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Reviews For: Hexbeam: by K4KIO

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

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Review Summary For : Hexbeam: by K4KIO
Reviews: 181MSRP: 669
Description:
A six band, broadband, G3TXQ- designed, hexagonal beam with performance on par with a two element Yagi but a much smaller physical footprint is fully tuned and ready to go. This is a plug and play antenna, not a kit. It can be assembled in an evening with no measurements or tuning needed. No traps or coils are required and a single coax feeds all bands. Available for Bands 20 – 6 meters in various combinations. All steel components are stainless and non metallic components are UV resistant. Mount on a push up mast or rooftop. The sturdy aircraft aluminum base plate has never been reported to fail by hundreds of users. A “no questions asked” 30 day refund offer comes with each beam.
Product is in production
More Info: http://www.k4kio.com
# last 180 days Avg. Rating last 180 days Total reviews Avg. overall rating
64.81814.9
VK6WB Rating: 2013-02-05
GREAT ANTENNA Time Owned: more than 12 months.
JUST PUT UP MY NEW 6 BAND HEX BEAM ON 24/12/2012,
WHO ARE MADE BY LEO..K4KIO,ALL I CAN SAY IS W.O.W...WHAT A PERFORMANCE AND LOW NOISE RECEIVE.
IT IS PLUG AND PLAY AND SWR VERY LOW CROSS THE BAND
I HAVE MOUNT THE ANTENNA 25ft FROM GROUND.
WORKING USA AND EUROPE LONG PATH ALWAYS RECEIVE S9.
I USE TO RUN A TET-EMTRON TRAP 3ELE TRIBAND BEAM..
BUT THE TET-EMTRON VERY POOR PERFORMANCE AND DEAF.

I RUN THE HEX BEAM WITH 1KW POWER NO PROBLEM..
JUST SIMPLE LOVE THIS ANTENNA..WORKED USA LONG PATH THIS MORNING WHAT A PILE UP SO WARE LONG PATH TO EUROPE.

HIGHLY RECOMMENDED TO STATION THAT WHO HAVE LITTLE SPACE FOR BIG ANTENNA.

I WILL BUY ANOTHER ONE FOR MY PORTABLE.
THANKS TO LEO..

MY INFO @ QRZ.COM DE VK6WB
WH7DX Rating: 2013-01-31
Great Antenna Time Owned: more than 12 months.
I'm updating my review of the K4KIO Hexbeam.

After using it for a year.. no problems. SWR is still in the same range and I'm near the ocean salt... not a friendly location.

The relatively small size and weight has made it easy to swing around and work QSOs in all directions... checking path etc.

Lately, it's been morning LP QSOs of 20,000+ miles.

I would add antenna rope around the tops of the supporting arms going around for additional support.

Happy Customer,

73
WH7DX
W5RR Rating: 2013-01-13
Great Antenna Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
I Purchased the K4KIO Hex Beam after a Friend bought his. He will take His to Panama later this year. He wanted to check his Antenna out and make sure it was all there. well it was every thing Packed into two small Boxes. we took every thing out of the boxes assembled the Antenna set it up on a pair of Saw horses then connected a MFJ-259b Antenna Analyzer to it. the Antenna was about 3/4 feet off the ground SWR Was less than 2:1 on all bands (5) we dissembled it and put it back in the boxes so it could be put away until time to ship it down South. I finally got in touch with Leo with some Questions which were fully answered so I ordered The 6 Band Hex on a Tuesday it Arrived the Following Saturday. I am in the Process of Stacking my Tower at this time. We got 56 feet up before the Monsoon set in now i am flooded in and have to wait for the Flood to subside and the ground to Dry somewhat be fore finishing it. It will be 67 feet to the top of the 2 inch mast putting the K4KIO Base plate 67 feet off the ground right at the moment it is sitting on top of the Top section the Base Plate is 11 feet above ground I worked the Isle of Man today with a 599 report running 100 watts of power from a TS-2000. Ps the top of the tower is sitting in 18 inches of water. After I have the Antenna up on top of the tower I will up date this Review Doug.

N7SMI Rating: 2013-01-04
Best bang for the buck! Time Owned: 3 to 6 months.
I have my K4KIO beam mounted on a 30' ROHN 25 tower. It's on a 10 foot mast and turned by a Yaesu G-450 rotor. Assembly was very easy - about 45 minutes. Build quality is outstanding. It's a bit unwieldy to handle and was a bit of work to get onto the tower mast. Leo's support is top notch. Mine came with one of the wires deeply cut. He quickly mailed a replacement. I wish I had installed the ice/snow kit, but it has easily handled several heavy, wet snowfalls to date.

On air performance is excellent! After assembly, I went in to give it a SWR test and worked 3 European countries with it pointed the wrong direction sitting on a 5 gallon bucket 2 feet off the ground. With it installed on the tower at only 30 feet up, I've worked 151 countries in 4 months of casual operation - and with only 100 watts output. I seem to hear everything others in my area hear on much larger antennas, and there are few pileups that it won't work through in time. I rarely even hit the tuner button on my rig.

