ZS6BKW Antenna

The ZS6BKW Antenna is one of many HF multi-band wire antennas. It is similar to the famous G5RV antenna, which can cover multiple HF Bands but requires an antenna tuner on most bands. The ZS6BKW follows the design of the G5RV, but makes improvements. These improvements allow it to be used on more bands, and to exhibit better SWR on several Bands. There is an excellent article that compares these two antennas, and it shows me that this is a better bet for my station than the G5RV.

I built the ZS6BKW and am now starting the tuning process for my location. I have many trees, so any wire antenna I build needs some pruning, no matter how I model it. I used standard household 14 gauge wire for my antenna and fed it with 450 ohm ladder line. I used the “fat” 450 ohm ladder-line (about 1.5 inches wide), because that is what I have available. My ladder-line uses solid number 14 conductors. That makes it a bit hard to work with, but it holds up very well to the elements at my Bayside QTH.

The one thing I dislike about this antenna is that it is not expected to work on 15 meters, where it has a very high SWR. I can use my 135′ dipole on all bands with my antenna tuner, so I am wondering if this antenna gives me any advantage over that. It is shorter, but I have room for the 135′ wire, so maybe this is a compromise I do not need.

I will be trying it and tweaking the dimensions. I’ll post my results for anyone that may be interested in the ZS6BKW.