[Elecraft] HI Current

[Don Wilhelm]

Bruce,

It would appear to me that something has happened in your 20 meter Low 
Pass Filter.
The K3 should develop 100 watts with about 17 amps of current.  As I 
indicated previously, the most common problem would be with the LPF.  
Contact K3support for additional assistance and steps to resolution.

73,
Don W3FPR

On 12/15/2014 9:19 PM, Bruce Chadbourne wrote:
> Don, et. al.
> Thanks for the replies. I can repeat this problem (a good thing) at 20m CW
> around 14.115 Mhz.
> Power supply (Astron VS-35M, front panel meters) showing proper voltage,
> and current knob set toward max.
> At 14.050, SWR reads 1.0 on the K3. Power set at 100w. Voltage reads 13.8v,
> then with key down, K3 meter says 23 amps, voltage drops to 12.6v    No HI
> CUR warning.
>
> At 14.115, SWR still 1.0, 100 watts,  13.8v, put the key down, the HI CUR
> warning appears most of the time (so I can't read voltage/amp on K3 meter).
> One time it didn't show, and current was still 23-ish amps, and voltage
> 12.6; at which point I realized the rig had automatically reduced power
> from 100 to 88 watts.   The ammeter on the Power supply reads about 17 amps
> at both freqs, with and without HI CUR warning.  The power supply voltage
> meter does not show the deflection below 13v, stays rock steady. That seems
> to say the voltage drop under load is happening at the terminals or power
> cord
>
> Per your suggestion I checked the lugs on the back of the power supply -
> very firm, but I guess  I'll disconnect the leads and clean them and repeat
> the test.
> I guess my question to the experts in the group: does a 1.2 volt drop at
> the rig sound normal at 100w? I am using the power lead that came with the
> K3 kit; it looks healthy, hasn't been out of the shack on any field day ops
>
>
> On Mon, Dec 15, 2014 at 4:20 PM, Don Wilhelm <w3fpr at embarqmail.com> wrote:
>> Bruce,
>>
>> I would expect a Hi REFL message rather than Hi Cur if SWR was the problem.
>> Check your power supply connections.  If you have bolts and nuts on the
>> power supply output terminals, if the bolts turn (even slightly) when you
>> tighten the nuts, you will have to dig inside the power supply to fully
>> tighten the bolts to the lugs on the inside.
>>
>> With Elecraft gear, a low power supply voltage will result in a higher
>> current draw from the power supply.  Elecraft gear seeks to maintain the
>> requested power output, and a low supply voltage means that the current
>> must increase to maintain the power level.
>>
>> 73,
>> Don W3FPR
>>
>>
>> On 12/14/2014 4:18 PM, Bruce Chadbourne wrote:
>>
>>> To the list:
>>>
>>> I occasionally get the Hi Current warning on my K3. I notice it cuts my
>>> power back about 10% from 100w.  My initial assumption is that my SWR is
>>> too high - but the SWR meter is easily less than 2.0  I run the ATU which
>>> confirms SWR about 1.2 or so.
>>> So what am I missing - something bad in my transmission line?
>>>
>>>