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Reviews For: Radio Works Carolina Windom 80

Category: Antennas: HF: Verticals; Wire; Loop

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Review Summary For : Radio Works Carolina Windom 80
Reviews: 85MSRP: 89.95
Description:
Multi-band wire antenna with increasing gain vs frequency
Product is in production
More Info: http://www.radioworks.com/
# last 180 days Avg. Rating last 180 days Total reviews Avg. overall rating
15854.1
N0RKX Rating: 2001-02-01
Works great! Time Owned: more than 12 months.
I've had the antenna up here for 2 1/2 years. It survived some of the nastiest weather ever thrown at a wire antenna. 2 day blizzards in winter and a 100mph downburst in summer that destroyed my Fathers G5RV. If autotuners won't tune the antenna to specific parts of the band blame the autotuner, not the antenna. I tune it everywhere with an MFJ 949E, 1.2 to 1 or better.

I've worked just about all of the DX I can hear with this wire using 100 watts. I won low power single op in the SSB Sweepstakes (Iowa Sec.) in 99' and the same in the ARRL Int. DX in 2000. I've got it installed as an almost flat inverted V, 40ft at the apex, 30-35 at the ends.

If I ever win the lottery and get to put up a couple of monster towers I'll string this antenna up between them.
K2JX Rating: 2001-02-01
Excellant Time Owned: 6 to 12 months.
Have my Carolina windom 80 up for several months now. The performance is excellent, much better than the G5RV it replaced. To be fair the G5RV is built for 20m and it worked well on that band. The quality of the Carolina is first class, and although I don't have the center up high enough the antenna works well, loads right up through my Ten-tec 238 tuner. I can hear signals with the '80 that are not there with my open wire end fed Zepp! Shoulda bought the 160m version.
Try one you will not be sorry!
N2BT Rating: 2000-12-07
Excellent Wire Antenna Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
The best wire antenna I have ever used. I am now able to work DX that I could not even hear with previous antennas. I have worked the following new DXCC countries with the Carolina Windom.
HS0, 4S7, T88, 9M6, BV, V85, FH, YJ. I have heard, but not worked AP, S21, 9N. All these countries are very diffucult to work from the Southeast U.S. with wire antennas.

P.S. worked K5K on 12, 15, 17, 20, 30, 40, and 80 meters
KE9ZZ Rating: 2000-12-01
great attic antenna Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
I use a Carilina Windom CW620 in my attic. This is 34 feet long and has a 10 foot vertical radioator. My attic is only about 4 ft high, so most of my vertical radiator is on the attic floor. The antenna works on all bands form 20M to 10M using the auto tuner in my TS 440S/AT. My attic is about 7M above ground.

How well does it work? During CQWW SSB 2000 in 18 hours of operation I worked 85 countries in 25 Zones. I have worked some good stuff like Eritrea (E30TA) and Lybia (5A1A). I can work any thing that I can hear bare foot if there is no pileup and can bust through pileups much more than you would expect with an indoor antenna. I have gotten honest 59 reoprts form ZLs who are literally on the other side of the world from Chicago. Put the antenna up Sep 11 2000 as of Dec 1 2000 I have worked 150 DXCC countries.

It costs less than $100 at the Radioworks (www.radioworks.com) and is fully assembled. Just hang it to the rafters and you will work DXCC in about two months. If you have more room you can get versions of the antenna that cover 80-10 with one coax. I have no plans to ever get a Tower and Beam. Does not seem to worth the hassel to me.

KC2ETW Rating: 2000-11-22
Awesome Time Owned: 3 to 6 months.
I purchased this antenna when I lived in upstate,Ny whaen I first was lisenced(1/99).I used it on 80-40-15-10 meters cw when I was a novice.It performed very very very well.Made contact into Turks & Caicos island on 40 meter cw.!!When I upgraded to General class I used it on all bands.80-10 meter.Really happy to make contact into Korea one early morning 599 on 17 meter band.I recomend this antenna to the beginner and the old timer ....73 and happy hamming.


ps.The antenna blew down in bad storm.Hurricane Floyd and had to replace.I replaced with bob tail antenna from the same company Wow Wow That's another story!!!!!!!!!!
K8QT Rating: 2000-09-02
It cooks....... Time Owned: more than 12 months.
It does work great! I am very pleased with the performance of the antenna. It has been up 3 years and just keeps me in contact. Not one bit of problem with this antenna. I get great RST reports from both overseas and the Continental US. This antenna just doesn't miss a beat. Plus the folks are "Radio Works" are very pleasant to deal with and their service is outstanding!
KE4EMR Rating: 2000-08-30
nice antenna Time Owned: more than 12 months.
I have owned this ant for over 18 months. It has survived through 2 tropical stroms and many severe So FL thunderstorms. It tunes all bands easily with my ic737 autotuner. I presently am using it primarily on 20 mtr digitial, with an amp. It can handle high power,and tunes up easily with an external tuner I use with the amp. A nice inexpensive antenna and it is well made.
W0NMB Rating: 2000-08-30
Best single wire antenna I've ever used Time Owned: more than 12 months.
Have used for over 5 years and for a co-ax fed multi band single wire antenna I am very pleased. The auto tuner in my Kenwood 440 and 850 tune it easily on 80 through 10.It has proven much superior when comparing to a G5RV.
K6ELE Rating: 2000-08-29
Difficult to tune and use Time Owned: more than 12 months.
I bought one and found it difficult to tune and it had a high SWR. After months of frustrating attempts to get it to work- put it up take it down- I put it away for good and went back to the old dipole. I had installed it between two pine trees about 250 feet apart and 80ft high with no obstructions between. When I called Radio Works they said, well try moving the feed line, which I did to no avail. The good part about this is that I found the Force antenna and have used it with great success for the past 18 months.
WX3B Rating: 2000-08-29
Excellent Antenna Time Owned: more than 12 months.
I've used both the CW-80 and CW-160 for several years. The simplicity, easy installation, and relatively low SWR (does require a lightweight tuner) make it a favorite when considering dipoles, G5RV's, etc.

If can only put up one dipole type of antenna - this is a good one. I especially enjoy the fact that it's fed with Coax.

73,

Jim Nitzberg WX3B