My Station Antenna, Butternut HF-9V (#79)
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- Опубліковано 5 лют 2025
- Here's an answer to a question I've been asked many times: what's my station antenna? The answer is a Butternut HF-9V, a ground-mounted vertical with radials. This video explores how I have my antenna set up. Subscribe: / davidcasler . Ask Dave Playlist: goo.gl/inaQeB. Tip Jar: ke0og.net/tip-jar
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Hi David! Thank you so much for your review of the Butternut Vertical HF9V. I had this antenna too many years ago in San Diego, CA. As for performance, this is the best antenna I ever had. It really is phenomenal! I think I paid about $285 for it back in 1982. I ground-mounted this in a tube stub up in a hole filled with concrete. I put three 8' ground rods in about 6' apart and bonded them to the ground ring I built from 1.25" wide tinned copper braid. This ring was about 6" diameter and at the union of each end of the braid, I bent a clamp made of copper sheet metal (1/16" TH) and then silver soldered to the braid. A hole was drilled in the copper clamp to allow the ring to be clamped to the ground screw of the antenna. I then was faced with finding enough 12AWG insulated wire to make the radials. It looked like that was going to be expensive. So I went to plan "B"! I was rummaging around a metal scrap yard looking for some aluminum sheet metal to make a box for my 2KW homebrew tuner. Lo and behold I saw two huge 6+ foot diameter wooden spools like the telephone company uses. One of these has a full reel of 12AWG insulated wire, silver-plated and stranded. The other wooden spool has about two tons of 1.25" tinned copper braid on it. I found the lot attendant and asked for his help. He told me that the wire and braid were the same price... $1.00/lb. I asked him how they get these reels? He said the San Onofre Nuclear Power Plant in Sam Clemente, CA had to scrap both of these reels out because they lost the paperwork on them and could not use the products without "traceability." I ended up buying 50 ft of the braid and 2000' of the wire (all for cheap). With the ring installed on the ground stud of the antenna, I used a nail to punch a hole a little bigger than the wire. I stripped off about 1.5" and threaded it through the ring and bent it over the braid. I continued to do this until I had 64 radials installed. The lengths went from about 25' to 135'. The radial wired were buried in the wet sod about 1" deep. The final electrical connection was made with silver solder on the Ring braid and radial assembly and a Mapp torch. An additional ground rod was driven near the entrance of the shack with Alpha-Delta Transi-Traps. The coax used was RG-8 flooded and was buried 6" below the turf. This antenna was like a magnet for DX. I used it for twenty years and have now moved and getting ready to buy another one but this time its a lot more money at $604. Best antenna for the buck any way you look at it and low angle of radiation means lots of SKIP and lots of FUN!
I've run an HF9V on top of two different buildings with metal roofs. I just mounted it in a 3 fopt tripod. I'm rebuilding it right now, and it's going to go on top of its 3rd building. I've never used the 75 ohm impedance matching cable. I always connect directly to the antenna with LMR400 and use a tuner. The results have always been amazing, with many people asking me what my antenna was,and then in disbelief when I tell them. I had to replace both sets of caps on mine at a whopping 180 dollars usd. The current price of a new HF9V now is around $950.00. I am going to work with it some with a nano vna this time and see how resonant I can get it before I introduce a tuner. Thanks for the video.
Thanks for the tour of your antenna set up :) I just ordered one of these after doing quite a bit of research, and seeing your setup is really going to help me get mine up and running when it arrives. It's my first vertical - upgrading from the dipole I've been using for years as a way of congratulating myself for my General class pass recently (starting the Extra Class studying today and I'm not letting myself actually use the vertical until I have passed it as an incentive to stick with the material). Thanks for making such great videos always :) 73!
I recommend new generals get on the air and get about 2 years experience before they get their Amateur Extra license. It means so much more then. So go ahead and use that vertical and get lots of HF experience!
Thank you for taking the time to show your antenna!
I have an hf 2v Butternut antenna. It was given to me. Not set up yet. Just upgraded to general class last week. Your vids helped a lot. BTW ... I live only 15 miles from the "town" of Butternut, where these antennas were born. If you come here to visit, we can tour Butternut. But then we would have to think of something to do for the rest of the day!!! Thanks Dave ... Tim K0OLG/AG
Nice video, nice antenna. One of the co-inventors of this antenna is a local ham here in Minnesota. The story of how this design emerged is very interesting indeed.
