Cushcraft A3S
$$$$$
| Frequency | 14 / 21 / 28 MHz |
| Bands | 20m, 15m, 10m |
| TX power | 2000 W (2000 W PEP (factory manual; one dealer title says '1.5kw' - wrong, their own spec table says 2000 PEP)) |
| Modes | SSB, CW, AM, FM, digital |
| Connector | SO-239 (UHF); no balun required per the manual (8-turn coax RF choke recommended) |
| feedpoint | SO-239 |
Estimated (unverified): introduction year (1970s-80s lineage); current price (revival in transition)
Decades of contest logs argue the A3S is the most antenna most stations actually need: 8 dBd of real gain on the three classic DX bands from a boom short enough for ordinary rotators and towers. The trap design needs one feedline and no balun, assembly is famously straightforward, and the used market is deep because so many were sold - with parts knowledge to match.
Traps cost a little loss and narrow the per-band sweet spots, and decades-old examples need trap inspection before trusting at 2 kW. No WARC coverage - that was the A3WS's job. And the brand is mid-handover: MFJ-era production ended 2024, ITU's revived line is still spinning up, so 'new' means new-old-stock until listings appear.
The default tribander recommendation for forty years, and the reason is boring: it works, it fits, and it lasts. Buy used with a trap check now, or watch the ITU revival for new production - either way it remains the benchmark the compact and the bigger antennas both get measured against.
If ham radio has a default beam antenna, it is the Cushcraft A3S: three trapped elements on a fourteen-foot boom, covering 20, 15, and 10 meters through one SO-239, on suburban towers everywhere since the trap tribander's golden age. The factory manual claims 8.0 dBd forward gain and 25 dB front-to-back with better than 500 kHz of 2:1 bandwidth per band, and asks for no balun, just a recommended choke wound from eight turns of the feedline itself. At 27 pounds with a 15.5-foot turning radius, it sits exactly at the edge of what ordinary rotators, masts, and attics-full-of-patience can handle, which is much of why it sold for decades.
The trade-offs are the classic trapped-tribander ones, worth stating plainly: traps insert a little loss and narrow each band's sweet spot compared to a full-size monobander like the Skywalker class, and they age, a used A3S deserves a trap inspection before it sees an amplifier, though the 2 kW PEP rating is honest when the hardware is healthy. The family answers most objections internally: the A4S adds a dedicated 10-meter reflector for about a decibel, the MA5B shrinks the idea for small lots, and the A3WS variant chased the WARC bands.
Status is the story of the moment. MFJ Enterprises (Cushcraft's owner since 2010-era consolidation) ceased manufacturing in May 2024, and ITU Corporation bought the Cushcraft and Hy-Gain lines in April 2026, with production restarting in Linton, Indiana on a timeline that lands roughly now. No model-level listings have appeared yet, so today the A3S is a used-market antenna with a strong chance of being a new-production antenna again shortly, few discontinued beams have better odds of resurrection.