Shark Antennas S-F5S 5-Pack (10, 15, 20, 40, 75M) Mono Band Mobile Vertical Antennas with 3/8x24 Threads, Handles 250W Max

I paired these antennas with a mfj tri-mag mount to operate my ft-891 from my truck doing pota activations where I don't have time to setup a larger antenna. These have actually surprised me in how well they work. So far I have used the 20 and 40m sticks and have made over 250qsos in 2 activations mostly on 40m. The 40m stick gives me 1.5:1 swr in a narrow window so I have it tuned so I can operate from 7.2-7.5 under 2:1. It's acceptable and I have no trouble getting out and making contacts. I would recommend bringing a nano vna or some sort of ananalyzer with you to set these up as it makes it much faster and easier

So far I’ve used these for a number of POTA activations. Mainly the ones for 20 and 15 meters. The 20 meter one is dialed is at 1:1 SWR and haven’t had to touch it since I initially adjusted it, and I’ve made a lot of contacts with it. The 10 and 15 meter ones are about the same, but have only used them a couple times. The 40 meter one is finicky to tune, but has worked okay. Have yet to try the 80 meter stick. I have enjoyed using these antennas when it’s raining and I operate from inside the car. Mostly run QRP CW and FT8.

It was in first rate condition, appears all stingers tuned to mid-band. instructions were simple and complete It was an "Open box" but it was all there.. and the shipper: Giga Parts. Assembled and slapped on the roof look good on the MFJ analyzer.... Not on air yet though. Got 'em on the air. Only problems were stupid user (Wrong port selected on radio.. Duh) Seriously impressed with performance.. Wish I'd gone this route long time ago.

I have yet to hook these up and run the VNA on them to check them out. Nor have I hooked them up to my radio. But, initial assembly had my 15 and 40 meter whips unable to screw into the base coils. I chased both the internal and external threads with a 3/8-24 tap and die to clean up the threads. It appears, probable, the plating built them up too much and created an interference fit. That shouldn't occur, manufacturing tolerances were off. The other three fit up just fine.

I had my doubts, but let me tell you, They work great I've worked amazing DX off these antennas with only 100 watts no amp. Quality construction and center loaded, and long enough to get signal in the hear even the weak stations.

These are the basic hamsticks. Quality so so. I had to use a tap and die set to fix the threads on two of them. Otherwise, fine sticks.

Mark antennas with the band they are tuned for so not to mix the up.

Upon unboxing, I saw that the package had been opened previously. But all of the parts appeared to be there - except any instructions or documentation. Lack of instructions wasn't a big issue as I have dealt with many antennas. The package included five fiberglass masts, one each for the 10, 15, 20, 40, and 75 meter bands, plus four 36" whips and one 48" whip. Lacking instructions, I assumed the longer whip went with the 75M mast. I first mounted the 20M antenna and connected my VNA to tune it. I immediately noticed that the SWR was well above 2:1, and resonance was far above the 20M band. I extended the 36" whip to its fullest extent, but still could not get the resonance in band. I then tried the 15M antenna. With the 36" whip fully extended, resonance was again well above the 15M band. So I tried the 48" whip. That brought resonance down into the 15M band with a very acceptable SWR of 1.25:1. At this point I realized my assumption that the lone 48" whip belonged with the 75M mast was apparently incorrect. I searched online for the instructions for the Shark Antenna 5-pack. The assembly instructions state: “For the selected antenna, carefully screw the 48-inch stainless steel whip into the top of the fiberglass mast.” That indicates to me that all five whips are expected to be 48"; there is no mention of a 36" whip at all. Did the wrong whips get placed into the previously opened package? There are other problems. The 75M mast with a 48" whip resonates nowhere in the 80 or 75 meter bands—not even close. The 20M mast can be made to resonate in-band with the 48" whip, but the SWR exceeds 2.5:1 throughout. Also, the recess through the fiberglass mast into whip the whip retracts, was significantly off center which made assembly a pain. One bright point - the 15M mast with the 48" whip seems to work just fine. I didn't bother trying the 10M or 40M antennas. All of these tests were done with known-good coax, a high-quality common-mode choke at the antenna feed point, a calibrated VNA and a quality 3/8X24 stud antenna mount which is known to work well with other antennas. Altogether a frustrating and disappointing experience.