During the renovation of my house, I had to remove all antennas. I wasn’t too happy with that, but in the end I was glad I did. After more than a decade, corrosion proved to be a major problem. My trusted 5/8 wave vertical (Sirio GPE), was about to fall apart and kill someone in the process. I decided to spend a little bit more money and bought a CB antenna made out of glass fiber and graphite.
President Black Pirate 5R
When it comes to giving names to even the most ordinary antenna, manufacturers of CB antennas can’t be beaten. Black Pirate? Come on. First of all, it isn’t black at all, but white. There’s a reason for that: the material used for black glass fiber appears to have shielding properties, which is the last thing you want. The only thing making sense in the model name is ‘5R’, which stands for ‘Five Radials’. Yes, you can buy the antenna without, but I would advise against it.
Why radials?
Radials only take up space, and make no difference at all. Right? Wrong. Believe me, I tried. For years and years, with different brands and models. As soon as I skipped the radials, my base noise level went up. Way up! The bandwidth of the antenna decreased. The radiation pattern changed. RF feedback into the shack sticked its ugly head around the corner. Forget it guys. Spend the little extra money on the radials. You won’t regret it.
Performance
This antenna had to become suitable for 10 meters, not CB, so a small modification was in order. I calculated that I had to cut 30cm (11.8 inches) off the top element to make the antenna resonate at 28.500 MHz. That was spot on – no tuner needed, SWR meter didn’t move a millimeter. Extra adjustments can be made by moving the ‘SWR ring’ at the base of the antenna. Performance for DX is great, thanks to an extremely low angle of attack and about 5dB gain (dBd).
Conclusion:
Worth every penny. Works around the globe with 25 Watts or less. I dislike the silly name though, and never mention it during QSO’s (unless asked for).
Manufacturer specifications:
Antenna type : 5/8 + 1/4 λ
SWR. value : 1,1/1 adjustable
Gain (dBi) : +9,9 dBi
Max. power 
: 2500 W PEP
Bandwidth (kHz) : 4500 KHz
Weight (Kg) : 2,600
Lenght (mm) : 5270
Base type : fixed mount 50 mm
Material : fiber/graphite
Connector : SO 239
No. of radials : 5
Radial lenght : 1120 mm
Frequency : 25-29,5 MHz
Impedance : 50Ω
Ham Radio Blog PD0AC 
Hello, I’m new to cb radio and found this page that you used Black Pirate 5R Antenna. Can i know how’s the experience for it? Heard alot of other HAM/CB people in other forums talking about fiber glass bad over static dis/charge. Will this antenna be good for crowded urban town setup for a 1st timer?
I had no issues with statics so far. This antenna proved to be very good on 10 meters, and it will do just as fine on 11.
hi this is surely an antron a99 clone it is identical 99.99 % only 1 extra radial and at 45 degree angle and how much , buy an a99 and re drill groundplane kit = Black Pirate 5R Antenna.
I had both, and they’re not identical in a number of ways (build quality, maximum power). Performance wise they might be equal though, and the A99 is a lot cheaper.