MFJ

Yesterday word came out that Martin F. Jue, the president and founder of MFJ Enterprises, has decided to shutter MFJ and all of it's associated brands, and retire:

Martin and MFJ have served Amateur Radio for over half a century. MFJ filled an important niche in the hobby - they created an enormous range of affordable 'gadgets' that filled the void left as hobby manufacturers like Heathkit closed down, and the homebrew movement dwindled. Need an antenna analyzer? MJF's got multiple catalog pages full of them. Need an antenna tuner? Same thing - MFJ's selection of tuners seems endless. Antennas, amplifiers, connectors, meters, power supplies, microphones, headsets, interfaces, clocks, CW keys, and much, much more. MFJ's current print catalog is 90 pages long and absolutely stuffed full of the bits 'n baubles that hams rely on to make the hobby fun. 

Along the way MFJ vacuumed up a number of brands such as Ameritron (amplifiers), Cushcraft (antennas) and Vectronics (meters). Some of these acquisitions were controversial, but the honest truth is that if Martin hadn't bought them, they likely would have folded. At least MFJ gave them a fighting chance.

MFJs departure will leave a huge hole in the ham radio market. The question is, who will fill the void? 

But for now, let's thank Martin for his contributions to the hobby and wish him well. He's right, life is so short and time with family is so precious. 

W8BYH out