[Amps] SB-220 Plate Tuning Capacitor

Will Matney craxd1 at verizon.net
Sat Jun 3 22:40:58 EDT 2006


Bud,

Since Oren Elliott has made the one capacitor, I'll bet they made both tune and load C in the later models. They're who pretty much makes the majority of them now which are ceramic bodied like tune caps, or steel-aluminum like load caps. There only a few who make their own like Palstar, and I think MFJ makes some, or someone else is doing them for them as they dont use ceramic insulators. Palstar uses Glastic for the insulator ends. Some from MFJ I've seen use a fiberglass-epoxy board (strip) or similar for the end insulators. These are the ones I seen in their antenna tuners. 

The problem in making these is stamping out the capacitor plates. The edges have to be burr free and take expensive close tolerance punch and die sets to make. If the plates have a sharp edge, they tend to arc over easily. The reason I knew about OE is because that's who I used to buy from as an OEM. They make some jim-dandy air variables, and a new model roller inductor. They use a different material now in the coil form where it's RF safe. The APL line they have is what I used a lot of.  They have a smaller line than these too. The other manufacturer I used for padder types was Arco using the model 302 and 304 type compression trimmers in input tune circuits.

Best,

Will

*********** REPLY SEPARATOR  ***********

On 6/4/06 at 2:17 AM W2RU - Bud Hippisley wrote:

>Will Matney wrote:
>> Bud,
>>
>> You gave very good info by reposting the old article with the part
>numbers. An OEP number is an Oren Elliott part number (OEP 26-164) which
>can be had by contacting them. They can reproduce this part or recommend a
>stock replacement. They will sell single parts.
>>   
>
>Will --
>
>Thanks.  Very interesting info from you -- I never knew who or what OEP 
>was, much less how to reach them.  That's good information to have in 
>the Amps archives now, for us SB-220 owners!
>
>73 -- Bud, W2RU





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