At 05:43 PM 09/03/08, you wrote: >Now just a more curious point, something I guess I just don't grasp, >but all the wires going up to the PA are 18 guage or less wires, it >would seem to me that with such high power output that it would have >at least a few larger wires at least of the 12 guage or better. How >do they accomplish this with such a small set of wires?
This is the kind of comment that worries the old farts. 20ga wire can carry an amp. 18 ga can carry at least three amps. The UHF Micor amp book (the only high power book I have handy) says that the final amp runs at 1,500 volts at up to 400 mils. That's 4/10 of an amp. 1/10 can kill you if it's applied right. 1500v can ruin your survivors entire day. Do I have to say it? WATCH OUT FOR THE HIGH VOLTAGE. If you don't have experience with it DON'T WORK ALONE. There's a reason they used to tell the old techs to keep one hand in their pocket - it prevented getting a lethal level of current from hot (one hand) to ground (the other hand) and incidentally through the chest. The heart muscle does it's thing with millivolts and milliamps. Matt, I don't mean to be insulting, or demeaning your skills, but this is YOUR LIFE we are talking about. If I were in your shoes when ever I was going to have my hands inside that beast with the power on I'd have a second person in the room, even if they were sitting in a chair across the room and studying a textbook. Or watching TV. Show them what switch to flip off (or better yet what power cord to unplug) before they drag your ass out of the cabinet and begin practicing their CPR skills. Mike WA6ILQ
