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THE AM BULLETIN BOARD => Technical Forum => Topic started by: W9ZSL on October 11, 2015, 07:55:59 PM



Title: Heathkit AT-1 Rebuild: Filaments
Post by: W9ZSL on October 11, 2015, 07:55:59 PM
I've polished the chassis best I can.  Since I don't have the cabinet, I decided to make my own to save 8+" of rack space.  Components including the sockets and switches are in remarkably good condition.  I'm beginning to mount them as I clean them.  I've decided to repaint the power xfmr, so as soon as that dries, I'll start working on the power supply.

Dumb Question Time: Heath shows the filament circuit with one lead grounded.  I'd rather go with a twisted pair.  Is there any advantage to running a twisted pair?


Title: Re: Heathkit AT-1 Rebuild: Filaments
Post by: N2DTS on October 11, 2015, 09:22:29 PM
Twisted is good if any audio is around, but maybe it does not matter in rf circuits.
I always did twisted pair where I could.
Some RF stuff might like a very short path to ground, even on isolated filament tubes...


Title: Re: Heathkit AT-1 Rebuild: Filaments
Post by: KA2DZT on October 11, 2015, 10:58:51 PM
I've polished the chassis best I can.  Since I don't have the cabinet, I decided to make my own to save 8+" of rack space.  Components including the sockets and switches are in remarkably good condition.  I'm beginning to mount them as I clean them.  I've decided to repaint the power xfmr, so as soon as that dries, I'll start working on the power supply.

Dumb Question Time: Heath shows the filament circuit with one lead grounded.  I'd rather go with a twisted pair.  Is there any advantage to running a twisted pair?

Not for RF work, twisted pair is usually for audio circuits.  Twisted pair filament wiring in RF circuits would probably cause problems.  It is used in low level audio circuits to keep ac currents off the chassis.

 I have a cabinet for the AT-1 hanging around.  I'll check the thing out to be sure it's from an AT-1 and let you know.

Fred


Title: Re: Heathkit AT-1 Rebuild: Filaments
Post by: W9ZSL on October 12, 2015, 01:46:12 PM
I've always used a twisted pair for audio but wasn't sure about RF.  Now in looking through some handbooks, most of the filament supplies show one side grounded.  The exceptions seem to be in amps, but they have separate xfmrs with a grounded center tap.  Fred, if you have a cabinet for this animal, that would be fantastic!

Mike
AMfone - Dedicated to Amplitude Modulation on the Amateur Radio Bands