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Reviews For: Cushcraft MA5B Mini Beam

Category: Antennas: HF: Yagi, Quad, Rotary dipole, LPDA

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Review Summary For : Cushcraft MA5B Mini Beam
Reviews: 155MSRP: 365.00
Description:
Cushcraft's newest multiband HF antenna provides 5 bands
Product is in production
More Info: http://www.cushcraftamateur.com
# last 180 days Avg. Rating last 180 days Total reviews Avg. overall rating
001554.6
M0HDX Rating: 2004-03-24
FANTASTIC Time Owned: more than 12 months.
I used the MA5B for 2 years at my portable location and this is one of the best mini beams i have ever used,i have often broke the biggest of pile ups using this beam XY5T,ZK1JD,YA5T,3D2SC,P29,ZL,KH6 just to name a very few using 100 watts and the antenna at just 30ft up in the air,the MA5B is a two element beam on 10,15,20m and a dipole on 12,17m and i often thought that the 12,17m dipole worked better than i ever expected,i worked KH6LEM on 17m (dipole) and i could just hear him due to conditions so i gave one call and he came straight back to me( not bad on a dipole England - hawaii). I never experienced any trouble at all with the traps and my MA5B was left outside in all weathers.the construction of the beam is very good and the materials used are made to last.. all in all the MA5B is one fantastic little beam and i have a log book full of rare dx to prove it.. thank cushcraft for a great product that really works..
WA0KNP Rating: 2004-03-24
You Should Have One of These! Time Owned: 6 to 12 months.
I have been using the MA5B for a little less than a year. It is mounted on a tripod on my garage, up about 20 feet. I am using a lightweight Radio Shack rotator. I have been extremely pleased with this antenna. In conjunction with my 746PRO I can bust through pileups with the best of 'em! The really nice thing about this antenna is it's 5-band capability...and it works great on all of them as advertised. I have plans to put up a small tower in the future but I'm in no hurry since the antenna is working great where it is. I have had no problems with it and assembly was easy.
N5VWN Rating: 2003-12-01
It's been good on QRP! Time Owned: 6 to 12 months.
I really enjoy this antenna. Wish I could get it up higher. It's at 20' with I-5 two houses away. I run mostly qrp and have had good luck with it. I think it would be even better higher up. I believe it's better than a vertical or dipole. Not a lot though. But remember it's only 20 feet high. It's in the back yard just peaking over the roof. Using a radioshack tv rotor. I feel I got a lot of bang for the buck. Don't really feel the need to move up to a bigger beam anytime soon. It's my first beam so I can't compare it. If I was just going for 3 band coverage I might have gotten something else. But I get a little bit of everything with this one. Being mainly a qrp operator, it's been a big help. I bought this with the understanding that it was a buget antenna though. I didn't expect full size performance. I got just what I expected. It does a fine job. I even manage to get my call in pile-ups heard. Now at 100 watts, if I can hear him, I can work him.
W5ZZG Rating: 2003-08-26
Great little beam Time Owned: 6 to 12 months.
I live in a restricted neighborhood and thought I could get away with the small beam. The beam currently sits in my back yard about 7' feet in the air. I can work everything I can hear (70 watts) and I hear quite a bit. The SWR is less than 1.3 on the bands that I have tunned the beam for. I would definately buy this beam again..
KK5KC Rating: 2003-06-16
Great Small Beam Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
I have had my MA5B for about a month. It went together very easily. Directions are straight forward. I put the beam on a roof mount tripod up only about 28 ft. I have a very small yard really didn't have room for a tower and big beam so i have been using wires for several years. Man what difference! The support from Cushcraft was outstanding. I had a couple of questions, e-mailed them one evening, next day when I came in from work had an answer via e-mail also an answer on the answering machine. If you have a small yard and a small income (such as I) HI! this is the antenna for you. So far we have had 65MPH winds and the beam stood up fine. Thanks Cushcraft for making an antenna that can be put just about anywhere and be heard everywhere.
W3BWG Rating: 2003-05-21
A great simple beam Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
After reading many reviews, I decided the MA5B
was just what I was looking for in an antenna.
Small, reasonably priced and good performance.
I installed it on a 9 ft Glenn Martin rooftop
tower with a Yeasu 450 rotor. I've worked 21
countries in just a few weeks. Many 59 reports
with a 100 watts out of my FT-1000MP. Cushcraft's photo of the antenna is misleading,
it is not mounted at an angle...I called them
to be sure. No disappointments here!
M3BNN Rating: 2003-02-24
MA5B MINI BEAM Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
MA5B MINI BEAM is a great antenna for it`s size and the build quality is excellent.. I have worked ZL,VK,VK9N,JA,VP8,YB,KL7 and so on with 10watts.i work a lot in psk and rtty as well.... to put the antenna up it was about 3 hours and the SWR was great on all the bands.so for a antenna twice it's actual size of a full size I would recomend it to anyone the performance is good and superb.......i had a (D4 and a R7000) befor I Would GIVE THEM A (R7000)=0 OUT OF 5 (D4)=4 OUT OF 5 (MA5B)=5 OUT OF 5
73`S M3BNN OP:TREV

