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Thought I'd give the?group a try with?my first post. Happy to join.
?I am a second floor, Icom 7300, Hustler 6BTV vertical shack. I have a lightning arrester. ?Dummy load checks out fine in the shack. Snow here. Once it leaves I plan to place the dummy load at various spots on the RF path. Any helpful hints would be appreciated.
Thanks and 73 Pete Bruderle KN4WTV
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Ha! Forgot to list the problem! Recurring "SWR Standby” messages.
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On Jan 25, 2022, at 7:52 AM, Peter Bruderle <PBRUDERLE@...> wrote:
Thought I'd give the group a try with my first post. Happy to join.
I am a second floor, Icom 7300, Hustler 6BTV vertical shack. I have a lightning arrester.
Dummy load checks out fine in the shack.
Snow here. Once it leaves I plan to place the dummy load at various spots on the RF path. Any helpful hints would be appreciated.
Thanks and
73
Pete Bruderle
KN4WTV
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Peter,
Are you using a tuner?/what type? Did this occur before the snow? Do you make sure you are using your tuner with the Amp in "stand by"? If using an external tuner make SURE you are not also using the internal Radio Tuner (I have? mine disabled. If you have the LA-1K in "oper" mode and try to tune you will get this message and should! If all this is ok, then my first suspect would be a possible bad lightening arrestor..will follow your post GL 73
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Peter I had same issue with the lightening arrestor on 6 meters - took it out and all well! ? 73 Paul NO0T
On Sat, Jan 29, 2022 at 8:22 AM K8MCN Kelly < k8mcn@...> wrote: Peter,
Are you using a tuner?/what type? Did this occur before the snow? Do you make sure you are using your tuner with the Amp in "stand by"? If using an external tuner make SURE you are not also using the internal Radio Tuner (I have? mine disabled. If you have the LA-1K in "oper" mode and try to tune you will get this message and should! If all this is ok, then my first suspect would be a possible bad lightening arrestor..will follow your post GL 73
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Thanks for all the good advice team. Glad to be a member! I actually think I have solved the problem. But not positive.
I took the tuner off-line. It’s a Palstar AT2KD manual tuner. All my testing was without the tuner involved. Dave, WA3GIN, has been a big help. It appears that my problem is connected to my vertical antenna and second-story shack location. The vertical creates a lot of rf. And has in the past.?
I’ve moved a choke from indoors to outside at the antenna feed. I added additional ferrite cores to the shack in particular on the power cord of the LA.I added a 30‘6“ piece of wire connected to the ground rod, laying it beside the house. I also cleared out a lot of grass and debris at the base of the antenna. All the ground radial wires were essentially underground where they connect to the vertical. Dave mentioned that these connections being underground and therefore prone to moisture might have caused the SWR problem.Later I will raise the vertical higher to get the ground plate elevated even more.Somehow all this worked, it seems. This was not a controlled experiment so I don’t know what particular maneuver worked or maybe they all worked in combination.
I had heard about the arrestor but did not mess with it because I seem to have solved the problem. Mark at Palstar suggested this and hustlers traps as potential problem spots.?
I’m going to connect the tuner and use it to fine-tune my SWR. And yes I did make the mistake of using the ICOM 7300 tuner. But only once. To confirm you can tune an antenna using a dummy load correct?
Oddly my hustler vertical suddenly does not give me good SWR on 80 at the frequency I turned it to, 3.796.? The la said I was overwriting at SWR of 2.3. But 40 m is doing just fine.
Thank you Kelly and Paul.?
73? Peter, Kn4wtv?
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Hi, Pete
Welcome to the group!
My first guess is that you may possibly have high SWR on the Hustler (possibly intermittent) or a grounding/rf feedback issue, but I think we need a bit more information and some clarifications.
First, I'm not sure what you mean by "SWR Standby" messages. Do you mean "Bypass SWR" messages or something else?
Also, when you say "Dummy load checks out fine in the shack" do you mean that when you transmit into the dummy load the SWR is below approximately 2:1 without the rig's internal autotuner engaged, or something else?
Do you have anything else in line besides the 7300 and LA-1K amplifier? Any coax switches, an external antenna tuner etc.?
When you transmit into the Hustler without the rig's internal autotuner engaged is the SWR below 2.5 :1?
Is the dummy load rated for at least 1kw, which is what the LA-1K puts out at maximum drive?
What firmware version are you running on the LA-1K?
GL es 73 de Bill, NT1N
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Pete ...
Be sure to respect the TIME ratings on your 1 KW dummy load. When the specs say "seconds" of key down, they mean just that but no longer. Also respect the cool-down spec before keying again.
73,
Kent K9ZTV
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On Jan 30, 2022, at 12:05 PM, someone wrote:
Is the dummy load rated for at least 1kw, which is what the LA-1K puts out at maximum drive?
