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Reviews For: Hustler 6BTV Vertical

Category: Antennas: HF: Verticals; Wire; Loop

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Review Summary For : Hustler 6BTV Vertical
Reviews: 160MSRP: 189.99
Description:
6btv
Product is in production
More Info: http://www.new-tronics.com/main/html/base_hf_6_band.html
# last 180 days Avg. Rating last 180 days Total reviews Avg. overall rating
33.71604.6
K4JC Rating: 2011-07-18
What a fantastic antenna! Time Owned: more than 12 months.
I used a Hustler 5BTV in the past, and still have one as an emergency/Field Day antenna (see my review in the 5BTV section.) However, I had the opportunity to convert a 5BTV to a 6BTV, and wanting to operate on 30 meters I tried it. The antenna was mounted on an 8-ft. section of pipe driven 4 feet into the ground, and clamped to my backyard fence to use as the counterpoise. No radials, just the wire fence. I have to say, the results have been nothing short of amazing! The antenna has been up a little over 2 years and in that time I have worked all states and over 200 countries, most of the time running only 100 watts. No, I don't get earth-shattering signal reports all the time but I have broken through a few pileups and generally, "if I can hear 'em I can work 'em!" The best band for my 6BTV has been 40 meters, with 30 and 20 performing very well. 15 and 10 are good. 75 meters is iffy; sometimes I'm heard well and sometimes not at all. While I can use my antenna tuner for 12 and 17 meters the performance is dismal - understandable since it's not designed for those bands without adding mods. I can't say enough good things about the 6BTV! No, it's not a perfect antenna. It's a trap vertical and its performance is what one should expect from a trap vertical. But even though I had originally intended to take it down once the tower and beam are up, I've changed my mind. This baby is staying right where it is!
W6DPS Rating: 2011-06-29
Works well, but feed point has issues. Time Owned: more than 12 months.
I just used this for the second Field Day in a row, and had pretty good results both years.

It seems easiest to tune, and keep tuned, in the higher frequency bands. i particularly like to operate 15 meters, and this antenna performs well there.

I did have the problem of the feedpoint screw at the bottom corroding and not coming back out. I used a hose clamp about one inch from the bottom insulator (enough to clear the ends of the U-bolt) and attached to it with an alligator clip. it worked fine, with performance going back to the time the antenna was new.

For Field Day I used a 4 foot piece of black iron pipe driven into the ground, and four non-resonant radials to help form a ground plane.

Performance on 10 through 20 meters was great, not bad on 40, but the 80 meter segment was a bit narrow for the "hunt and pounce" Field Day operation that i prefer over calling CQ.

I worked Field Day with the Edison Amateur Radio Network, W6SCE, in LAX section. If you worked us on 15 or 20 meters then odds are that it was me--using my 6BTV and IC-718.

Generally a good antenna, but does need to be guyed if there is any wind and the feed point needs to be redesigned--although hose clamps are pretty cheap.

When taken down into 3 or 4 pieces it fits in my Jeep and goes back up easily, making it a good choice for Field Day. Being a vertical, it didn't pick up quite as much noise, and often hearda lot more signals than temporary inverted-V antennas.
KC0ZPS Rating: 2011-03-28
Great Antenna Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
I'd give this antenna 5 stars, but I rated at 4 primarily because of the setup.

Tuning was a bit of a pain in the rear. I ended up having to move the traps lower to bring the resonant frequency up per KB7TPB's link. This required me to break the silicon seal on the traps. The installation directions made no mention of this and without adjusting the traps, 3:1 was the best SWR I could achieve across most of the bands. 4:1 on the 40 meter band.