I'd love to hear it!
Dave, try adding a 130ft single speaker wire with a clip at the base of your Butternut just above the lower coil, and run up over to a couple of your trees, to get 160m worked great for me. W1tod.
Ps i have showed a lot of your videos at our Radio group Meetings. You do a very good job explaining the hobby !
Was fun to see your antenna setup, thanks for posting
Thanks for the field tour.... always nice to see another antenna field.
Great job with the audio on this video.... the music is the same level as you are when speaking. Keep up the good work....73. de WØFW
I cut the music by 3 dB.
I have a butter nut I have to put it up this summer. I would like to use dx engineering tilt down devices so I could work on it.
In the 90's when I was researching and pricing vertical HF antennas to complement my wire dipoles I was really wanting the Butternut, but then it was very pricey too. So I went a different direction and purchased the Cushcraft R7. Its tuned to the CW portions; I rarely work phone. This antenna doesn't require ground wires. It can mounted just off the ground (in past living locations that was my method) or above ground (my current location, hopefully my last move, is mounted on a 12 foot galvanized pipe; 3.5 feet driven into the soil with 8.5 feet above soil). I used to use rope guys but my location now is among trees, so its free standing. The antenna has 7 counterpoise SS rods at the base to work like a ground. SWR is generally 1.5:1 across 10-40 meters. An ATU helps the rig see lower SWR. I need low SWR for QRP.
Nice tour. Do you have wire up in the air or just the veritcal?
73, Terry - KB8AMZ
I had an R5 for quite awhile and thought it was an outstanding antenna.
Hi Dave it's me again. I also bought the butternut hf 9v. What is the best coax to use.? I might have to go 50 feet. I'll be using a icom ic 756 pro hf 50 with mjf 969. Tuner.
I am about to rebuild my HF10v (with the 160 coil). Is there any tricks to making sure the caps are still good?
New ham here! I have a question, could you mount this to say a 55' tower?
Dave,
I notice that you don't have any radials on one side of your ground plate. I have a similar set up with a Hustler 5 BTV. I have it stuffed into the corner of a suburban lot. The back radials are wound around and near the fence like. I find I have a reduced pattern with that. Unfortunately it's very noisy in my environment
'73
Tom
KN6DR
+Tom Field That's because that section of the radial plate is buried a bit, so I stretched the radials to the other sides
Had 28 radials on my 6btv, then 44, 68.
Went from great to 'what the ? '' to higher sur. Next reinstall I will stop at 32, 25 feet long where I can.
Thanks Dave now I know about this vertical. Due to HOA I'll be limited to a ground mounted vertical 23' or less, or some kind of attic dipoles at 20m and up. Not enough attic for lower bands. 73 WA5ZVE
There are pretty short ground-mounted verticals. Look at verticals like the AV-640.
You should try the myantennna 130ft endfeed model.
Hi Dave. Thank you for your informative videos and advice. Question about your radial system and soldering the connections. I saw your note about not soldering a ground system and using crimp connections instead. My concern is corrosion in the crimp, that's why I solder the crimp to seal it and keep the elements out. Another tip I can offer is to use a copper based anti-seize grease on exposed connections that need to maintain good RF continuity and eliminate corrosion, such as between bonding straps and lugs-to-plate connections. This stuff is messy and conductive, so never use it in connectors. What problems have you experienced with solder in your ground system. 73s KJ6CWB
I've not had any problems with solder joints in the antenna itself.
I think the U clamp is not properly installed at the base , maybe the ubolt should fit around the pipe/ tube and the serrated piece should be on the opposite side between the flat and the pipe/ tube. The curved portion of the ubolt is not serving it's purpose the way it is installed. I really appreciate your videos.
Could well be. I'll take a closer look when the snow melts. It's all covered up right now.
At 6.21 to 6.30 you can see there is a gap between the ubolt and the mount. I believe the ubolt should be flipped and go thru the holes from the opposite direction and the serrated piece would go between the pipe and the mount. I may not be explaining it well but if you study the segment you will see what I mean. I live in east TN where we don't get much snow but we do get plenty of rain. @@davecasler
You can see an example of the u-bolt at: static.dxengineering.com/global/images/prod/xlarge/dxe-omnitilt-2p_sn_xl.jpg?rep=False
@@davecasler How deep is your snow? Can you use the antenna in the winter? In my case the snow is usually 2 to 3 ft deep (N. Minnesota).
