24' DX Flagpole Antenna | Low-Band DX | No Radials | Greyline Performance

I purchased the 24' flagpole antenna with 4' extension added later. The materials and construction are very good. Parts fit together very well. Antenna aside, this is a handsome flagpole with flag.
I had no expectations for 160 meters. I purchased the antenna to supplement my EFLW antennas for 40 and 80 meters. Initially all tuned well from 10 - 40 meters using an LDG RT-100 remote tuner, but unable to tune on 80 meters. I upgraded to a Chameleon CHA-URT-1500 1.5 KW remote tuner, but still unable to resonate on 80 meters. I added a Palomar 4:1 balun between the remote tuner and the antenna and now am able to tune antenna well on both 40 and 80 meters.
I have had impressive domestic and DX contacts on 10-40 meters so far. I am hoping that with a little more effort, I can eventually get DXCC on both 40 an 80 meters. Will keep you updated.

I'm very happy with the Greyline Flag pole antenna, easy to install and the shipping was fast with all the parts arriving at the same time.

I am providing my first impression report regarding my 24FT HOA antenna. Installation was easy once I was able to figure out the instructions. The twin lead spacers were missing so I inserted a section of PVC into the lower section to insulate the twin lead. I’m using an IC7300, MFJ 993brt remote tuner, Balun Design, Inc model 117t balun which takes coax as input and twin lead as output. I then feed it through an Array Solutions model AS309H arrestor which takes twin lead as both input and output. With the remote tuner: SWR readings are 1.2 in the cw portion of 40 meters and 1.5 in the ssb portion SWR readings are 1.1 all the way across 20 meters (my favorite band) SWR readings are 1.2 in the cw portion of 15 meters and 1.4 in the ssb portion I am a cw guy and have worked all over Europe and South America as well as New Zealand and am getting very good signal reports. Needless to say, I am very pleased with this antenna so far. It works way better than I expected I haven’t yet had to operate in windy or rainy conditions so there is more to learn. Howard Glassman K4OBC

This is a great solution for HOA restricted Amateurs. No one in my neighborhood realizes it's an antenna, except for the neighbors I've actually told - otherwise they would never have known. Having a helper insert the assembled flagpole inside the PVC sleeve (that's in the concrete) is a good idea. It's not heavy, just a little awkward alone.

The assembly of the antenna was relatively easy, but the documentation is spread out between a couple files and different locations on the website. While Jon was always helpful, it would go a long way to improve the documentation in a single concise file. I would be happy to assist Greyline in making this update or providing feedback.

One item of note, is the modification of the PL259 boss for soldering the ladder line. Ideally, this should be done on a drill press, it wasn't the easiest task with a hand drill and not having a vice. Greyline should consider pre-drilling the boss. The other issue I had was the supplied heat shrink with heat activated glue. It simply wouldn't work. I ended removing the glue, cutting the heat shrink, and taping it on... I'm not convinced this is even required if good precautions with No-Ox are made at the feedpoint with soldered terminals. I may be removing this.

Another update to the antenna would be to include Dacron rope - or perhaps as an upgrade option to alleviate rope replacement in a year or two.

The 3D printing of the stand-off insulators for the 450 ohm ladder line inside the aluminum is a novel idea and worked very well. However, it should be noted that the 3D printed ladder line to PL259 housing should be protected against UV. A short note in the manual would be a good idea, as well as protecting the snap-on chokes for the balun at the tuner input. This should be common sense, but a note would be helpful. I'm also wondering how long the flag hooks will last, they are plastic and appear to be 3D printed as well.

On-Air performance is very good, it compares well to a multi-band trapped dipole I have in my garage attic. Notably, it fills the gap in the dipole nulls off the tips. I am using the MFJ-993BRT tuner, as I already had it on-hand. I am finding that the tuner has some difficulty resolving a match to the antenna, and will not find a solution on 160M. I plan to take impedance measurements before winter. I believe this to be a tuner deficiency. I've made many contacts, domestic and DX (EU, SA, NA) on several bands.

The reason I'm giving the antenna 4 stars and not 5 stars is for the documentation deficiencies, the difficulty drilling the PL259 boss, and the work-around of the heat shrink / glue. I have more work to do regarding the tuner / impedance. I recently noticed that the screws for the bottom insulator were loose. This may have been an assembly issue on my part, but I will continue to monitor them, and apply blue Loctite if they loosen again.

In summary, I do think this is a great solution for HOA restricted Amatuers, and will get many people on the air that would not be otherwise. Some minor updates, in my opinion, would go a long way from making this a really good product to a great product.

Dennis KT8X

I am very pleased with my 24' Flagpole Antenna. Jon helped me over the phone to place my order and it took about 5 weeks for everything to arrive. The Flagpole, LDG 600 Tuner, and the Feedline and flag kit arrived in 3 separate shipments.

Assembly was fairly easy although I found some of the written instructions a bit ambiguous but Jon always answered my emails with either an email reply or a phone call. I was surprised on how strong the Flagpole is considering how light weight it is. Make sure you wear gloves when handling the fiberglass insulators. I decided to add the Palomar Engineers 1:1 Mini Balun and Maxi Choker to my assembly which I ordered directly from Palomar. My typical SWR readings are less than 1.3 or better on all bands and I am getting great signal reports! I plan on getting a 600 Watt amplifier this summer.

I ran LMR 400 Coax to feed the antenna and a heavy duty extension cord for powering a light to luminate my flag at night through conduit that I buried under ground (with my Echo Dot and a smart plug, it allows me to tell Alexa to turn the Flagpole light on and off). I purchased a concrete form tube to aid in concreting the PVC Sleeve in the ground. The antenna weighs less than 30 lbs. so it was very easy to set in place once the concrete cured. Hooking up to the ladder line and antenna was a breeze. Currently I have a nice planter placed upside down to cover the remote tuner. I think it looks great and my neighbors have commented on how nice my "Flagpole" looks. In my HOA , I would not be able to be on the air without my Greyline Performance Flagpole Antenna!

Dave KC7WEZ