[ARC5] Need Help with Variac Diagnosis

[Dennis DuVall]

I've been running a pair of 20 amp GR Variacs in my HB 3-1000z linear  
for years off various mains setups and have never experienced the  
"inrush (and other) problems reported in this thread.

Dennis DuVall, W7QHO
Glendale, CA

******************


On Feb 19, 2015, at 3:16 PM, Phillip Carpenter wrote:

> Mike,
>
> I am pretty sure I have it wired correctly. I have the manual for  
> the Autotransformer and I wired it as per the manual.
>
> I believe Ken has the right answer to my problem #2. There must be  
> some metal shaving or a loose washer that has fallen into the  
> winding shorting it near one end. That would explain the decreased  
> voltage reading. I'm going to take it back apart and after I  
> carefully inspect the winding blow it out with air pressure and see  
> it anything comes out.
>
> I'm debating whether to hard wire the inrush current limiter in  
> series on the input side or whether I should add it via a switch  
> like Ken did with the resistor so I can switch it out after startup.  
> I'm not sure I want to drill anymore holes for another switch. The  
> inrush current limiter (thermistor) is supposed to be able to stay  
> in the circuit all the time. It's resistance drops to zero as it  
> heats up.
>
> Many thanks for the discussion.
>
> I'm going to look at bucking transformer setup too. But I'll need  
> one that can handle up to a 2000 watt transceiver. Any ideas on what  
> bucking transformer to use for this situation?
>
> Respectfully,
>>