@@gbennett58 Snow here varies tremendously. Snow is by and large non-conductive, as is clean water. (Salt water is another story entirely, but there's none near here.) So snow doesn't affect my antennas much. 73, Dave, KEØOG
Nice. So, do you want your antenna tuner in the shack OR on the antenna? It is great having so many options these days.
thank you Dave!
Why is crimping radial better than soldering ?
How much gain is on each band?
I love your videos and your videos help me in Pursuing my general license.
Glad to hear you find them useful, and good luck with your studies!
Dave, I have a butternut that I purchased used. any resources for checking out and troubleshooting this unit?
thanks and 73s,
DXEngineering.com now provides all sales and support for Butternut.
Thank you Dave, we watch your youtube videos at our monthly amateur radio branch meetings. 73, Mike ZL1MRC
Wow! I'm flattered! I hope you continue to enjoy them. 73
How did you know the original bare radials were bad?
Loved the field tour. Thank you for sharing. 73 How do you bring the coax wires into the shack.
We have crawl space between the floor and the ground. So I pulled the carpet back from the wall and drilled a hole through which I stuff the cables. Then I go into the crawl space and push the cable out a ventilation hole near the ground rod.
thanx Dave for such a nice video again....do u have a Yagi beam for 20m and if yes how u compare its performance with Butternut....thanx
+Baset Rehman Sorry, no beam. It's on my bucket list.
Dave, thanks largely to these videos I just easily passed my Tech and General tests. Still waiting for the new callsign to come from the FCC. My house, however, is spectacularly unsuited for HF antennas of any kind. No land, no trees, no attic and close power lines along two sides of the house make mounting anything but a loop or a long-wire under the eaves difficult. No room on the roof either as it is occupied with our TV antenna. However, I have a wood deck over the carport on which I could mount a vertical, but have no room at all for radials at ground level. Under the deck are four parallel 25 ft long steel angle irons that are holding up the roof of the carport. Could these be tied together as a kind of raised, off-center counterpoise? My ultimate purpose is to DX with English speaking countries across the Pacific so the signal will have to go many thousands of miles.
You might look at some of the verticals that do not require radials, such as the AV-640. And welcome to ham radio! Be really careful around those power lines!
With Radials on the ground like that, do you set the mower deck quite high as to not get them twisted up n the blades ?? Just wondering? and you mentioned some kind of ground clip to keep the wires "AT" ground level?? ------- John A Bellas KC2UVN
The clip is simply there to keep the wire down enough that the lawn mower won't get it. There is no requirement that the radials have to be flat against the ground.
You have to mow occasionally David? It doesn't appear that your grass splotches require mowing. hi
That's RJ-11 used for a 75 ohm matching stub.
Love your videos. Which do you recommend the HF9V or stepper BigIR vert?
David, I have an antenna like yours but mine is 20+ years old and it does not have the newer bands
(12,17, 30 & 60) only 6,80, 40, 20, 15, & 10. I have had great luck with it, I had to replace the capacitors once but that is all. What kind of vertical was that you mentioned that did not need any radials? I always enjoy your videos, hope you enjoy the new signal generator.
There are a number of antennas, such as the R-9 or the AV-640 that are actually end-fed half-wave verticals that don't "work against" ground. They do all have minimal counterpoises at the bottom, though, and they work best if you get them up in the air ten feet or more.
David Casler Thanks Dave, I enjoy watching all your videos but I wouldn’t know where to start on making a video myself. 73s.
I don't use radials. I use cross-ply's because I can go further without a puncture. Old technology is tougher :-)
But seriously, the reality is that your lightning suppressors won't do anything when your shack gets a big hit (or a small hit) and they produce not only attenuation but also introduce phantom and dirty signals in and out of the radio.
NB : Remember tower bolts ? Same thing.....gotta keep them clean and fresh or you'll forever be hunting mystery signals.
A vertical is noisy enough already (I know you are happy with it) but to add lightning arrestors is not doing you any favours. Anyway, a vertical is good for listening and comparing so it's good that you have one. At least you live in a fairly RF quiet environment. You get 10 points for that alone :-)
Cheers Dave and 7 3.
