The AM Forum

Before Peter Dahl went out of business I down loaded the complete ham catalog from his web site. I did this because he listed the specs for all the transformers he sold. If anyone would like this, let me know.
The format is firefox html.

Here is an example:

JOHNSON DESK KW MOD
PP 810 MODULATORS TO PARALLEL 4-250A'S
CORE) EI-175  EE-STACK       STYLE #) 80  E-I LAMINATED CORE
PR) 1800/2400 VCT, 18000/11600 OHMS PP

S1) 1768 VAC @ 283 MA CCS (6250 OHMS RFPA)

DM) HT =  6.400 WT =  7.000 DT =  7.000 MD =  6.812 MW =  4.750
PRICE)    $450.00 Plus S&H FOB El Paso, TX    WEIGHT)   35  LBS


Bill

All the Peter DAhl stuff is now manufactured and sold through Harbach Electronics. This happened at the beginning of 2008.
The complete catalog with all the current pricing is here:
http://www.harbachelectronics.com/main/page_xfmr_catalogs.html

Hmmm,
Ok thanks..........
When Harbach first took over the Dahl facility, he said he was going to be "selective" about which transformers he would produce. Looks like things changed.
Thanks for the update.
Bill

Interesting, I looked up a PN on their web site then tried to find the price for it.  It must be one of their specials because it didn't appear in their PWD magnetics price list.

The price list is quite small.  Do they plan to increase the size of the list or make many of these thing "custom"?  Does anyone know?

JN and I talked with Jeff, the new owner, extensively at the Dayton Hamfest (his space is next to ours). He plans to continue to support the ham community.

But the new prices are thru the roof, the middleman gets a piece of the action now. I was quoted $465 for a replacement Hypersil for an Alpha 76. A SB-220 replacement is half the price of a mint complete amp.

Maybe next year we will be able to buy iron from Cuba ;D

Carl
KM1H

That seems a little light for a KW mod xfmr.  Only 35 lbs?  I think the original weighs at least twice that.  Hypersil iron?

Secondary current @ 283 MA.  DC or RMS audio current?  As I recall, the xmtr is designed to run 2500VDC @ 400 MA, so that would be about right for rms audio. Yes, these ratings are somewhat cryptic, but I could find nothing to indicate max DC current specs through the secondary.

well the prices seem about right.  you gotta remember the peter dahl prices had never been adjusted for the 100 increase in iron prices and the 450percent increase in copper as far as being more than a mint sb200 an al80 is about 1800 right now. and an 82 is 3000

A $1800 SB-200, you have to be joking. They are $350-450 all day long and SB-220's can be had for $600-800. Plug and play at full power. A lot less if you stay off Epay.

Im talking realistic prices, not museum pieces.

BTW, Dahl adjusted his prices on a regular basis but with the constant changes they werent published. You had to get a quote from Gary and by late last year they were a good 20-25% below the current list. I was a steady buyer from Dahl but no longer.

Carl
KM1H

Sorry but I just could not resist. I get $280.00 for a complete rewind of the Alpha 76A plate transformer and $235.00 for the SB-220 plate transformer.
Regards,
Gary

And I bet Gary does a better job.

um i said al80 and al82 please read my post

plug and play full power
are them bird watts or dosey watts

Hey Gary....nice to hear from ya.

This is the transformer I installed in my 500 which I bought from Dahl about 2 months before he went out of business.....

JOHNSON VIKING 500-X PLATE
OUTBOARD PLATE XFMR (2500 VDC @ 0.8A DC)
CORE) A-480   C-CORE         STYLE #) 10  HIPERSIL C-CORE
PR) 115/230 VAC 60 HZ 1PH

S1) 5800 VCT @ 0.8A CCS

DM) HT =  8.625 WT =  8.075 DT =  7.688 MD =  3.937 MW =  5.500
PRICE)    $350.00 Plus S&H FOB El Paso, TX    WEIGHT)   46  LBS

The actual price was $450.00 and I ordered from Peter himself. While talking to Peter on the fone I could tell he was not the old Peter. I have ordered a few transformers from him in the past 6 years and he will be missed.

Bill

Boy, it's been awhile since I bought a Dahl. - 3000V @ 1A CCS, 230/115 pri. hypersil, $150.

Guess you have to take just about 1/10 of the prices of everything these days to get more comfortable with our younger roots.  ;D

So $450 is $45 old; about right. 

I got one PWD unit sitting here I probably wont' use. Dahl's replacement for the Gates BC-5, looks new, the guy said it was a spare. Don't know if anyone really needs it any more but I bet it's not cheap today.

GATES BC5 SERIES MODULATION TRANSFORMER
CORE) A-0563/ C-CORE         STYLE #) 09 HIPERSIL C-CORE
PR) 5000 VCT (8000 OHMS PP) PP 3CX2500F3'S
S1) 3500 VRMS @ 1.0A (5300 VDC @ 1.3A)
DM) HT = 18.525 WT = 13.000 DT = 9.375 MD = 6.375 MW = 10.000
WEIGHT) 169 LBS

I did but since my prior post was relating to the SB-220 and Alpha 76 youre the one that drifted off topic. Try and stay focused  ;D




Ahh, the other Gary has surfaced! I dont have an Alpha 76 core, the original EI one is fine and will be finding a new home.  Im looking to get a hypersil in that same space that will handle a pair of 3CPX800A7's running at 3400VDC.

