[Elecraft] OT: balun rating exceeded

[Jozef Hand-Boniakowski]

A few years back I bought a Buxcom G5RV and running 600 watts into it, 
the balun that it came with was toast.  I replaced it with 10 turns of 
coax wrapped around a Folger's coffee can.  Reading what G5RV had 
written about his antenna, he recommended that a balun not be used with 
his antenna.  See last link at 
http://www.metaphoria.us/hamradio/ham_radio.htm

Jozef WB2MIC


Brett gazdzinski wrote:
>  
>
> What is the benefit of a balun?
> I cant run them, as I run legal limit AM which
> will toast any balun I ever heard of.
>
> At 100 watts, or QRP, RF in the house cant be an issue,
> I don't have problems with the AM and the G5RV right over the house.
>
> I would think it would just add more loss.
>
> I used to have resonant 80 and 40 meter dipoles, but took
> them down and built a home made G5RV, #12 wire for the open wire
> line, and only about 20 feet of RG214 coax into the tuner
> or directly into the K2 with its built in atu.
> I will have very high swr on both the open wire line
> (does not matter as there is almost no loss),
> and the RG214, but there is only 20 feet of that, so I would
> guess the loss is slight.
>
> Now I could fit a balun if I just used the K2, but what
> would be the advantage?
>
> I hear you should never run a balun with any swr, the losses
> go way up. I think they now make tuners with the balun
> before the tuner (rig, balun, tuner, antenna) that works
> well....
>
>
> Brett
> N2DTS
>
>
>
>
>   
>> The following happened to me a few years ago as a brand new ham in my
>> pre-Elecraft days and I wonder if anyone can explain to me 
>> the details.  I
>> apparently had high swr and exceeded the rating on my balun.  
>> It suffered
>> accordingly but didn't completely fail.  The result was when 
>> I transmitted cw on
>> 40m an internal fuse would blow in the stereo which was on in 
>> the next room
>> room.  It took two go rounds before I caught onto the cause 
>> and effect...  A new
>> & better balun cured the problem.
>>
>> At the time I had a Zepp (135') and 4:1 balun at the house 
>> entrance.  I assume
>> the ruined balun was emitting all sorts of RF that the stereo 
>> amplifier picked
>> up, tried to amplify, and couldn't.  But I don't understand 
>> exactly what would
>> make it draw that much current.  Can someone enlighten me?
>>
>> By the way, since then I put up a dipole, halfwave for 160m, 
>> about 200' behind
>> the house.  That's what I should have begun with.
>>
>> Thanks!
>> Mike ab3ap
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