Many VHF Men, especially rovers, have learned the wisdom of fusing their power
leads running to those pricey transverters, pre-amps, and VHF/UHF rigs. For
rovers, this usually means fusing both the positive and negative leads as close
to the radio as possible.
But as any rover can tell you, troubleshooting equipment in the dark on some
lonely hilltop can be an exercise in frustration. Especially in the heat of a
contest. During the CQ VHF contest while operating at night in North Florida, I
had a fuse blow on my Yaesu FT-857D. Since I had not brought along the "rover
rack" it was literally the only radio available, leaving me dead in the water
until the problem could be fixed.
But luckily, I used "Smart Glow Fuses" which light up when they're blown. I
also used the specially made clear fuse holders which are made just for these
fuses. "Tracing the problem" was as simple as lifting the back seat and looking
at the custom power distribution center. I replaced the 20 amp fuse that was
glowing with another from my bag of spares and was back on the air in less than
30 seconds.
Smart Glow Fuses are sold at most automotive parts stores, and can also be
found at Ace Hardware, Wal-Mart, and other retailers. They're available in a
variety of sizes from 1 amp all the way up to 40 amps. They're a bit more
expensive than standard blade-type fuses, but worth every penny if you're on
that dark, lonely hilltop.
They also work great in the Anderson PowerPole distribution panels sold by West
Mountain Radio, MFJ, and other companies. And they're perfect for fixed
stations too, not just rovers.
73,
Les Rayburn, N1LF
EM63nf
121 Mayfair Park
Maylene, AL 35114
_______________________________________________
VHFcontesting mailing list
VHFcontesting@contesting.com
http://lists.contesting.com/mailman/listinfo/vhfcontesting
|