Carl
KM1H

Around $285.00 for a complete rewind of the AL-80. Hey bill, KC2IFR, Should of call, I get $303.00 for that Johnson plate Iron.
Regards,
Gary

Having had a personal tour of the WZ1M transformer rebuild facilities, I can personally vouch for Gary's work.
He is prompt, professional, and a stickler for detail.

I was so impressed I left him my filament xformer out of the Collins 30K4, he had it turned around in less than a week!

-Bruce

Hi Everyone,
I have been following this thread and thought it about time to jump in concerning transformer prices and some of the misinformation flying around.  Yes, prices have increased tremendously.  Contrary to what most people think, it is not the copper, it is the cost of Hipersil (silicon steel) and standard E-I core material that has driven the prices up.  The overall weight of copper in the transformer or choke is very small when compared to the weight of the core material, especially in large units.  Yes, you can get a transformer re-wound for a lot less than a new unit.  It makes sense that if the core material is re-usable, you save a lot of material cost in not having to buy a new core.  As long as the core can be separated so the coil(s) can be removed and re-wound (very easy to do with a cut-core, or C-core, but not often easy with an E-I unit where all of the individual laminations have been varnished together), you can save quite a bit of money.

People seem to think I am making a killing doing this.  That is not true.  I am doing it as a labor of enjoyment, like the Harbach Electronics kits and parts.  The main reason I took over for Peter was to keep all of his transformer designs "alive" so they did not disappear when he retired.  Believe me, I am not in it to make a fortune.  With the cost of materials and labor today, the prices of the transformers has to go up to stay in business.  I am not afraid to let anyone know a complete breakdown of how transformer prices are calculated.  In the end, profit on 1-2 unit "ham-related" iron is about 4% above material cost.

I appreciate all of the support I have received and will continue to do my best at this.  Once my new shop is built and I relocate to South Carolina, hopefully labor prices will be a little lower and prices can be adjusted.  Matter of fact, since copper and steel prices have declined somewhat, transformer prices have been adjusted down a little to account for this.

73,
Jeff  W8CQ

P.S.  WA1GFZ, why the cheap shot at me in your above message?

Jeff,

I, for one, am very happy you have picked up these designs and continue to make them available.  I used a Peter Dahl transformer when I built my large homebrew amp a few years ago and a couple of his chokes in another project.  As long as I can remember there were complaints about P. Dahl prices but the transformers are well made and are well worth it in my opinion.  There are many cases where it does make more sense to get the existing transformer rewound but in other cases if the original component was marginal in ratings upgrading to a different transformer is the better long-range plan.  I have also reached the point in life where major homebrew projects are going to be built for reliability instead of lowest cost and for those going with expensive new "iron" is the right path for me.

Thanks again for continuing this line of products!

Rodger WQ9E

Jeff,
I'm sorry I don't even know you and mean no harm. I have designed a number of transformers and wound a number of them in my lap. I have to tell you though, Gary is at least as anal as I am about vibrating wire. Actually I will add Gary's method to my method the next time I wind to be even more anal. How many commecical guys paint each layer with varnish by hand while winding. Zero in my 30 plus years. Yea, you can pull 20 inches on it and hope.

Hi Francis,
No problem.  Please don't let my sometimes thin skin get anything going.  I was just a little riled.  No harm, no foul!.

Regards,
Jeff

Yeah, yeah... the only reason you don't drive your Ferrari to Dayton's cause you're afraid Steve and I are gonna write nasty slogans on yer windows  ;D

In all seriousness I can vouch for Jeff's sincerity and love of the hobby.   He's actually a pretty patient guy, too, explaining to some customer step by step how to connect up one of his kits while getting bombarded with pistachio shells.

For sure, John! So all you cheap hams, cut the crap. First you P&M about Dahl going out of business then you P&M when it stays in business.

See you at Dayton, Jeff.

Glad someone is keeping the line going.  Good work

I heard Jeff now has a both work Ferrari and pleasure Ferrari. I got to learn how wind things and make money.

(http://www.animation-station.com/cars/images/car023.gif)

lot of truth there. and then ....ONE STEP BEYOND.... none of them ever bought anything from Dahl in the first place because they would NEVER pay the price, no matter what it was.

....coming out of the woodwork... again. "Ya got me" Derb ;D

I did (as I mentioned before) and it's the best and most versitile iron I've ever owned.

It was a special.  Just long ago enough to adjust to this board's econometer.

3000v @ 1A, CCS, 120/240 pri.  I mean, now how nice is that?  Can run a 4x1 full strap at 240 primary and a pair of 8874's SSB at half strap (120 pri.)   The DC loaded voltages, given those tubes in legal amateur service, are quite nice.

Best to you in your business Jeff.
 - a great niche for amateurs * a valued niche for commerce * unexcelled niche for military and space -

Actually it is a very good business to be in if you can get mil certified. The company we used for years changed hands and now run by clowns.