[TowerTalk] Testing Antennas

[Mike Sato]

I recently bought the latest MFJ model (the one with UHF too)...I like it...initial battery check and sleep mode is handy...

I found an interesting thing about a few measurements.  SWR with MFJ versus SWR with high power changes...I think it is due to die-electric breakdown???  (e.g. old cable or water in cable, etc...)  Seems the higher power will see the problem and not the SWR test sets...

As a rule of thumb, I would add about .3 to SWR readings to get a better picture on what higher power would discover...

I would appreciate comments on this subject...

Also, what would be best method to test integrity of cable itself? (assuming already strung to an antenna)...I was thinking of cable loss measurements.  But not sure if I need higher power (again) to see dielectric breakdown....

Mike KH6TO


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