Hi I was not going to jump in on this but it seems everyone has an opinion so here are my experiences. I have a MFJ-259B, a Autek VA1 and a Autek RF5. The first 259B I got did not work (no RF out) I sent it back and the replacement has been fine for about 3 years. I use it fairly often and I like the analog meters as well as the digital readout. It is a little hard on batteries but I installed a set of NiMH rechargeable batteries and it has solved the problem. Just remember to recharge them with the included AC power supply. There is an internal switch that will allow them to charge from the AC adapter. I have the 259B in the soft protective case so it is not easy to remove the batteries. I just keep them installed inside and charge them in the instrument.
When I got the VA1 and RF5 the VA1 had an intermittent problem and frankly I also ran into a non responsive customer service department. I finally decided to fix it myself and it turned out a large number of solder joints inside were never soldered or soldered poorly. After going over the boards and repairing the soldering it has worked properly. I did not have any problems with the RF-5. Electronically the design is good but I was a little disappointed with the mechanical design and the front panel could be done a bit better. For what its worth they do the job and are small, light and run quite a while on a 9 volt battery. I find if I am working on a HF antenna I will usually grab the 259B as it is easier to use and read than the VA1. For VHF the RF-5 is my choice. It has a function that will automatically find the lowest SWR or lowest impedance with the press of a button. If the VA1 had this I may change my opinion about it and prefer it over the 259B Don Brown KD5NDB _______________________________________________ Elecraft mailing list Post to: [email protected] You must be a subscriber to post to the list. Subscriber Info (Addr. Change, sub, unsub etc.): http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/subscribers.htm Elecraft web page: http://www.elecraft.com
