| W3BA |
Rating:  |
2024-12-04 | |
| 32 Years Strong and Still Working the World with 5 Watts |
Time Owned: more than 12 months. |
Have been using a GAP Challenger DX-VI since 1992 and love it. It has been to 4 different locations with me as I moved over the years. I’ve rebuilt it several times after several mishaps and still it is my goto antenna for HF. Rebuild number one was after a neighbor with a weed trimmer got a little carried away and cut the coax off at the shaft. By this time, it was up for a few years and I thought new guts might be in order anyway. Second rebuild was after a move. I left the antenna up and told the new tenants I would be back in 2 weeks to take the antenna down and haul it away. They decided to be “helpful” and took it down…and apart…by cutting the coax between each section to make it easier to haul away. Ordered a new set of guts and rebuilt it again. Next came the terrible windstorm and a snapped guy wire. Bent the bottom half like a pretzel. Ordered some new tubes and rebuilt it again. Then came the big one…lightening! Fried the 80M cap, the coax connector, several of the tuning rod wires and coax…along with my Kenwood 440 and Astron 35M PS which literally welded themselves together. Oh…the lightening also took out my chimney on the house. Had a little trouble getting it all working again after that, but with Rich’s help, we worked through the issues and the Challenger was working again with low SWR. BTW…I never needed a tuner with this antenna.
Fast forward to very recently. I have been working mostly QRP using a Yaesu FT-817ND at either 2.5 or 5 watts CW into the GAP. The ability of this antenna to hear and to launch my low powered signal out for DX has been tremendous. Worked JH3 and JH4 on 15 meters with 5 watts, UA1 Russia, GA3 Great Britan, HC5 Ecuador, CE9/ Antarctica and hundreds of other stations with just the Gap Challenger and 5 watts. This antenna is a beast.
I tell you all this because I rate the customer service from GAP as stellar. I recently had an intermittent issue with SWR going all over the place. I didn’t want to lower the antenna in the snow so thought I would send an email to GAP for some things to look at for troubleshooting. Richard called me the next day and discussed possible causes for my issue. A few days later I found the problem and fixed it…a couple of loose screws where the tubes connect near the center. After the fix I am now back on the air with low SWR and no need for a tuner. Still working the world with 5 watts.
Thirty-two years of service and this antenna is still rockin’ the air waves. If it were to ever die...seems unlikely... I would replace it immediately with the latest version from GAP. Well done Richard and team.
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| KA3YIA |
Rating: |
2023-10-16 | |
| Antenna repair and excellent customer service |
Time Owned: more than 12 months. |
| I have owned 2 Challengers and have been very pleased with the performance of the antenna. The assembly instructions are easy to follow and I was able to assemble the antenna in under an hour--it tuned perfectly without any alterations. I have been able to work the world using 100W. But even more important is GAP's service after the sale. When my antenna was severely damaged, Richard at GAP was able assist me with the repair of the antenna. I suggest reaching out to GAP before attempting to make any repairs as they may be able to offer cost saving suggestions. |
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| N7HNO |
Rating: |
2022-02-24 | |
| Gap Challenger |
Time Owned: more than 12 months. |
| I lived on a postage sized lot in the Pacific Northwest, so needed something with a small footprint. The Challenger fit the bill. It has survived many storms, an earthquake, and 2 moves - outstanding. Was a real performer until this past winter when a storm snapped off a tree which it did not survive. New parts are on order, and expect it to last another 20 years. If assembled correctly the SWR is well within spec. I've never had buyer's remorse. I compared it to my NVIS for 80M which is not a very fair comparison, and it did just fine. If I could not have rebuilt this one, I would have replaced it with another just like it! |
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| KK5UP |
Rating: |
2021-11-20 | |
| Awesome Antenna |
Time Owned: 0 to 3 months. |
| Even after a missing piece I didn't see in the box (it was under the box) the antenna still worked great. Let me say this Richard at Gap is the most understanding person I've ever talked to, after many calls he was able to get me running. Gap is the way to go. I also have the tilt over mount from Gap so my HOA don't see it up during the week, sure makes it easy for a 64 year old man to raise and lower the antenna. I worked Japan this morning 6383 miles from Texas with a solid 5-9 report. Richard is the antenna master solid support from him and Gap |
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| K4FLH |
Rating: |
2021-02-24 | |
| Great antenna and fantastic customer support |
Time Owned: more than 12 months. |
I am not one for writing reviews for products I own, either complimentary or derogatory, but this case is worthy of note.
