Since 2003, DX Engineering has been committed to designing and manufacturing complementary products to help owners of Hustler 4-, 5- and 6-Band BTV Vertical Antennas get the most out of their investment. Installed “as-is” out of the box, the Hustler BTV series antennas do moderately well. Hams have found, though, that adding DX Engineering innovations can transform the BTV into an HF-performance rock star. But don’t take our word for it:
“The Hustler BTV antennas are one of the best values I have found in a multi-band vertical. Paired with the excellent DXE Installation Guide, you will be able to get maximum performance from your setup. When installed over a good radial system, performance is surprisingly good. I had not expected such good performance from a ground-mounted antenna.”
The efforts of DX Engineering’s team have resulted in a number of performance-improving accessories for the BTV series, including:
- Add-On Kits for 80, 60, 30, 17, and 12 Meters
- BTV Series Antenna Packages, including OMNI-TILT™ Base
- DX Engineering Patented Radial Plate
- Silver-Plated Bulkhead Connector Kits, which fit the DX Engineering Radial Plate
- Direct Coax Feed Add-On Kit
- The 64-page New Assembly and High Performance Installation Instruction Manual
One of the most valuable accessories for boosting Hustler BTV Series antenna performance on 80 and 40 meters is the DX Engineering Vertical Antenna Matching Network (DXE-VMN-1). This impedance-matching coil can be used at the feedpoint of the Hustler 5-BTV and 6-BTV, or various quarter-wave monoband vertical antenna systems. For the multi-band Hustler antennas, this unit can aid in matching the low-impedance feedpoint to a reasonable SWR in the user-selected portions of 80 or 40 meter bands without affecting the operation on the other, higher frequency bands. The DXE-VMN-1 has a special coil tap clip to make the inductance adjustment needed for the correct match.
In most ground-mounted 160, 80, 60, or 40 meter monoband vertical antenna installations with very good radial systems and high efficiency, feedpoint impedance at resonance is naturally well below 50 ohms. Achieving the best SWR match to 50-ohm coaxial cable on these resonant vertical antennas usually requires this type of coil for adjusting feedpoint impedance.
The DXE-VMN-1 works as an impedance matching coil, also known as a shunt coil, because it is installed in parallel with the feedline, from the antenna to ground. Plus, it connects the antenna to DC ground to bleed off, or shunt, any static electric charge on the antenna to ground. Yet, it works perfectly as an impedance transformer at HF, just like a hair pin or beta match on a Yagi, easily handling legal limit RF power.
Features include:
* Precision-machined coil tube
* 12-gauge solid tin coated coil wire
* Custom-made silver-plated DX Engineering Coil Tap Clip
* Custom L bracket for mounting to the optional DX Engineering Radial Plate
* #14 AWG stranded copper wire with ring terminals for connection to the antenna
* Stainless steel mounting hardware
Read full details in the DX Engineering Vertical Antenna Network Manual.
What do Hams think?
- A nice, well-made coil for use in tweaking that match on some of these shorter vertical antennas.
- I use this at the base of my HF mobile antenna for matching. Very good quality and has grooves in the coil form so p-clips snap easily and securely in place.