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I use the dummy lightly. Is it ok to use voice rather than cw mode?
On Sun, Jan 30, 2022 at 1:42 PM Kent Trimble, K9ZTV < k9ztv@...> wrote: Pete ...
Be sure to respect the TIME ratings on your 1 KW dummy load.? When the specs say "seconds" of key down, they mean just that but no longer.? ?Also respect the cool-down spec before keying again.
73,
Kent? K9ZTV
> On Jan 30, 2022, at 12:05 PM, someone wrote:
>
> Is the dummy load rated for at least 1kw, which is what the LA-1K puts out at maximum drive?
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Bill, I meant "bypass SWR".
I tested the dummy load without?the tuner and got low swrs. Dummy load rated for 1k.
I've kept the Palstar AT2KD off line for testing. Now since I?seem to be ok I put the tuner back in line. Then I started to see exorbitant SWRs. Using the dummy load or not. Which makes me think there is something?wrong with the tuner. Thinking of sending it?to Palstar. Is there?a good way to test it? When I followed the tuning instructions I received high SWRs starting with their recommended setting and could not bring them down by tuning. High means 8-9 on 40. When I tried 20 I got 3-5. Way off from what I got without?the tuner at 1-2 which is inline with what I got when I tuned the antenna originally?with an analyzer. When the tuner is bypassed the meters record correct swrs as shown on the amp.
On Sun, Jan 30, 2022 at 1:05 PM Bill Akins, NT1N < nt1n@...> wrote: Hi, Pete
Welcome to the group!
My first guess is that you may possibly have high SWR on the Hustler (possibly intermittent) or a grounding/rf feedback issue, but I think we need a bit more information and some clarifications.
First, I'm not sure what you mean by "SWR Standby" messages. Do you mean "Bypass SWR" messages or something else?
Also, when you say "Dummy load checks out fine in the shack" do you mean that when you transmit into the dummy load the SWR is below approximately 2:1 without the rig's internal autotuner engaged, or something else?
Do you have anything else in line besides the 7300 and LA-1K amplifier? Any coax switches, an external antenna tuner etc.?
When you transmit into the Hustler without the rig's internal autotuner engaged is the SWR below 2.5 :1?
Is the dummy load rated for at least 1kw, which is what the LA-1K puts out at maximum drive?
What firmware version are you running on the LA-1K?
GL es 73 de Bill, NT1N
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Hi again, Pete
First, check all your coax jumper cables for continuity and shorts with a volt-ohm meter. Any coaxial jumper cable between the amp and the tuner (and after the tuner) should be rated for at least 1 KW (RG-8X or better). Then, with the dummy load connected to the "Bypass" coaxial connector on the back of the Palstar AT2KD and the 6-position rotary switch on the front of the Palstar AT2KD set to "Bypass" and the LA-1K in "STBY" (standby) mode, place the "power range" button on the AT2KD in the "300 watt" position and key the transceiver in cw mode with about 20 watts, you should be see approximately 20 watts forward power and approximately 1.2 to 1 more or less for an SWR if the dummy load is ok. What are you seeing for SWR in this configuration? If you then place the LA-1K in "OPR" (operating) mode with the "power range" switch in the "3000 watt" position and key the rig in cw mode with about 20 watts of drive into the amp, you should see roughly 500 to 600 watts forward power and? the same SWR (or very closely the same).? You should be seeing approximately the same SWR in this configuration. Now, with the amp in bypass position, move the coax going to the dummy load to the "Coax 1" position on the back of the tuner and place the 6 position rotary switch on the front of the tuner to the "Coax 1" position on the "Direct" (left) side. When you key up you should see the same SWR as you saw in the "Bypass" position. Next, place the 6 position rotary switch on the front of the tuner to ths "Coax 1" position on the "Tuned" (right) side and you should be able to tune the dummy load down to an SWR of 1 to 1, i.e., a perfect match. If you can do this, the tuner is probably working ok. Next, connect the coax from the Hustler to the "Coax 1" connector on the back of the tuner and go thru the same sequence with the 6-position rotary switch on the front of the tuner. In the "Direct" (left) side it should read the actual antenna SWR which will vary depending on the frequency you are transmitting on. If you then place the 6-position rotary switch on the front of the tuner to the "Coax 1" on the "Tuned" (right) side you should be able to adjust the SWR with the TunerInductor and differential capacitor controls in accordance with the tuner's manual. If that is not possible, there may be a problem with the tuner itself.
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GL es 73 de Bill, NT1N
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Thanks, Bill I’ll give it a try tomorrow and get back. ?73. Pete?
