Hi;
For what is worth I have been using a butternut and although it works I
haven't been totally impressed. I seriously wish I could think of the
name of the thing but if I had room there is a fiberglass vertical which
apparently has an internal wire that simply lengthens or shortens to
adjust the swr. It was pricey and apparently requires some rope
supports but the tuning would be a delight. Now how this tuner would
work with a remote station is another question. The "old" saying once
was that verticals work poorly in all directions but sometimes necessity
forces compromise. I also used a cushcraft r8 which I was very happy
with but it just didn't handle our wind.
If you have the space a dipole will do lots more for much much less.
As for propagation on the higher bands, I thought we were on the up side
of the sun spot cycle?
--
richard