"Richard Clark" wrote in message
news
On Fri, 7 Apr 2006 22:04:32 -0700, "Sal M. Onella"
wrote:

I had a USN antenna experience with an improperly-modified shipboard HF
XMIT
antenna. The Radiomen said it was hard to
tune to it, the reflected power was always high and they never seemed
able
to "get out on it" (meaning poor reception reports from the distant end).

When we put the antenna right, all their problems went away.

Hi OM,

What was the problem, and what did you do to fix it?

73's
Richard Clark, KB7QHC

The antenna was a trussed whip for 10-30 MHz. The truss frame was
stabilized by four turnbuckles connected to the base through ceramic
insulators. One of the RM's had bonded across the insulators. We were
about to do a routine megger check when my partner spotted it. We couldn't
believe our eyes.

EMI bond straps are appropriate for a lot of things topside. That wasn't
one of them. :-)

"Sal"
(John, KD6VKW; USN 1962 - 1982)

PS: Radiomen are no more, per se. They and the Data Processing Technicians
were rolled into a combined rating of Information Systems Technician - IT.
Where it was once hard to find somebody in Radio Central who knew anything
about RF, it is now twice as hard. For me, it's called Job Security, so I'm
not _really_ complaining.