So far the arrestors have helped with some "nearby" strikes. All I've had to replace are the little spark capsules. I once had a direct strike many years ago before using arrestors. It vaporized the antenna and blew out the coax and did some damage here and there, but fortunately my rig was completely disconnected from everything. The arrestors are no guarantee, but I don't find any issues with noise introduction--rather the opposite, since they're so well grounded that the cable shield is thoroughly grounded prior to coming into the shack. I use the Alpha Delta models. A ham friend does communications installations for the electric utility and showed me how to use them.
Have verified the Greyline perfomance verticals? Thanks ve2uy
I haven’t looked at them.
I have hf6v there was a ham that put ground radials he was able to get a flat match across 80/75 meter he only used 4 radials at 64 feet and other radials for other bands to
Yeah, the flat match means the antenna was very lossy. High cable losses especially on long runs can cause the SWR to look lower than it really is. My SWR video explores this phenomenom. (See the Ask Dave playlist.)
Dave, have you considered spraying some clear sealant on the cracked solar panel to keep moisture at bay?
Very good idea. Thanks. I'll do that.
I was thinking clear bathtub caulking
Clear caulking may not allow for enough sunlight to pass through... I wonder if automobile clear coat may do the trick? Here's a product at Amazon with high marks: amzn.to/2tSTEtn
Clear Flex Seal lol. Little late but.....
Great video. I am installing the same antenna and have been agonizing over the need for a common mode coax choke. You don't seem to have a common mode choke on your coax between your antenna and your shack, do you have one near your transmitter or do you find this device unnecessary? Thanks for your great work. 73 va3pet
Verticals are inherently unbalanced, so the common mode choke isn't a requirement.
can this antenna be used on a flat roof?
Dave, is there a possibility you could do a video on testing Devices like multimeters.
Do you mean using multimeters as test instruments? That sounds like a good idea for a video. I'll add it to the list.
David Casler yes that is what I meant. Thank you for all the great content I wish you the best of luck.
Please help me. I like 11 meter CB on my bicycle. Would loaded one wavelength vertically polarized antenna be possible.
Yes, in theory. Remember that your antenna has to have something to work against, either a counterpoise or set of radials.
Spray the panel with clear lacquer and fill the rock hole with silastic.......done it a few times.
Good advice 🖒.
since the panel otherwise is ruined anyway, there is nothing to lose. the choice is between a panel whith reduced capacity and a malfunctioning panel.
yep, thats it.........much better to save something.....If its lacquered laying flat, it will soak and seal the panel pretty well and the slight bit of loss on the hole will seal it up for ages...
i was wondering about replacing it with plexiglass?
Mike McDonald generally the glass is bonded to the cells so you can't replace it just glue it over the top , but plastics age and block the light....... you could use glass I guess
ah ok thanks for that never had one break thank goodness so didn't know how easy or hard it would be to replace.
Love the vids ! Keep up the great work! Very inspiring for those of us starting out in HAM ! Question : A lot of us older guys are moving into the RV's and traveling , we do stay at certain spots for months sometimes so we can install antennas on poles and break them down when moving. Any suggestions for HF antennas for Mobile and RV ?
If you want to go for a bigger antenna, look at something like the AV-640. I don't have one but have heard good things about it. No radials are required, though you should get the base a couple feet above the top of the RV. Or, you might go for a simple loop, such as the MFJ-1788, although my experience with this (I have one) is that while it's great on 20 meters, its 40 meter performance isn't so hot.
As always -- quite informative and sincerely well done! HAs anyone tried to talk about over head electrical lines near a house -- its pros and cons with regards to HF antenna?73
Your channel is such a great resource for the ham radio community! Thanks for the work put in to make these videos!
I recently purchased the same antenna 2nd hand. I was thinking of either installing it in the back yard which is 10' lower than the front, or on my patio which is at least 25' higher than the back yard. The issue of most concerned with the patio installation is how to install radials without making the back of the house look like a disaster. I was considering making 2 1/4 wave wires for each and and runnings them straight down to the ground like a counterpoise The spreading out whatever length is left on the ground.
Any thoughts or suggestions would be greatly appreciated.
Thank you!
VA6MRJ
Hi Dave,
Very nice video on the HF9 - run the same this end with the DX plate but have a regular problem.
Looking at the DX Eng plate it appears that your 75ohm stub terminates at a PL259 then into 2x SO239? I have constant problems with corrosion on the lug connector on the inner of the RG11 (regardless of tape and silicon applied) which leads to eventual failure of the wire.
