swr and watt meter

[kk4fpx]

Anyone know if it hurts anything to leave a swr and watt meter hooked up while transmitting?

[N8YX]

Anyone know if it hurts anything to leave a swr and watt meter hooked up while transmitting?
Assuming the meter is of decent quality (low insertion loss), it doesn't hurt a thing.

I have several Kenwood SW-2000s with sampling heads that are attached to various VHF/UHF transceivers, HF transceivers and amplifiers in the shack. They're never disconnected. If I had a Bird 43 or other lab-grade instrument it wouldn't be used as a "shack accessory", however.

[NQ6U]

Mine are built into my tuner and so are always hooked up when I'm transmitting. Never hurt anything. I think it's a good idea to keep one hooked up, in fact—it will help you spot a potential problem with your antenna system before you fry the finals on your radio.

[NA4BH]

I keep a Daiwa CN-801 inline. It has saved my butt many times.

[W5GA]

If it's not hooked up when you transmit, it doesn't tell you anything.

[n2ize]

Mine are built into my tuner and so are always hooked up when I'm transmitting. Never hurt anything. I think it's a good idea to keep one hooked up, in fact—it will help you spot a potential problem with your antenna system before you fry the finals on your radio.

Well, with these new fangled solid state finals you gotta worry. With the kind of finals I use all you need to do is look at them. If you see the plates glowing bright orange-yellow it might be a sign that something is a bit out of tune. If they are just glowing a ruddy cherry red your good to go and you can probaly lean on them a bit harder..

[WØTKX]

If it's not hooked up when you transmit, it doesn't tell you anything.

Has anybody told you you're such a smart-ass, you could sit on an ice cream cone and tell us the flavor? :snicker:





















I kid, I kid!

[W1GUH]

Well, with these new fangled solid state finals you gotta worry. With the kind of finals I use all you need to do is look at them. If you see the plates glowing bright orange-yellow it might be a sign that something is a bit out of tune. If they are just glowing a ruddy cherry red your good to go and you can probaly lean on them a bit harder..

Or you're running a 4x1 WAY over it's limits on linear AM! Such a pretty glow!

Go ahead and leave it in line all the time. Good monitor for what's going on out there.

[KJ3N]

If I had a Bird 43 or other lab-grade instrument it wouldn't be used as a "shack accessory", however.

You ain't got no watts iff'n you don't have dem Bird watts! ;) :lol:

No excuses.... :rofl:

[KJ3N]

Has anybody told you you're such a smart-ass, you could sit on an ice cream cone and tell us the flavor? :snicker:

:rofl:

[VE7MGF]

don't no bout dem bird wats i hear them dosey wats is better:-D

[K7SGJ]

Has anybody told you you're such a smart-ass, you could sit on an ice cream cone and tell us the flavor? :snicker:























I kid, I kid!



Don't know about the flavor, but maybe if it has nuts in it or not?

[kb2vxa]

Oh noes... you can't be THAT naive.

[KG4CGC]

Leave it in, and don't play with it.
You can watch if an antenna system starts to go haywire on you while you're using it. Happened to me a couple of weeks ago. Everything was fine until about 30 minutes into QSO. Saw the return energy to the radio climb radically. Stopped the conversation in time to save my equipment and was able to trace down the problem when it was daylight again.

[kk4fpx]

OK thanks.

[W3WN]

don't no bout dem bird wats i hear them dosey wats is better:-DMaresy dotes. And Dosey dotes. And liddle lambsey dyzee.

[kf0rt]

Mares eat oats and does eat oats. And little lambs eat ivy.

Took me forever to translate that, but it wasn't a full-time job. Kind of like one of those mondragon things.

[W3WN]

Mares eat oats and does eat oats. And little lambs eat ivy.

Took me forever to translate that, but it wasn't a full-time job. Kind of like one of those mondragon things.I guess. I didn't write, or sing, the song; I was just quoting the lyrics.

Besides, does don't eat oats. They eat flowers... my poor rose bush up front keeps getting chomped (which is why I now plant the new ones inside the fenced in back yard!)... misc. shrubbery (someone page the Knights Who Say 'Neee!'!), and almost anything that's green... except weeds.

[KJ3N]

... misc. shrubbery (someone page the Knights Who Say 'Neee!'!)...

Do you have a herring handy?

[W3WN]

Do you have a herring handy?
Nope. Not even a couple of coconuts.

[KJ3N]

Nope. Not even a couple of coconuts.

Can't rely on those unladen swallows for anything...