Pete - right on!
I am dismayed by the lack of the old ham spirit that I see in todays
operators...
Pete pointed it out quite clearly...
12 relays @ $3 a pop - $36
Roll of quarter inch dia. soft copper tubing (home depot) - I dunno, maybe $50
2X4 Sheet of .060" aluminium - maybe $50 ( I buy a half dozen full sheets at a
time so I don't know price of small amounts) Lots less if you harvest some
scrap aluminium from old freezers, etc.
Anyway, cobble up a test coil by winding some turns of #14 on a 2 - 3 inch pvc
pipe and get an old variable condenser and some jumpers, and use them to test
tune each band... Measure the inductance and capacitance you find for each
band......
Wind a coil from the copper tubing to the found value(s)..
Make the condensers by cutting two plates from the aluminium sheet and spacing
them apart with little buttons of plastic - lexan from the hardware works good
- and adjusting the overlap of the plates for final tune... When tuned squirt a
dab of crazy glue on the buttons to lock the plates into position...
Repeat 5 more times and voila - 6 bands
Another $20 for a covered plastic storage bin to mount the parts and relays -
and for ~$150 you have a six band, switchable tuner, that will take ALL the
power your amp can make and then some....
And for lots less than $150 if you have some scrounging skills...
denny / k8do
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