Ron
fantastic pure ham radio to be using a rig that you assembled and are improving.?
on the dipole - see which end of the band has the lowest SWR.? if it is the high end - it is a little too short, and vice versa.? it is better to adjust the antenna if possible, although if your coax length is rather short and it is good coax - the tuner can amend it some.? always look at SWR across a span of frequencies to get the full picture.? 1.9 isn't that dreadful at HF, but tune antennas whenever you can by changing its length.?
enjoy your radiations!? propagation tends to be better in fall and winter.?
Curt
