and 20m, so I am happy. Followup: I got Brazil on both 15m and 10m, but not much else on those bands. I heard Serbia on 20m, and Kuwait and Mexico on 15m. So 15m and 10m work when they want to.
N6SKM Rating: 2024-06-15
Light but sturdy, tunes well Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
The antenna was quick to assemble and easy to tune on all bands. After tuning, one of the bands suddenly dropped out, going from about SWR 1.1 to unusably high. Taking the antenna down revealed what others have found, namely that the ring lugs were soldered right over the wire insulation. This was not, however, why the band dropped out. One particular lug had a classic cold solder joint as well! Resoldering fixed that band. When I get time I'll take all the lugs off, strip the insulation and resolder them. Outside of that problem, all bands have excellent SWR when using a good radial field attached to a DX Engineering radial plate.
I'd rate the antenna five stars for performance, but I knocked off one star for the poor quality control that requires its owner to redo all the coil connections.
KD2KT Rating: 2024-06-08
Great antenna Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
Very easy to assemble and with patience and an antenna analyzer very easy to tune. So far excellent performance on all bands at 500 watts. I agree with the other reviewer about the insulation not being removed from the coil wires prior to soldering. This is an easy fix, just unsolder the ring lugs, scrape off the insulation and re-solder. Follow the instructions and you can't go wrong. And buy the tilt base as it makes tuning so much easier.
WB4SSG Rating: 2024-06-06
Best 40-10 Vertical, except Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
I have had many verticals in my 50-plus years as an amateur radio operator. The Cushcraft HV-4E is by far the best I have ever used, except for a huge manufacturing mistake. They forgot to remove the coil wire insulation before soldering on the terminal lug. So, Take the time to remove the lugs, strip the insulation off the end, and resolder on a new terminal lug. My SWR per band is better than the manufacturer's specifications, and the signal reports are excellent. The low profile of the antenna makes it great for HOA amateur radio operators. I installed 22 radials, 16 cut for 20 meters, 16 feet, 8.6 inches, 4 cut for 15 meters,11 feet, 1.7 inches, and 2 cut for 10 meters, 8 feet, 4.3 inches, which used all the wire I had for the installation. I connected the radials using DX Engineering's Radial Plate and ran 4 wires from the plate to the antenna base to ensure a good connection. I used a 1” galvanized pipe driven 3 ft deep for mounting and secured the radial plate and antenna mount. Tuning was easy; I just followed the manufacturer's instructions. I have seen reports of some not being able to tune the antenna; I would presume that the coil lug connectors or lack of radials would be the issues. Finally, after tuning and use, I am greatly impressed and highly recommend this antenna. God Bless.