Articles written by: OnAllBands

ameritron antenna tuner
Technical Articles

Quick Tip: Using Your Transceiver Antenna Tuner Can Cause Damage to Your Amplifier

If you have an amplifier connected to your transceiver output, do not use your transceiver’s antenna tuner.  Even if your amplifier is turned off or in bypass mode don’t do […]

Ham Radio coaxial cable Lightning protector
Technical Articles / Weatherproofing and Grounding

How to Test RF Lightning Protectors with Indicators

RF lightning protectors are designed to protect RF equipment by equalizing the potential difference between the center pin of the coax cable and its shield. The majority of RF protectors do […]

Broken bolt with nut
Technical Articles

Why Should I Use Anti-Seize on Brand-New Stainless Hardware?

With high quality stainless steel alloys, thread galling and cold-welding can make the hardware seize and fail. Although most hams don’t understand why anti-seize is recommended, it is vital to […]

UHF Ham Radio Antenna mounted high on mast
Technical Articles

How to Ensure Better UHF Coaxial Feed Lines

HF users really don’t have many coax issues. As long as power levels aren’t breached, just about any feed line will work without much concern. Even DXE-8X coax (Mini 8) can be […]

base of antenna with radials installed
Antenna Tech / Technical Articles

Radials 101: Why Should I Use Radials with My Ground-Mounted Vertical Antenna?

Many hams ask why they should bother to add the recommended radial field to their ground-mounted vertical antenna. There are reasons why it’s a good idea. Ground-mounted verticals use the […]

DX Engineering clamp and bonding braid strap
Technical Articles

How to Troubleshoot Noise in HF Mobile Installations

Many hams find that their HF mobiles receive more noise than they do usable signals. Common noise sources include the ignition system and alternator. Spark plug noise is propagated through […]

ham radio rf amplifier collage
Technical Articles

Mailbag: Is it OK to Run an Amplifier on 120 Volts AC?

Question: Is it OK to run an amplifier on 120 volts AC? This is a question that many new Amateurs ask themselves when they’re buying their first amplifier. There are […]

Signalink Ham Radio usb sound card interface
Technical Articles

Sound Card Interface Transmit Troubleshooting

SITUATION: The Sound Card interface you just installed (SignaLink, RigExpert, Soundblaster) is not sending digital tones through the transceiver. The natural conclusion you may draw is that the sound card interface or […]

Ham Radio Antenna Tuner
Technical Articles

When is an Antenna Tuner not an Antenna Tuner?

When is an antenna tuner not an antenna tuner? Answer: all the time! “Antenna tuner” is really a bad name for the devices that present a low SWR to our transmitters and […]

Thimbles for antenna guy line
Products & Product Reviews / Technical Articles

Mailbag: Using a Thimble with EHS Guy Wire or Phillystran Guy Line Big Grips

Q: When should I use a thimble with EHS Guy Wire or Phillystran Guy line Big Grips? A: Whenever a Big Grip is attached to a metal guy bracket or guy anchor, you should always use an appropriately-sized thimble. The thimble […]