"Airy R.Bean" wrote -
Picking up a project that has been put down for 6 months - has
anybody got experience of manufacturing their own ATU
switches out of brass, either as knife switches or else as
ginormous banana plugs which then engage axially with
a sliding action?

I have conceived of a design for an experimental ATU that
allows changes of configuration (including the safety earthing
when not in use) using only 8 single-pole single throw switches,
into the most common configurations.

==================================

The trouble with as many as 8 single-throw, high-current, high-voltage
switches in a tuner, is the stray inter-component wiring and inductance and
capacitance they introduce.

Even with a minimum number of, or no switches, it requires TWO independent
tuners, in separate boxes with separate coaxial connectors, to cover the
range 1.8 to 30 Mhz with reasonable power efficiency.

You need practical experience by building one or two to see how they
perform. Try again and then come back!
----
Reg.