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Reviews For: High Sierra HS-1800/Pro

Category: Antennas: HF Mobile & Accessories

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Review Summary For : High Sierra HS-1800/Pro
Reviews: 77MSRP: 300-$500
Description:
For General Mobile use. Light weight, high performance and covers entire HF spectrum. Uses new custom Black Hawk motor. Available with semi-automatic control box.
Product is in production
More Info: http://www.cq73.com
# last 180 days Avg. Rating last 180 days Total reviews Avg. overall rating
00774.7
KC6LYV Rating: 2003-05-19
Easy to use Time Owned: 3 to 6 months.
I posted basically the same information under the El Dororado title. It is the same antenna except that it is set up for home use. Some of my friends did not even know that the HS1800/pro could be used at home. It works great and is very easy to use. The motor tunes at just the right speed and is very quiet. Mine is mounted in the yard and my neighbors have no idea that it is my ham antenna. The Black Hawk Motor is very quiet. Tuning is simple and takes about 10 to 20 seconds. I can zip from band to band.
WB6IXH Rating: 2003-05-05
Nice heavy-duty setup! Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
I purchased a used F250 diesel for road trips and boating. For all road trips HF is required to I bought a new FT100-D and 9’ CB whip and a SCG auto tuner.

What a mess, the guys on 40 & 80 laughed be off the air! In general this setup worked great on 10m-20m but very poorly on 40m and 80m.

During some of these laughing QSOs the happier mobile stations seem to be running the High Sierra models. So a quick trip to the web and one phone call and I had an 1800 Pro, SS Mount and two foot extension at my door step the next day.

I mounted the antenna on the back of my pickup tool box, ran the control cable and I was on the air. Reports were much better then the CB whip, but not as good as other mobiles. After some more surfing and a few QSOs I figured that any antenna should not be inside the trucks bed (at the bottom) and not too close to the side walls or too close to the tool box. In an attempt to solve this, I fabricated a 4” x 4” x 24” plastic block (using some fo-decking parts) and moved the base of the 1800 up above the rim of the truck bed and away from the bed sides (+/-12”). In doing this I also “un-grounded” the mounting bracket and created a new grounding point on the plastic block so the entire antenna was free of close proximity grounds. I also had to not use the supplied SO-239 connector since it would ground the bracket. To connect the coax I used the shunt-coil screw with a solder lug the center conductor.

WHAT A DIFFERENCE! Great reports, good as any 100w mobile. With the 2” extension I can tune 15-80 with a 54” whip and 10-40 with a slightly shorter one. Next I will try removing the extension and use the supplied whip so I can have full 10-80 without any whip changes.

Great antenna, great service and helpful information…
W7KKK Rating: 2003-05-05
Even better than before! Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
I bought this 1800 Pro to install as an antenna for my home QTH to keep the landlord happy on my rental property and the restrictions I have to live with for now. I already own an 1800 DX that I have on my mobile and actually had a better antenna system on the car than the QTH so I made the change.
I was going to try a vertical but did not have room for the radials on the roof and could not do a ground mount with all the children in the mobile home park.
Of note, when trying out the antenna in the shack I noted that the new Blackhawk motor seems a lot smoother and quieter than the previous motors on some screwdrivers. The all metal gears should last longer and it seems to make it a bit smoother to tune in addition than previous models.
Also, a little tip, I used an inexpensive extension cord for powering the antenna. You can buy an outdoor, UV protected light weight cord at the hardware store for next to nothing and the sun won’t tear it up.
I placed the antenna into a tripod that I had on the roof. I was in the hopes that it would serve as radials for me. Checked the SWR and it was not good news. So I called Jim at High Sierra. He reminded me that I did not disconnect the coil from the base of the antenna which is required when you operate this antenna in a ground type of install. TNX for the patience Jim, I had seen that in the manual on the 1800 DX and forgot. It bought a couple of bands within tolerance but still was a no go for me.
I already knew from the manual that High Sierra recommends 8 each 10 foot radials so I installed them using #14 AWG wire and some lugs. SWR came down to nearly flat on all bands except 80 meters which was still just about 2.5/1. Well within the range of my auto tuner on my IC-746.
I gave the antenna a quick try out on 20 meters as dusk set in last evening and got reports of +10-20 over 9. I think this will work out just fine for me and it sure made the landlord happy.
High Sierra just keeps on improving the products and the one-on-one assistance from the “big guy” is great.
KB6SX Rating: 2003-04-29
Smooth & Quiet Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
A very quiet and smooth tuning antenna. The black hawk motor is very good. The antenna worked as advertised. I have installed mine at home. I use it also for short wave listening since it covers any frequency from 3.5 to 29 MHz. SWR is good on all bands. I have made contacts all over the world with it. It weighs only 6 pounds and was easy to install. It is a very good choice for a no antenna neighborhood.
WT6P Rating: 2003-04-25
Quality, Performance and Service Fantastic Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
Having owned High Sierra antennas for a few years now, I believe I am qualified to speak about my new 1800/Pro. First of all, the new motor, Custom BlackHawk, is very quiet and precise when it comes to tuning and fine tuning. The basic antenna is built to last, in spite of what I have done to a couple of them! The new style control box is attractive, smaller than the original and also built to withstand all I can give it.

Using this antenna is a pleasure and have used High Sierra products both mobile and on tripod bases while camping (using the radial system).

Customer service is fantastic and you won't find nicer folks than the HS group.

If you are looking for a new antenna of this type, look no further, High Sierra is the answer.

