[RFI] Next step visually sighting arc's

[David Eckhardt]

Instead of the 'rifle' scope, I'd suggest something a bit more capable with
a larger aperture.  I have the Celestron Ultima 65 used for this purpose
and many others.  The 65 mm objective is excellent, it can be either
hand-held or tripod mounted, and costs a bit less than twice your 'rifle'
scope (in the $100 to $150 range, store dependent).

Dave - WØLEV

On Sat, May 8, 2021 at 3:13 PM Charles Plunk <af4o at twc.com> wrote:

> As you may remember, I sighted my first strong arc with binoculars after
> triangulation, ultrasonic, etc. Its been fixed by the util for over a
> month and still gone gone :-)
>
> A not near as strong arc is on the same pole but on the opposite side.
> This pole is in the corner of my backyard so makes it convenient to
> experiment with. Playing with the success of the first, I tried
> binoculars and thought, with some imagination that I could see this arc
> too. Its tiny.
>
> So, I bought a stronger spotting scope, like you sight in rifles with.
> And mounted it on a tripod. Last night the source was active and still
> think I see it in the same spot. A crusty old ground lug wired to the
> bottom of a fused disconnect. Connects to the wire stapled to the pole.
>
> One has to be careful as reflections off the ceramics from distant
> street lights (~200' away) can look like arc's. But a crusty ground lug
> should not reflect. This area is also where I hear it with ultrasonic.
> Its a very narrow place to stand on the ground to hear it with
> ultrasonic. Another issue is its so dark its hard to make out the
> outlines of the pole in the dark to tell where you are seeing. But I
> could see enough. The bigger the lens on the front of the
> scope/binoculars the better to capture more light to see the pole I
> suppose.
>
> My experiments so far with digital cameras, one with the IR/UV filters
> removed, have resulted in failure. Cannot even see the pole in the dark.
> Nothing but a grainy picture. Even trying to capture a picture through
> the scope. The scope came with a phone mount for capture.
>
> I am going to look at the same spot when the source is inactive. If the
> suspected tiny arc is absent then going to request the util replace that
> connector unless anyone has any further suggestions.
>
> The spotting scope I bought was ~$60 so another low cost tool maybe for
> your rfi toolbox.
>
> Underneath this one, at night I am hearing a repetitive noise. One
> minute on ~0.5 - 4 seconds off. But thats another story, lol and does
> not sound like power line arc.
>
> Chuck
> W4NBO
>
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-- 
*Dave - WØLEV*
*Just Let Darwin Work*