I have been thinking of terminating the RG11 this way and then just use enamelled wire for the last couple of inches.
Just wondered if this is what you did and did you adjust the length of the RG11 to compensate or was it the Amateur Radio way of just do it and see what happens !!!
Great videos and love the reviews, cannot beat a practical review and experience.
Thanks
Davy - G1LVH
I use RG-213 (50 ohms) to feed my HF9V. It terminates at an S0-239 at the grounding plate, with a single wire about 7 or 8 inches long going to the antenna itself. Seems to work okay.
David Casler
Cheers Dave, sorry for late reply work gets in the way of hobby but work pays for hobby.....
I was curious as the preachings say 20m performance / tuning is adversely effected by the lack of 75ohm feeder. Just wonder how you found the swr etc on 20 without it. If an ATU will pick up the slack happily then I may give it a go.
Cheers
Davy - G1LVH
Cool video 👍
I had the same antenna and then used the hustler 6BTV. In my observation the hustler was a better performer. The butternut 80 worked better however.
Thank's for information 💚
who is your small helper
Thanks for the video!!
i have a question !
can i have my ham license online without going to any where (ex: though an online exam)
am asking because I'm in a country which doesn't have any ham institute nor any radio club
but i know very much about ham and about radios
thanks for every video u put out for us i really find them very informative
73
Amateur radio is regulated separately in each country. You can contact the International Amateur Radio League (IARU) at www.iaru.org/ for further help.
thanks a lot , 73
What country doesn't have an Amateur Radio organisation ?
Are you living in North Korea ?
no , my country used to have one back in 90's but now it doesn't,
well i live in an country which is at war for several years now and going to the Capital to look for a ham radio institute ,is practically a risk of life
but i have another Q, if i managed to go to a nearby country and had my license from there ,I'm I obligated to work ham radio from that country only???
Excellent Dave!
Hi Dave,
Nice video showing off your main antenna. 73 WB3BJU
Thanks David, Nice Video
Car windscreen repair fluid would repair the glass, best do it asap before the cracks get contaminated tho
+Brian Matthews Thanks for the tip.
No squirrel feeder on antenna?
I had this anttena many years ago and never i had a vertica anttena better than this
I've gotten the impression that verticals are expensive and "fussy" and this video did nothing to dispel that idea. I know you are happy with the performance of your antenna, but in other videos you've suggested that a simple dipole is hard to beat, too.
I wonder if you'd do a video where you set up a bog-simple dipole on 40m at the appropriate height to see how it compares. It would be cheap, at least! If you can't get up high enough for 40, then a 20 would be interesting, too.
Sounds like a good idea. I'll add it to the list.
How long is the list ?
And perhaps how to make it a 20M dipole eg inserting an insulator in each leg with a jumper connection - G0FFL
Nice antenna. But that does not seem to be a beginner type setup. A video on how to tune it would be nice.
WOW - Great Video - ZL4AO (New Zealand)
Thank you!
Elevate it and have radials up in the air and it will work better.
Often that's true. You can do with fewer radials as long as they're tuned properly. However I don't have a mast large enough to hold all that up.
spray some clear paint on the solar panel to protect it
My wife's an artist and gave me some special spray stuff to use to help with the waterproofing.
Landscape rules, I would move for sure.
Enjoy your videos and how you explain things. I do have a question of how to and where to connect the 75 ohm coax. That part is a little confusing to me. I noticed you don't have the radials on one side of the antenna and was wondering how it impacts the reception. If you could, could you contact me by email to give me some info? Thank you, 73, KN4TNT. I'm on QRZ so you can get my email address from there.
Actually there are radials all the way around the antenna. I did not use that side because it was too close to the ground to put bolts in, and I didn't want to dig up the old radials. But the radials are spread pretty evenly around the antenna. If you radials are uneven, your propagation will tend to be in the direction of the radials.
I appreciate the info. Have a good weekend.
I would like to get free antennas
Well, if you have the right stuff hanging around, like wire and coax, you can make a dipole for pretty much nothing.
Aint no way this kid is spending 600 bucks for a antenna
I agree. I've had it for a couple decades--it was much less expensive back then, though still pricey compared with other antennas. Plus I've added a bunch of radials, which don't come with the antenna. I'll admit, though, that it works quite well with all those radials!
Your video made me nauseous with all the shaky camera work and zooming.
Yeah, I'm a shaky guy. Sorry.