Cushcraft R8
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| Frequency | 7 / 10 / 14 / 18 / 21 / 24 / 28 / 50 MHz |
| Bands | 40m, 30m, 20m, 17m, 15m, 12m, 10m, 6m |
| Gain | 3 dBi (factory omnibus figure (no per-band breakdown published)) |
| TX power | 1500 W (1500 W CW per the factory table (the heading specifies CW, not PEP)) |
| Modes | SSB, CW, AM, FM, digital |
| Connector | SO-239 at the base matching network (MN8); feed with PL-259-terminated 50-ohm coax per the manual |
| feedpoint | MN8 matching network, SO-239 |
Estimated (unverified): introduction year (1990s)
The no-yard answer to HF: eight bands including WARC from less than thirty feet of self-supporting aluminum, with a counterpoise kit measured in feet rather than a radial field measured in lawn. It mounts at ground level or up on a deck rail, takes 1.5 kW, and needs no tuner near resonance on its design bands. For townhouse and small-lot operators it has been the default multiband vertical for decades.
Multiband verticals of this class trade efficiency for convenience - the matching network and short counterpoise give up real signal to a full-size antenna per band, most noticeably on 40 m. The many-trap/stub matching system is also the antenna's known weak point as it ages outdoors: used examples deserve a careful inspection. And no 80 m - the R8 stops at 40.
The small-lot workhorse: nothing about it is optimal except the part that matters, which is that it fits where you live and works every band from 40 up. Inspect the matching hardware on used units, and watch the ITU revival for new production.
The R8 answers the most common question in ham radio real estate: how do you work eight HF bands from a lot that cannot host wire, radials, or a tower? Cushcraft's R-series solution is a 28.5-foot self-supporting vertical with a matching unit at the base and (the signature trick) seven 49-inch elevated counterpoise rods instead of a buried radial field. Where a conventional quarter-wave vertical wants dozens of wires under the turf, the R8 wants a bracket and a few feet of clearance, which is why so many of them live on decks, fence posts, and townhouse patios.
Eight bands (40 through 6 meters, WARC included) share the radiator through the base matching network plus traps and tuned stubs, with typical SWR of 1.3:1 at resonance, a factory gain figure of 3 dBi, and a 1500-watt CW rating. The physics tax is the usual one for compact multiband verticals: per-band efficiency below a dedicated full-size antenna, felt most on 40 meters, where 28.5 feet is short of a quarter wave's natural height and the factory's own 2:1 bandwidth shrinks to about 150 kHz; owner consensus also makes the weathered MN8 matching network the thing to inspect on any used example - there are dedicated repair guides for a reason. The lineage tells the development story: the five-band R5 begat the seven-band R7 begat this, each stretching the same idea across more spectrum, and the R9 later added 80 m on top.
The honest comparison is with the ground-radial school: a Butternut HF9V-style vertical with a real radial field will generally outtalk an R8 watt for watt, but demands exactly the yard the R8 exists to avoid. That is the whole choice. Status is the familiar 2026 Cushcraft story: MFJ-era production ended in May 2024, ITU Corporation's revival is spinning up in Indiana, and the used market meanwhile does brisk business in R8s precisely because the no-yard niche never empties.