On Sun, Jan 30, 2022 at 6:15 PM Bill Akins, NT1N < nt1n@...> wrote: Hi again, Pete
First, check all your coax jumper cables for continuity and shorts with a volt-ohm meter. Any coaxial jumper cable between the amp and the tuner (and after the tuner) should be rated for at least 1 KW (RG-8X or better). Then, with the dummy load connected to the "Bypass" coaxial connector on the back of the Palstar AT2KD and the 6-position rotary switch on the front of the Palstar AT2KD set to "Bypass" and the LA-1K in "STBY" (standby) mode, place the "power range" button on the AT2KD in the "300 watt" position and key the transceiver in cw mode with about 20 watts, you should be see approximately 20 watts forward power and approximately 1.2 to 1 more or less for an SWR if the dummy load is ok. What are you seeing for SWR in this configuration? If you then place the LA-1K in "OPR" (operating) mode with the "power range" switch in the "3000 watt" position and key the rig in cw mode with about 20 watts of drive into the amp, you should see roughly 500 to 600 watts forward power and? the same SWR (or very closely the same).? You should be seeing approximately the same SWR in this configuration. Now, with the amp in bypass position, move the coax going to the dummy load to the "Coax 1" position on the back of the tuner and place the 6 position rotary switch on the front of the tuner to the "Coax 1" position on the "Direct" (left) side. When you key up you should see the same SWR as you saw in the "Bypass" position. Next, place the 6 position rotary switch on the front of the tuner to ths "Coax 1" position on the "Tuned" (right) side and you should be able to tune the dummy load down to an SWR of 1 to 1, i.e., a perfect match. If you can do this, the tuner is probably working ok. Next, connect the coax from the Hustler to the "Coax 1" connector on the back of the tuner and go thru the same sequence with the 6-position rotary switch on the front of the tuner. In the "Direct" (left) side it should read the actual antenna SWR which will vary depending on the frequency you are transmitting on. If you then place the 6-position rotary switch on the front of the tuner to the "Coax 1" on the "Tuned" (right) side you should be able to adjust the SWR with the TunerInductor and differential capacitor controls in accordance with the tuner's manual. If that is not possible, there may be a problem with the tuner itself.
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GL es 73 de Bill, NT1N
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Test 1.? No shorts Test 2 - I get answer of 11 and about 11 watts forward.
On Sun, Jan 30, 2022 at 7:43 PM Peter Bruderle via <pbruderle= [email protected]> wrote: Thanks, Bill I’ll give it a try tomorrow and get back. ?73. Pete? On Sun, Jan 30, 2022 at 6:15 PM Bill Akins, NT1N < nt1n@...> wrote: Hi again, Pete
First, check all your coax jumper cables for continuity and shorts with a volt-ohm meter. Any coaxial jumper cable between the amp and the tuner (and after the tuner) should be rated for at least 1 KW (RG-8X or better). Then, with the dummy load connected to the "Bypass" coaxial connector on the back of the Palstar AT2KD and the 6-position rotary switch on the front of the Palstar AT2KD set to "Bypass" and the LA-1K in "STBY" (standby) mode, place the "power range" button on the AT2KD in the "300 watt" position and key the transceiver in cw mode with about 20 watts, you should be see approximately 20 watts forward power and approximately 1.2 to 1 more or less for an SWR if the dummy load is ok. What are you seeing for SWR in this configuration? If you then place the LA-1K in "OPR" (operating) mode with the "power range" switch in the "3000 watt" position and key the rig in cw mode with about 20 watts of drive into the amp, you should see roughly 500 to 600 watts forward power and? the same SWR (or very closely the same).? You should be seeing approximately the same SWR in this configuration. Now, with the amp in bypass position, move the coax going to the dummy load to the "Coax 1" position on the back of the tuner and place the 6 position rotary switch on the front of the tuner to the "Coax 1" position on the "Direct" (left) side. When you key up you should see the same SWR as you saw in the "Bypass" position. Next, place the 6 position rotary switch on the front of the tuner to ths "Coax 1" position on the "Tuned" (right) side and you should be able to tune the dummy load down to an SWR of 1 to 1, i.e., a perfect match. If you can do this, the tuner is probably working ok. Next, connect the coax from the Hustler to the "Coax 1" connector on the back of the tuner and go thru the same sequence with the 6-position rotary switch on the front of the tuner. In the "Direct" (left) side it should read the actual antenna SWR which will vary depending on the frequency you are transmitting on. If you then place the 6-position rotary switch on the front of the tuner to the "Coax 1" on the "Tuned" (right) side you should be able to adjust the SWR with the TunerInductor and differential capacitor controls in accordance with the tuner's manual. If that is not possible, there may be a problem with the tuner itself.
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GL es 73 de Bill, NT1N
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Paul