The antenna is all the advertisements claim to be. I built and erected it myself and I am not in the best physical shape, being 71 with lots of steel in my back and other joints. The actual build should be a snap for everyone!
I did have a small problem with the counterpoise and had to call Richard for advise. Richard spent at least an hour with me over a couple days helping me and not once did he rush me or made me feel like I was dumb or he had more important things to do. So because of the slight problem with the counterpoise so the build gets 4.8 stars. And because of Richards excellent help, the support gets a 5++++
After I finished erecting it I checked the SWRs and nowhere were the readings higher than a 1.7:1!
Next thing I did was turn on my FTdx3000 tuned around on 40 and heard a QSO ending so I called the foreign station and made contact with EW8CM in Belarus. 59 with only 100 watts!!!!!!
Since then I've made 20 more contacts on most of the bands and have received great reports..
I highly recommend this antenna and also the GAP Titan DX, which I at one time owned, but because of space constraints I had to take down and sell.
Richard cares about his customers and will actually help you and not just read from a script like so many help lines do these days.
Hope to hear you on the bands so you can hear my GAP!
While writing this I made contact with Theo OT4A in Belgium on 20!
Move ahead to Feb. 2021
It is now almost 2 years since my initial review. I still am very happy with the Challenger! I have worked hundreds of DX stations and if I can hear them they have no problems hearing me. I highly recommend this antenna.
73 de
Bill/K4FLH
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| KC7YRA |
Rating: |
2020-05-26 | |
| Pretty impressed by this antenna |
Time Owned: 3 to 6 months. |
I live on the standard postage-stamp sized plot of land that so many operators find themselves in. From having and big tower and beam to having no room, was a big adjustment to my operating. How could I ever chase DX without my beams?
Trying to make lemonade out of lemons, I ordered up a GAP challenger. It arrived in a single eight foot long box plastered with GAP logos. I set about to build the antenna within the expected time recommended in the manual (one hour). Little did I know how optimistic that estimation would be LOL.
The manual is...... less than clear. It is a xeroxed bunch of papers with an additional sheet thrown in to cover extra modifications made with shipping size limitations. PRO-TIP: it seems that all the pieces are fit in the box in their own place, but ONE tube is hidden inside another tube. So, if you think you're missing one of the upper pieces, keep looking.
Anyway, I find the piece and get to assembly. At first, everything seems to be just fine. It wasn't until I was about half done that I discovered I had installed one tube to another, but from the incorrect end. This required a complete disassembly of the antenna back down to the harness and individual tubing sections. I was able to get it corrected and overall I probably spent two or three hours building everything. Aside from this difficulty, the xeroxed manual is woefully inadequate. Another PRO-TIP: download the manual online and see the drawings in color (something the included manual does not include).
The antenna is supplied with a double walled bottom tube and a piece of heavy PVC that you can mount into the ground. Though the antenna does not require radials, it DOES require three counterpoise wires of about 25 feet in length. These can be deployed in most configurations needed to fit the install. BUT, they are not radials or a ground plane; they are attached to the radiating elements and are part of the tuning. They do this by coupling to the ground. The wires are not included (you can buy a set from GAP for cheap if needed), but the manual stipulates a large wire be used. I ended up using cheap RG6 coax and connected the braid to appropriate ring lugs.
With the base in the ground, and with some creative counterpoise fitting, everything tuned up pretty much right where I wanted it to. 20 and 40 meters are my main haunts and I am able to cover both bands, from end to end, and stay under a 2:1 SWR. 80 is a pretty narrow range but I ordered the resistor that focused on the CW DX window.
