Sorry to the majority of the List, but my QRP leanings caught on the edge
of this thread...
First off, which is correct, the Bird or the Rig? I don't recall the
tolerance on a Bird 43 (I haven't used one since I got out of the Navy),
but a 10% error is not unusual for a wattmeter. Could it be that the
"Majik" 100 watts WAS reached, but not indicated?
Secondly, let's say that the Bird 43 is right on the money, and the rig
is ONLY running 90 watts. What's the net result going to be? Will one
miss that elusive 5U4GT or 6L6GB QSO??? If one does, the 10% reduction
in power won't be the reason.
Dropping ones power from the Holy Grail of 100 watts to a totally
unacceptable 90 watts will drop ones signal by an unacceptable 0.458 dB.
The old "standard" definition of a Decibel indicates that a 1 dB change
is JUST BARELY DETECTABLE. A 0.458 dB change is not detectable by ear,
and is almost impossible to see on the Guess-Meter. Quibbling over 1/2 a
Db is like arguing over which Mc Donald's Heart-Bomb is bigger at the
counter...
I would just run the rig, but only after I got the power back down to a
reasonable 5 watts (MAX!!!)
72/73, Keith, WB2VUO, 100% QRP from the Depths of the Great Bergen
Swamp...
"My night light runs more power than my Rig!!!"
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