[Elecraft] Antenna static charge precautions - any tips?

[Bill Frantz]

It seems to me that with an antenna switch that doesn't short 
the unselected antennas by default, like the DX Engineering 
RR8A-HP remote antenna switch, it might be advisable to either 
set the switch up to short the unselected antennas or add a 
resistor across them individually. Otherwise when an antenna 
carrying a significant static charge is switched to a radio, the 
charge might overwhelming the radio's protective resistors.

Whether dammage would occur depends on the inductance between 
the antenna and the radio's sensitive components. The natural 
inductance of the feed line wiring will broaden the electrical 
pulse and give the radio's resistors more time to bleed off the 
charge. I have no idea if typical feed lines have enough 
inductance to protect a radio in these circumstances.

Cheers - Bill, AE6JV

On 9/9/12 at 14:19, philji at mac.com (Phil Townsend) wrote:

>Sooo... looks like its a good idea to place them somewhere in 
>the feedline after the antenna switcher...or maybe within the 
>the antenna switcher box.
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