DX Engineering Supports the BS7 Scarborough Reef DXpedition

Scarborough Reef is located in a heavily contested region of the South China Sea, near China, Taiwan and the Philippines. For years, the three countries have laid claim to the land, often under a passive threat of military aggression. Scarborough Reef’s politically volatile nature means Amateur Radio DXpeditions there are extremely rare and fraught with entanglements. Compounding the DXpedition’s logistical obstacles is the reef’s sparse and rocky terrain. The end result is that Scarborough Reef is one of the rarest-of-rare DXCC entities.

The BS7 Scarborough Reef DXpedition team contacted DX Engineering looking for antennas that could offer multi-band coverage, yet were compact enough to fit on the small boats that ferried the team’s supplies. More importantly, the antennas had to have a very small footprint, which meant that wire, Yagi and dipole antennas were out of the question.

DX Engineering responded with its innovative HEXX Beam. It is a 20-10 meter, 5-band antenna that delivers impressive front-to-back and gain performance, yet is easy to handle and only 22 feet wide once assembled. The HEXX Beam’s low weight and wind profile will help it withstand Ocean gusts. As an added bonus, the antenna easily rotates to target geographic areas for better transmit/receive performance. The HEXX Beam handles full legal-limit RF power.

DX Engineering also supplied its Butternut HF2V Vertical. The slim antenna gives the operators an impressive presence on the 80 and 40 meter bands. For even more coverage, DX Engineering included an add-on kit that gave the HF2V 160 meter capabilities. The antenna is easily staked into the ground and offers efficient performance with only a modest radial system.

To allow operators a closer glimpse of what the BS7 team will take to Scarborough Reef, DX Engineering created a BS7 Scarborough Reef DXpedition Combo.

DXE-BS7-DXP BS7 Scarborough Reef DXpedition Combo
BUT-HF2V Butternut 2-Band 80/40 Meter Vertical Antenna
BUT-TBR-160S Butternut 160 Meter Top Band Resonator Kit for the HF2V
DXE-HEXX-1HBP DX Engineering Hexxagonal Beam Hexx Hub
DXE-HEXX-1SCP-2 DX Engineering Hexxagonal Beam Spreader and Center Post Kit
DXE-HEXX-5FFP DX Engineering Hexxagonal Beam 5-Band Balanced Feeder System
DXE-HEXX-5WRP-2 DX Engineering Hexxagonal Beam 5-Band Wire Element and Wire Guide Kit
DXE-HEXXBEAM-INS DX Engineering Instruction Manual
DXE-8XDX100 DX Engineering DX Series 50 Ohm Coaxial Cable Assembly

Click here for more information on the BS7 Scarborough Reef DXpedition combo.