Interesting. I wasn't aware that such a product existed.

Our cat, Hansi, prefers to always have a back foot on something solid...the wall, a door jamb, when he's lying on the floor. HF is a lot like that...the transmitter and antenna need something 'electronically solid' to 'push off from'. Thus nearly HALF of an HF's capability results from how you ground it. Saltwater is an excellent conductor for this purpose, but the installer's challenge is to connect the transmitter/antenna coupler negative to the saltwater. To do this you'll need a fairly hefty copper conductor - flexible to allow routing in the bilge - running from the coupler via a thru-hull (the plate mounting bolts?) to a copper plate affixed below the waterline.

Our keels are lead, and so offer virtually no conductivity for this purpose.

[Ok, you physicists out there. I know the saltwater ground is completing the round trip circuit, but I like my simple analogy. I have other analogies also based on cats.]

John. All I can do is tell you what I have got and how well it works. I like you pondered which way to go 3 1/2 years ago. I read and studied up a lot and ended up going with a spit backstay. I installed everything myself as I wanted to know how it all worked if I ran I to trouble. I ended up going with an icom m802. The tuner I stuck in the starboard seat locker mounted to an epoxied board. The tuner needs to be as close to the antenna as it can be. As for the radials I had them matched the length of my antenna which is part of the backstay. It was a trick to run the radials but I got it done I took and used a sintered bronze ground plane which is held on by 2 3/8 bronze threaded rods with spacees to hold the plate off the hull. I used 3/4 copper strapping .075 thick. For my grounding strap which all I had to ground. The power box sits under our chart table and to the side. The control head is mounted but to the left of our electrical panel. We now mainly cruise Florida's east cost and the Bahamas now in the winter months. As for output. It depends for me on weather but I have talked to South America, and the Carolina's regular all from sitting in the southern Bahamas. I am very pleased with the outcome of the installation. One VHF thing is to keep your connections clean. I know alot are worried about cutting the backstay but knowing the connector I never thought twice about doing it. Hope this helps you some.