If considering the B&W antenna, one must remember that it was designed for
and initially marketed only to the military. With a few exceptions, the
military is primarily interested in short or mid range communications
flexibility. They aren't interested in using it for dx contacts, especially
on 160, 80, or 40 meters.

While The B&W does indeed work, a standard half wave dipole for a specific
band installed at the same height, will beat it hands down on that specific
band every time.

The dipole vs multiband comparison is also mostly true for the G5RV. The
exceptions here are perhaps for 40 and 20 meters, where the G5RV shows its
maximum gain and radiation efficiency.

My current HF wire is a Carolina Windom 80. Since I have a triband beam for
10, 15, and 20, I use it only on 80, 40, 30, 17, and 12. While it does work
on each of these bands, there are places outside 80 meters where the
automatic tuner in my TS570 won't handle it. I mostly use it on 80, 40, and
30, and it works satisfactorily on these bands. My yard and tree locations
force me to run it as an inverted vee. I'm sure that it would work much
better if I could run it as a flat top with at least 40 feet of height.

When one must run a single antenna on more than one band, you have to answer
at least 3 questions for yourself.

1. On which band will I be spending most of my operating time??

2. Am I willing to compromise that primary band slightly in order to get
additional coverage for other bands?

3. Will the considered antenna fit into my available space, and am I willing
to not necessarily install it exactly by the book in order to make it fit?

Also, when choosing a multi-band hf antenna, read the ads very carefully,
ask lots of questions, and be very skeptical of any claim which sounds the
least bit exaggerated.


Mike Duke, K5XU
American Council of Blind Radio Amateurs