73's to all
Mark, WT6P
KD5RGB Rating: 2003-04-22
The best in the West.( EAST ,NORTH, and SOUTH) Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
LET'S SEE, WHERE DO I START. WRITING FROM MY EXPERIENCES, WITH MOBILE HF ANTENNAS. THE FIRST ANTENNA WAS A COMET HF, IT WORKED WELL BUT BROKE TWICE, NOT BUILT VERY WELL THAT COST ME 200.00. MY FIRST SCREWDRIVER ANTENNA WAS BUILD BY NO5E, I HAD TO RE-TUNE ABOUT EVERY 100 MILES. NEVER GOT THE SWR'S DOWN LIKE IT SHOULD OF BEEN, HAD TO EVEN RETAP THE TRANSFORMER. THAT DEAL COST ME 175.00. STILL LOOKING FOR A QUALITY PRODUCT THAT WOULD GIVE ME A GOOD, CONSISTENT SWR. I THEN BOUGHT A SCREWDRIVER ANTENNA FROM A HAM OP. IN WACO TX. PAYED 160.00. HIS ANTENNA WOULD TUNE DOWN FOR A FEW MILES THEN SLOWLY CHANGE. I WAS SOUTH OF WACO WHEN I HAD TO PULL OVER AND RETUNE. THE NEXT SCREW DRIVEN ANTENNA WAS PURCHASED FROM A HAM STORE; THIS ANTENNA IS BEING BUILT IN ARK. I PAYED 250.00. THIS ONE LASTED 2 WEEKS. IT WAS THE HARDEST TO TUNE. WELL BEING VERY FRUSTRATED I MADE A CALL TO HIGH SIERRA, AND VISIT WITH JIM HEATH. HE LET ME TALK AND EXPLAIN WHAT I HAD BEEN FIGHTING. HE DID NOT TRY AND SELL ME HIS ANTENNA; HE DID EXPLAIN WHY MY SWR'S WERE CHANGING, AND HOW THE TRANSFORMERS WORK. AFTER APROX. 45 MIN. I ASK HIM ABOUT HIS SCREWDRIVER ANTENNA, AND WAS CORRECTED IMMEDIATELY; HIS ANTENNA HAS NO SCREWDRIVER MOTOR IN IT. HE TOOK HIS TIME TO EXPLAIN HIS ANTENNA SYSTEM TO ME, I ORDERED THE 1800 FROM HIM WITH HIS PERSONAL GUARANTEE TO BE 100% SATISFIED WITH IT. HE THEN TOLD ME THAT HE HAD JUST RECEIVED A NEW MOTOR FOR HIS ANTENNAS AND WAS GOING TO PUT THE FIRST ONE IN MY ANTENNA. I WAS TO RECEIVE ONE OF THE FIRST HIGH SIERRA 1800/PRO ANTENNA. HE TOLD ME THE NEW MOTOR, LIKE HIS OLD MOTOR, WAS BUILT FOR HIS ANTENNAS. THE NEW MOTOR MOVES SLOWER AND WHEN YOU STOP TUNING IT STOPS. I BOUGHT HIS SYSTEM HOOK LINE AND SINKER, AND I AM GLAD I DID. I DID EVERYTHING HE ASKED ME TO DO, FOLLOWED THE DIRECTIONS, AND USED EVERYTHING PROVIDED IN HIS PACKAGE. IT WORKS GREAT!
NOT ONLY DOES HIS ANTENNA WORKS GREAT IT LOOK EVEN BETTER. THIS IS A TRULY A FIRST CLASS ANTENNA BUILT BY A PROFESSIONAL. IF YOU EVER GET A CHANCE TO PUT YOUR HANDS ON ONE, THEY SELL THEMSELVES. THE WORKMANSHIP IS OUTSTANDING. LIKE I SAID IT WORKS GREAT, TUNES UP, STAYS TUNED, QUIET, AND AS SLOW AS THE MOTOR TURNS, I HIT THE SWEET SPOT THE FIRST TIME AROUND. ANOTHER THING I NEED TO BRING UP IS THE DIFFERENT COLORS OR COMBINATION OF COLOR, TO FIT ANY VEHICLES COLOR DECOR. MY PICK-UP TRUCK IS SILVER AND BLACK, I HAD ORDERED A GRAY AND BLACK COLOR COMBINATION ANTENNA, TO MATCH THE P/U, WELL THAT LASTED UNTIL THE NEXT DAY AND CHANGE MY MINE, I WANTED RED AND BLACK, CALLED JIM BACK, MY GRAY AND BLACK ANTENNA WAS MADE AND READY TO BE SHIPPED NOT WANTING TO BE DELAYED, I TOLD HIM NEVER MINE THE COLOR CHANGE. MY NEW RED AND BLACK ANTENNA WAS RECEIVED AS PROMISED ON TIME, WHAT A GUY. I BOUGHT THE 1800/PRO IN MARCH, AND REALLY ENJOY THE GREAT REPORTS. I GAVE AWAY MY OTHER ANTENNAS. THE MONEY I SPENT ON THOSE ANTENNAS I COULD OF BOUGHT SEVERAL HIGH SIERRAS.

THANK YOU
ROWLAND FLOREZ
KD5RGB
NA6E Rating: 2003-04-20
I love this antenna. You need to look at one. Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
High Sierra has done it good again. After 3 years of fighting with the OM over who got to use the truck with the HS-1500, I have my own 1800/Pro. I love this antenna. Tuning is quieter and when you stop tuning, the antenna stops moving now due to the custom Black Hawk motor. Very acurate. Especially easy and slick with the new semi-automatic control box. It makes giving out counties on all bands a breeze. The High Sierra tradition continues with excellent quality, durability and price. Vy 73, Mary....na6e