For relative measurement (fwd/rev) , just build it . $5 , maybe less. Depends on your junque boxx
"Tuners" do not tune the antenna. the SWR "looking into the antenna" doesn't change.
they also do not tune your radios output, it is a constant 50 ohms (+/-), they only allow your radio to load into an approx 50 ohm load.
If that is the case, why do you have a tuner in line?
The "tuner" is just "seeing" the meter, not the antenna. take that meter out and see what the antenna impedance really is.
Doesn't your MFJ tuner have an SWR meter built in?
Tuners don't really tune antennas, they compensate for any mismatch in or along the antenna system.
Your Maco antennas is tuned by lengthening or shortening the antenna to the closest resonate point ideally where you operate at. You then rely on the antennas bandwidth to operate on either side of that.
A tuner can lower the SWR outside of the antennas sweet spot so it looks good on a SWR meter, but the actual SWR at the antenna never changes.
We Hams use tuners on multiband antennas so we can operate our radios safely beyond the resonate point on many of those multibands.
On 80 meters with my multiband wire antenna, my actual SWR at the antenna feedpoint is as high as 10:1 or more. The ERP (effective radiated power) isn't very good and my radio's high SWR protection circuit will kick on if I tried to operate it like so.
But because I use a tuner, I can get a low SWR so my radio will transmit full power but the true radiated power out the antenna is about a 65% power loss due to in-efficiency losses. So, on 100 watts, I still can transmit 35 watts with an inefficient antenna. I also use an amp to boost the power so my approximated ERP is increased before any other typical losses are calculated. There are always other some losses in your antenna system but many are small.
Your SWR meter can show full power out from your radio and a flat SWR on the tuners meter. All this means is that you have a nice match in your antenna system before the antenna and your radio will be capable of full output power. However, it doesn't mean your transmitting full power out the antenna. The losses are dissipated out the antenna as heat and not effective radiating RF.
Ideally, tune your antenna with a analyzer at the antenna feedpoint for the best ERP and you shouldn't need a tuner with a monoband antenna. Tuners can have losses in them too.
One question posed by the poster is how accurate are "affordable" swr/power meters? I would consider "affordable" as between $100 to $150.
For relative measurement (fwd/rev) , just build it . $5 , maybe less. Depends on your junque boxx
I can understand you using a tuner on your wires. Is there a reason your using the tuner with the Maco??
I treat anything past the output of the radio jack a part of the antenna. Here is a video for your viewing pleasure. Lengthy but some good info.
on your wire antenna..definately... on ya maco no.. just tune the antenna