Performance wise, I am absolutely floored with what this antenna will do. On 10, 15, 20, 40 meters, I have been able to work dozens upon dozens of DX stations every day. I see people posting online about how bad the bands are, but I do not want for any contacts. I added a small amplifier of about 800 watts and with that combo, I am frequently on top of the pileups in either CW or SSB. There is a certain element of experience and intuition thrown in the mix but I'm happy to report that my performance woes were unnecessary. Is it a 10 element beam at 100 ft? No.....but it does allow me to chase DX and contest from an 'urban' yard that is 10ft x 10ft in size.
One final point: This antenna is a noodle. Raising it up will show just how easily this thing will flex even under its own weight. Since we live in an extremely high wind area and I've seen more than one GAP antenna snap in the middle, I opted for two levels of guy ropes. One is just above the middle insulator and the other is a couple feet from the top. This does not allow the antenna to oscillate with constant howling winds and puts considerably less stress on the center piece. So far it has gladly shrugged off 70+ mph winds, driving snow/rain, and an unfortunate experience where I got too ham-fisted while raising it and ended up bending a few pieces badly.
In reality I would like to rate this a 4.5/5 due to the awful manual...... but I am impressed by the performance I've seen. That overshadows the manual shortcomings. |
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| KX4WG |
Rating: |
2020-05-20 | |
| Good multiband vertical dipole |
Time Owned: 0 to 3 months. |
| Because of space limitations, the Challenger DX was easy to assemble, install, & tune. With the use of Yaesu's DX 3000, w/ Quadra System (1.2kw) DX and local QSOs was very excellent. The DX Challenger also can be easily tuned for 17m. I feel the purchase of this antenna was well worth it. |
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| N4BRJ |
Rating: |
2020-04-11 | |
| Like it so much I bought another |
Time Owned: 0 to 3 months. |
This is my second GAP Challenger. I put the first one up 6 years ago and it worked flawlessly until a tree came down on top of it. Although it was probably fixable, it was faster to just replace it. Did some research and came to the same conclusion I did last time and picked up another Challenger.
No it's not a beam, and a pileup may take a couple extra calls, but it works just great for me. |
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| K7NM |
Rating: |
2020-03-26 | |
| Great and then Poor - Design Needs Fixing |
Time Owned: more than 12 months. |
| I originally put in a GAP Challenger with my new house in 1993. It worked marvelously for almost 8 years. Then we had a heavy rain storm one night. The tuning dropped in frequency (e.g. 7.100 went to 6.850) along with similar shifts in the other bands - and SWR went up along with the shifts. Called GAP and received an entire new wiring harness and with some work installed it. Replaced the 80m capacitor with a transmitting mica. End result was "no joy" - still de-tuned. Had no choice but to take it to the dump. In recent years, I recommended one to a new Extra whom I "Elmered" in Las Vegas. It did the same thing. Worked for a couple of years and de-tuned in exactly the same way. When it works, it is a fantastic antenna due to the clever design. But there is something fundamentally breaking down somewhere after time. Recommend GAP investigate and fix it. |
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| NG2Q |
Rating: |
2019-02-09 | |
| GREAT antenna |
Time Owned: 6 to 12 months. |
| I have built and used a great many antennas, OCF Dipoles, regular dipoles, verticals like the Butternut HF9V 6V, regular verticals, and this antenna outperforms them all, WITHOUT a radial system or ground plane. My only complaint, it transmits about 3-4db better then it receives. (Depending on the band) I have worked it 80-10 in horribly poor conditions barefoot and over the last month, worked the world on FT8 with over 1K confirmed QSO's. Get one and pay attention to the instructions (or have a friend help) Also a good idea to use guy rope at least to the mid-section. Also, use GOOD coax not junk, if you ever plan on using it for 6m. I used it 1 time on 2m and worked great, but not my thing. I also use 100 feet of LMR-600. If I ever get a second antenna, it will be a GAP Voyager for 160m! I also use it on 17m with a tuner. Also to be 100% honest, I use it with a Versa tuner II to get it to perfect 1:1 on 10-6m, since my focus in on the lower part of every band. |
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