Re: [TenTec] FW: [DX-CHAT] fire danger in amp

[Robert & Linda McGraw K4TAX <RMcGraw@Blomand.Net>]

Well, what let loose in the PSU and what actually burned?  We'd all like to 
know for future reference and maybe avoid a similar incident.  Not to 
mention advanced excitement.
73
Bob, K4TAX


----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Ron Notarius WN3VAW" <wn3vaw@verizon.net>
To: "Ten-Tec Reflector" <tentec@contesting.com>
Sent: Wednesday, January 04, 2006 10:49 PM
Subject: [TenTec] FW: [DX-CHAT] fire danger in amp


> FYI -- please send any responses to direct to K4VUD at k4vud@hotmail.com
>
> 73, ron wn3vaw
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Charles Harpole <k4vud@hotmail.com>
> Sent: Wednesday, January 04, 2006 10:46 PM
> To: dx-chat@njdxa.org
> Subject: [DX-CHAT] fire danger in amp
>
> I just had a scare....  After a 6 month of being off, I turned on my Ten 
> Tec
> Titan (the first version) and it blew the fuses with a big arc in the amp
> box.  Of course, I put in new fuses and turned it on again (without 
> checking
> for interior faults--first mistake) thinking it was an arc in the final
> tank, maybe.  With new fuses, I turned it on again.
>
> This time a huge pop and flash in the power supply box (separate from the
> amp box), smoke, smell of burning, AND A FIRE INSIDE THE POWER SUPPLY ! 
> The
> fire showed real blaze inside for about a minute and then lots of smoke 
> came
> out.
>
> The point of my story is that I had the power supply sitting on a piece of
> cardboard on top of a wall-to-wall carpet, and it was under my bench in a
> tight spot with a very heavy rig in a cardboard box in front of it. 
> Morale
> is that if it had burned a bit longer, it may have caught my house on fire
> and it was placed so that jerking it out was very difficult. I did get it
> out with great difficulty and put it outside on the concrete deck.  I do
> have a master AC kill switch which I turned off fast, but ......
>
> Somthing to think about when placing radios in hard-to-reach spots.  WOW.
>
> 73
>
> Charles Harpole
> k4vud@hotmail.com
>
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