After tuning the antenna, adjusting the traps, and installing radials, I am now operating below or at 1.5:1 across all bands. First weekend with the tuned antenna, and I've made over a dozen DX contacts. Poland, Czech Republic, Columbia, Aruba, Spain, France, and Belgium from Colorado, to name a few. This antenna is a solid performer, so far. I'd recommend it.
KB3RMX Rating: 2011-03-12
GREAT AGAIN Time Owned: more than 12 months.
This is a follow up of a review I gave this antenna a few years ago. Just installed the 12 meter add on kit today and have to say it tuned perfectly easy. Did not de-tune the rest of my antenna. I was on 12 meters within the hour of installation. I added the 17 meter kit about two years ago, same result. This is a fantastic antenna if you don't have the real estate. I have this ground mounted with 30 radials 8.5 feet each and swrs are great. tune this to where you want to work and it stays there. I do recommend the Penetrox for each connenction., keeps oxidation off your connection. Am going to get the Hustler 4btv for my sation on the back patio.
ON5UN Rating: 2011-02-25
Great Vertical Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
Have a 6BTV since 2 months ground mounted, actually with 16 radials ranging between 5 and 20 meters long. Using the manual dimensions, the antenna was low in frequencies on all bands. Then I tuned the traps and it took me 10 times taking the antenna down, but now the SWR is max 1.5 on all bands. 80 meters is very narrow, but works acceptable in that segment. Worked nice DX with 25 watts and I am really surprised by this antenna which needs only a small place. Good value for the money. I will install more radials in the Spring.
AB4KJ Rating: 2011-01-19
Solid antenna Time Owned: N.A.
I bought this antenna to add to my growing antenna farm. I had heard good thing about verticals and this antenna in particular. It was easy to set up and tune. I installed it on the ground using the DX engineering tilt mount, which made tuning very easy. I also installed it with the DX engineering radial plate. The installation was quick and easy. I installed it with about 40 radials using the DX engineering radial kit. The antenna tunes up well on all the design bands and appears to perform well. I have work JAs and VK's with no problem. I live in the midwest and so far it is handling the winds, snow, and rain with no adverse impact. It isn't an eye sore for the neighbors either. Good product.
NC0Q Rating: 2011-01-09
Good antenna for what it is. Time Owned: 6 to 12 months.
I'm giving this antenna a 4 because if you ignore the hype and have realistic expectations of 1/2 of a TRAP dipole shoved into the ground, you may actually be impressed by this antenna's performance, I know I am. I picked mine up locally for very cheap, and approached the installation with a fair degree of pessimism. Boy, was I wrong.

I have mine ground-mounted on the DX engineering tilt-plate, which is great for adjusting the antenna (I raised and lowered mine about 25 times for this purpose) and also for lowering the antenna for high-wind situations (mine is unguyed and handles up to 30MPH okay.) I have 54 ground radials of various lengths from 35 feet to 15 feet. FWIW I did notice an improvement in performance as radials were added over the course of 4-5 weeks. The radials are all random length. The antenna is in a small suburban back yard about 15 feet from my steel-sided house. I have a very short coax run, so my SWR bandwidth on 40 meters is narrower than some might have with 50+feet. It is centered on 7.095, just hits 2:1 at 6.900 and 7.190. All other bands are completely covered (10, 15, 20, 30) except obviously 80 meters, which gives me a 2.5:1 bandwidth of about 50 Khz.

I get good signal reports barefoot. I have worked all the bands with it, but I prefer the performance from 20 meters down. 15 is kinda sketchy, 10 meters is useless IMHO. I think that bottom 8 feet of tube really needs to be either on a roof or out in the clear to work well, and the typical backyard QTH is hardly a rooftop or large empty feild.

A major plus is that the antenna can handle 1500 watts, which is pretty nice if you actually want to use the 80M resonator, which in my experience is necessary if you want to ragchew on that band with this antenna.

If this were the only antenna I had, I could see myself being content with it.
K9OSC Rating: 2010-07-25
Excellent Vertical Antenna Time Owned: more than 12 months.
Over the course of several decades I have owned many different types of verticals from HyGain, Cushcraft, Butternut and now Hustler. Three years ago I bought a 6BTV new. My primary reason was the inclusion of the 30 meter band. When I moved to Minnesota I put it up as a ground mounted vertical.

The build was easy. Following the instructions carefully yielded a trouble free assembly. All the parts were provided as well as the stainless steel hardware.

Using a DX Engineering radial plate, I carefully installed twelve 30-foot buried radials that dodged trees and other backyard elements. Installed per the manual the antenna worked fine, but the SWR was off. Hustler and DX Engineering advised in their written literature that retuning the traps may be necessary due to varying soil conditions and if a large radial field was employed. In addition, I suspect the vertical was designed with the dimensions provided by the factory for those who choose a minimalist installation (read ground rod only with no radials).

