[R-390] Orange Drop Question

[ToddRoberts2001@aol.com]

<PRE>There is a method that can be used to determine which lead of an orange drop 
is the outside foil if the capacitor is not marked for this, or if it makes 
any difference. Take a high-gain audio amplifier and hook the capacitor 
across the audio input. A small Radio Shack battery-powered  audio amp works 
good for this. It is best to make up a dedicated input lead for this with a 
short length of shielded cable correctly wired to a plug for the input jack - 
with the cable shield wired to ground side. Connect the capacitor across the 
input lead - one lead to the shield and the other lead to the center or "hot" 
conductor. Now turn up the gain a bit and grip the orange-drop capacitor with 
a couple of fingers. If the outer foil is connected to shield ground you 
should not hear any rise in hum. If the inner foil is connected to shield 
ground you will hear a definite rise in hum level when you grip the capacitor 
body because now the outer foil is "floating" above ground. Not the most 
scientific method for determining this but one that works! 73 Todd Roberts 
WD4NGG.