Name: Wolf River Coils Silver Bullet 1000 TIA
Brand: Wolf River Coils

80m – 10m

Bands

Frequency	3.5-30 MHz (80-10 m with a 102-inch whip; 6 m reachable with a short whip, 160 m possible with a ~17 ft whip but very narrow)
Bands	80m, 40m, 30m, 20m, 17m, 15m, 12m, 10m
Power	Rated 100 W SSB, 50 W CW and 20 W on digital modes. It is a high-Q loaded vertical; keep within these limits, especially on digital and the low bands.
Modes	portable / mobile loaded vertical built on a manual sliding-contact tuning coil ('Take It Along' kit)
Weight	816 g (28.8 oz) - The Silver Bullet 1000 coil itself weighs about 1.8 lb (~816 g); the complete TIA kit (coil, tripod, radials and bag) weighs more.

Connectors

stud	3/8 x 24 male threaded studs on both ends of the coil - screws into any 3/8-24 antenna mount below and accepts a 3/8-24 whip above
feed	Fed through the mount/base (typically an SO-239 stud mount); the operator supplies the whip and lays out ground-radial wires
power req	Passive antenna; no power. Requires a ground plane - the instructions recommend at least three radial wires each cut for about 1/5 wave of the lowest band - and a whip element (a 102-inch stainless whip is the usual choice).

A manual screwdriver-style loading coil: you slide a heavy stainless pickup clip up and down a grooved coil core to resonate the antenna, with no motor or tuner Covers 80 through 10 m with a 102-inch whip (a 102-inch whip tunes from about 17 m down to near the bottom of 80 m); a shorter whip adds 15-10 m, and a ~17 ft whip can reach 160 m with very narrow bandwidth 3/8 x 24 male studs on both ends, so it threads onto common mobile/portable mounts and accepts a standard whip Sold as the TIA ('Take It Along') portable package - coil, tripod and radial wires - for fast field, POTA/SOTA, apartment and mobile setups No antenna tuner needed: tuned with an analyzer or SWR meter it typically reaches 1.3:1 or better, and operators mark the slider positions for quick band changes Rugged, simple construction (grooved core, high-quality stainless wire, heavy pickup clip); the 1000 coil weighs about 1.8 lb Rated 100 W SSB / 50 W CW / 20 W digital

Strengths

A rugged, low-cost, no-frills way to get on 80-10 m from anywhere: the manual sliding coil has no motor or electronics to fail, sets up in minutes on its tripod, and tunes to a good match without an external tuner. The 3/8-24 studs fit common mounts, the TIA kit packs the coil, tripod and radials together, and with whip length chosen to suit it covers an impressive band range for its size.

Weaknesses

It is a short, high-Q loaded vertical, so it is a real compromise on the low bands - bandwidth is narrow and efficiency is modest - and it depends heavily on a good radial field to perform. You must walk outside and slide the coil by hand to change band, the coil is fairly heavy (about 1.8 lb) for HF mobile use, and power is capped at 100 W SSB (less on CW/digital). The whip is usually supplied separately.

Verdict

The Wolf River Coils Silver Bullet 1000 TIA is a rugged, affordable manual screwdriver-style loaded vertical that covers 80-10 m and packs into a take-along tripod kit, making it a favorite for portable and POTA/SOTA operating. Give it a proper radial field and accept the bandwidth and efficiency compromises of a short loaded antenna, and it is hard to beat for the money; it is hand-tuned per band and limited to 100 watts.

The Wolf River Coils Silver Bullet 1000 TIA is a portable HF vertical built around a manual version of the classic 'screwdriver' antenna. Where a screwdriver antenna uses a motor to move a tuning contact along a coil, the Silver Bullet asks you to slide a heavy stainless pickup clip up and down a grooved coil by hand. Removing the motor and electronics makes it rugged, cheap and almost nothing-to-break - exactly what a portable operator wants. 'TIA' stands for 'Take It Along,' the kit that bundles the coil with a tripod and ground-radial wires.

The coil threads onto a 3/8 x 24 stud on the bottom and accepts a whip on a matching stud on top. You supply the whip - a 102-inch stainless whip is the usual choice - and the length you pick sets the band range. With a full 102-inch whip it tunes from around 17 meters down to near the bottom of 80 meters; fit a shorter whip and you gain 15 through 10 meters while giving up the low end of 80. With a roughly 17-foot whip it can even touch 160 meters, though the bandwidth there is very narrow.

In use you stand it on its tripod, lay out a ground plane (the instructions suggest at least three radial wires each cut for about a fifth of a wavelength at the lowest band), and slide the coil while watching an antenna analyzer or SWR meter. It tunes to 1.3:1 or better without a separate tuner, and most operators mark the slider positions so band changes take seconds. It handles 100 watts SSB (50 watts CW, 20 watts digital) and the coil weighs about 1.8 pounds.

It competes directly with other take-along verticals such as the Chameleon MPAS 2.0 and portable loops like the Alpha Loop, trading some efficiency for ruggedness and a very low price.