KB4WIE Rating: 2003-02-04
Very Good Beam!!! Time Owned: 3 to 6 months.
I at first was a little sceptical, But after putting the beam together, which is very easy!.
I could for now only get the beam up 25ft.I have had MONO Banders , But i live in a restricted
area, so this was the ticket!. i put it on a chimny mount at 25ft max, untill next spring.
But ,,,,AND DIG THIS,, 100w first day worked from a61aj to t88s , iam now at 200 plus countries.
if you want to call me and ask any questions or e-mail me , please do 256-764-1879 crgal36@msn.com Kb4wie Craig
G4CEO Rating: 2003-01-27
Great Little Beam Time Owned: more than 12 months.
I've built two of these beams, and I'm very satisfied with mine. Electrically, this is a fine beam, but both required modifying mechanically to make it more robust. The single U bolt, element to boom fixing is wholly inadequate. The elements are likely to 'windmill' around the boom.Over tightening risks crushing the elements, and crushing the hollow fibreglass insulators.I spent a lot of time thinking about all the mods and then doing them, all so far with great success. I'd recommend this beam, but be aware of the (mechanical) design flaw as described above. I'm quite willing to to assist anyone who e-mails me and wants to know more of my mods.
Would I buy another - YES.
I've had mine 12 months and it's a worthy successor to my aged tribander
KE6GLA Rating: 2003-01-06
Works Good! Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
I purchased this antenna to replace a T.G.M. Hybrid Quad 3 band antenna. The Hybrid Quad worked ok; however, I wanted to add 18Mhz and 24Mhz to my antenna system. I didn’t want to purchase the 5-band version of the quad because of the assembly time, there are a lot of spokes to install in each band coil. Also my Hybrid Quad was very sensitive to surrounding objects, so I thought I would try a different type of small antenna. The Cushcraft MA5B is a little larger than the Hybrid Quad, so I was hoping that more aluminum would equal better performance. The MA5B arrived a week before Christmas. Upon inventorying the parts I discovered that one of the director elements was bent (the shipping box had no damage). I emailed Crushcraft and the said they would ship a replacement part right away. I continued to assemble the remaining parts in my garage. The part arrived about a week and a half later, not bad for the holiday season. The MA5B assembled easily, I could have completed it in under an hour, but I took my time over a few days because of bad weather. I left the top hats of the elements until I mounted the antenna on the mast, this made the antenna easier to move around. The SWR was as advertised, and I’m not noticing the interaction problems with this antenna. Performance was measured non-scientifically, 10m was about the same, 15m and 20m sounded/looked a little better. My antenna tuner likes this antenna better at the band edges vs. the Hybrid Quad. 18Mhz and 24Mhz signals are good. I mounted the antenna at 32 feet and I am using a TV rotor for positioning. Overall the antenna is working good for me and it is working as advertised. If I have any problems after it survives its first storm, I will update the review.