Jay - Thanks for the thoughts for my poor dead cap - the photo is after it failed and had been removed from the Tuning Rubbermade tub. No burns and it actually hadnt got more than warm but Im guess it failed internally on stress. Ive been trolling Ebay for replacements....
I use the IR laser gun to watch individual component hot spots and hadnt seen anything untoward - the unit had been in storage since I closed XDW down in 2005/6 and it used to run warm but not particularly hot in Oklahoma so perhaps it just had had enough. The stacked 77's seem happy
Still it pushed me to current share more - which is what I should had done in the first place - Im going to share a little more but series parallelling up some G2's which will help a little more. Tuning stability is good but Im still not happy with the 50 ft height of the loop at the far end and can probably go another 10. We have snow on the ground and must act soon to get it up to the full height if possible before the snow depth makes access difficult.
The lake is already freezing but some ducks dont seem to have got the message yet. ...still conditions are fowl (sic) and it will be a little while or more before things improve.
I couldnt hear any broadcast Russian or Mongolian stations on LW this morning at all...
Laurence KL1 X
Anchorage Alaska
From:
[email protected]To:
[email protected]Date: Tue, 16 Oct 2012 10:54:36 -0400
Subject: LF: Re: conditions and what not to do
Laurence
Condolences on the Sangamo's demise. How about an 'after'
picture?
Slow LF/MF improvement 'down here' as well.
Static approaching summertime levels isn't helping the RX situation.
Jay
----- Original Message -----
Sent: Tuesday, October 16, 2012 10:36
AM
Subject: LF: conditions and what not to
do
The recent geomag and lovely Auroras here in Alaska has LF and MF
conditions still wanting. HF has been very poor too with very little but Im
slowly (very slowly) seeing a recovery and hearing the Russian single
letter beacons on 40m pre dawn.
Im like George looking at
BBC Radio 4 at the moment over the Pole and I can just see its (or a)
carrier at dot 120 slow. Its never really very strong here compared with some
of its European more QRO partners.
Ive been repairing the tuning unit
and continue slapping myself on the back of the hand for causing a 7.5nF G3
Capacitor to fail by running too many RF amps thru it. The unit failed by
reducing its capacity to 3nF. Heres the sad picture of the failed cap before
it turned into a door stop.
http://kl7uk.com/sangamo.jpg
Ive
added more series parallel lower value (less than 2nF) Mica capacitors to the
design - I need around about 8nF to resonate the Tx loop and RF current is
around 50A or so - testing continues.
Laurence KL1X WE2XPQ
Wasilla Alaska
Snow 29F