In all, I am very happy with my K4KIO hexagonal beam and would recommend it to anyone with limited space or budget.
VE3OP Rating: 2012-12-16
Awesome! Time Owned: 3 to 6 months.
I purchased the 6 band version (including 6M) as well as the optional ice cords, which I think is a must for our Canadian winters. In summary, I am exceptionally happy with it. Leo has done a fantastic job of commercializing the G3TXQ improved hex beam design.

As others have stated, the antenna is very lightweight, easy to manhandle, requires only a very low end, inexpensive tower/mast and rotor to turn and has very low, symmetrical wind loading, which means you never had to worry where you park the antenna in heavy winds.

Overall, the antenna went together quite well. I recommend starting out building it at a comfortable working height, such as on a couple of saw horses. Then once you have attached the main arms and tightened all the bolts, you can move it to a lower height such as on the recommended large bucket to finish the build. Make sure you don't over tighten and squish the arms, as the manual cautions.

It is quite easy to build, just take your time and enjoy the process. I think it would have helped if the thick arms were pre-drilled with 2 holes - with matching holes in the plate (and bolts included). This would allow a very easy, near perfect initial alignment of the arms, which becomes more critical later once all the fiberglass pieces are attached.

Several of my spreaders were slightly out of alignment once initially built, so I just slackened off some of the p-clips and adjusted everything until all was true.

Another tip - use a felt pen and mark where all the p-clips are initially located on the spreaders, so that you can easily return to those positions in the future if need be.

Upon initial SWR checkout on the ground, everything was fine. I even made some DX contacts with the antenna at 5 feet. Once in the air, the SWR came down on all bands (as the manual stated it would) really nicely. 17M is virtually flat across the entire band. Overall, the SWR is so good and broadband that I don't have to use a tuner on any band.

The antenna has excellent directivity and front to back ratio, Stations drop right off as I turn the beam. I have worked a lot of DX stations since putting it up. It has really made a difference.

I think a lot more hams need to discover this antenna - it is a great fundamental design, is easy to setup, it works really well, and Leo's service is first rate. What not to like?

VE6OBL Rating: 2012-12-05
Excellent Warranty Support Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
We bought the six bander (20 through 6m). Antenna is light weight, symmetrical, balanced and easy to erect. We spent a short evening putting it together. It was so easy we were both still talking to each other after it was all done. We didn't buy the ice support kit because ice storms are rare at our QTH.

Two weeks following installation we had a week of fog with extreme frost build up, followed immediately by a sudden and violent windstorm. Antenna was trashed like a sprung umbrella.

Leo replaced the broken parts immediately! No problems at all!!!

We were impressed with the warranty support.

We bought the ice supports this time around.
W1JKA Rating: 2012-11-28
Great for QRP Time Owned: 3 to 6 months.
Purchased the 20m element only, from Leo,homebrewed the rest.I only operate qrp/cw and with the rotatable ability and low noise level I have had excellent 2x qrp/dx results.I started out at 35 ft.but had to lower it to 23 ft. for best results at my qth.Buy complete unit or build from K4KIO parts,you can't go wrong.
WB2LSU Rating: 2012-11-28
K4KIO HEX IS THE BEST AND FORGET THE REST Time Owned: more than 12 months.
I WAS PROBABLY LEO'S FIRST CUSTOMER. I HAVE IT FOR YEARS. TRIED TO MAKE IT ON MY OWN FROM HIS PLANS. CHEAPER TO HAVE LEO DO IT. MOST PARTS CAN BE REPLACED AT HOME DEPOT. LEO IS GREAT TO DEAL WITH. I LIVE ON A ZERO LOT LINE AND IT IS EASILY HIDDEN (VERY STEALTHY). PUSH IT UP AT NIGHT AND THIS ANTENNA HAS SOME PUNCH. I LIVE IN SOUTH FLORIDA AND IT SURVIVED A CAT 1. DOES NOT RUST, COMES DOWN FAST AND LIGHTWEIGHT. NO MORE BIG EYESORES. BRAVO!!
N8ZCC Rating: 2012-11-08
Amazing Time Owned: 3 to 6 months.
There is nothing I can add that hasn't been said before by others.

I have my mounted at 45 foot (picture on my qrz page) and I have not issues working DX and even cutting through a pile-up on 100 watts.
KD8QDL Rating: 2012-09-23
Rated 5 But Deserves a 10 Time Owned: 3 to 6 months.
THIS THING JUST PLAIN WORKS! After installation in June of this year, I will tell you that this is one amazing piece of equipment. Running just 100 watts barefoot, this antenna breaks through pileups and sends me to the front of the line almost every time. I can both hear them all and work them all from Ohio where my installation is 40 feet above ground and we are 990 feet above sea level. No power amp needed, but I sure plan to get a small one. At that point...look out DX as this antenna will take full legal limit.

BEFORE YOU BUY ANYTHING ELSE, DO THE HOMEWORK ON THE K4KIO HEXBEAM. It takes a smaller rotor, costs less, and its symmetrical footprint is ideal when the wind starts blowing. Excellent product....I would buy again without hesitating, and NO, I am not affiliated with the company. I am just one very satisfied customer. Thanks Leo for a job well done!