The antenna is fed with RG-213 coax that is buried and runs for a distance of approximately 60 feet. I have not found the need to provide choke baluns at each end as was suggested by Hustler.

I am fortunate to have fairly good soil conditions as well, so retuning the traps was in order.

Again, carefully following instructions they tuned easily and all bands are now resonant right in the middle of each band. I used an antenna analyzer but a SWR bridge could have been employed just as easily with identical results. I also have the antenna guyed at the proper level with three light non-conducting guys.

The antenna over three years has withstood the harsh Minnesota winters with ease. This area also experiences severe weather in the spring and summer including near misses by tornadoes. No issues whatsoever thus far. It handles wind well. The physical integrity of the antenna is excellent and with the last inspection no repairs or adjustments were needed. Basically, it is a set and forget antenna. It works very well as confirmed by the fact that half of my operating time is spent running QRP. I work my share of DX and compete in many QRP contests with good success even during these current solar doldrums.

I do not use the antenna on 80 meters, however. Not because of narrow bandwidth (which it has) but because such a radiator is not all that efficient on that one band. I use my CF Zepp with better success.

The 6BTV has a nice slim profile that makes it blend in easily with the yard and surrounding trees/shrubs. While in the center of the backyard it is completely visible, it isn't an eyesore. The XYL approves of it without exception and the performance it has provided has been most gratifying.


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Earlier 5-star review posted by K9OSC on 2008-03-26

I’ve had several different brands of vertical antennas in the past 50 years, but the 6BTV has been the easiest to assemble and get working of all of them. Due to some severe winter restrictions, I was unable to install any radials at the time I first put up this antenna. I ground mounted the antenna per the instructions. Right out of the box the SWR at 7.0 mHz. was flat but increased further up the band, as expected. 30 meters was flat and so was the low end of 20 meters. Primarily a CW operator, this was no problem.

I did not use it on other bands due to poor conditions. 80 meters is very limited and I don't expect to use this antenna there.

The assembled antenna withstood heavy snow and really gusty winter winds with no guying. Stood in the yard like a statute! My transceiver has an antenna coupler built in and I used that. Worked just fine. How well? Cracked two pileups on Dxpeditions on 40 and 30 meters. Worked over 20 DX stations in the first several days with it on 40 CW. Ran 100 watts and ground conditions here are full of gravel with a thin layer of top soil.

My final installation after the winter season will include lots of ground radials and a better location. However, this antenna plays well and works as advertised. Assembly is extremely easy by just following the directions. No antenna is perfect, however, this has been working well for me and has enabled me to stay on the air during some treacherous winter weather. When the final installation is completed I will post a revised evaluation.
KB7TPB Rating: 2010-05-17
Good antenna Time Owned: more than 12 months.
I followed the directions and put down a lot of radials. When trying to tune the antenna I was low on all frequencies and had no more tuning range. Just when I was going to grab my hacksaw and start cutting I found the following site: http://www.hamuniverse.com/hustlerbtvtrapcalibration.html. Do not cut this antenna. Get a good SWR analyzer and follow the directions on the link and it will work well. Good luck.
G4RNI Rating: 2009-08-07
Beware Hidden Corrosion! Time Owned: more than 12 months.
Well, it's fairly low profile although does require guys. It's also reasonably ok performer, once you work out how to connect your coax to it.
It doesn't have an SO239 on the base, just a large diameter screw. I used a 1:1 commercial balun to connect mine and all seemed well for a couple of years until...
...Yesterday I found some very strange reading when checking things over. Not resonant where it used to be etc etc. I checked the connections, eventually finding I couldn't undo the terminal screw at the base.
No amount of WD-40 or even (last resort) heat from my propane torch pencil jet budged it! No amount of force with Snap-On gear, not even mole grips!

Eventually I admitted defeat and cut off the bottom 2" of the heavy duty base pole to find the terminal screw assembly/bush rusted to hell!

I've replaced the bush with a large diameter rawl bolt, liberally dipped in Finnigan's Waxoyl car rustproofing fluid.

I'm about to write up the work for mods.dk.
My advice, if you buy one, soak the bottom section with oil, REGULARLY!