"someone with a bogus name"

For the linguistically challenged English speakers:

INIGOMONTOYA, Inigo Montoya

Inigo - een ee gho

Montoya - Mon toy ah

I'm not sure if the phonetics are correct but they get the point across.

"Paranoia strikes deep..."

"I'd be careful of someone with a bogus name who can't spell "cord" and starts talking about bunkers"

HOO BOY! Somebody is watching far too many spy movies! 1.) How do you know his name is "bogus"?
2.) Bunkers are NOT ONLY military structures.  They are also used in industry, for example, rocket engine testing sites.  A line from a song:  "Paranoia strikes deep..."
Tom

"then drive a 2C39 to get to 20-30W pretty cheaply."

2C39...UCKKKK!  That's right up there with an 829B.  I think those tubes go flat the minute you light up the heater!  Why not a solid state final?  Toshiba and Motorola both make good hybrid modules in the 20 to 40 watt range at that frequency that will far outperform the 2C39 and last years longer.  Therefore, if the initial cost is higher than the tube, which I doubt, the cost over a couple of years use will me much lower.
Tom

If the entire assembly fits within the tube base, you could just pot the assembly with epoxy.  That would also add an element of security or copy protection to your design.  I have done that with electronics with very good success.
Tom

"That's a link to the 50 foot telescoping mast made by Rohn and sold by Tessco, who stocks them and ships same day."

An excellent mast, far sturdier than any other one I've seen.  HOWEVER, a word of warning about the shipping.  As others have pointed out beware of shipping charges.  I ordered the 40' version from Tessco 4 or 5 years ago while I was still working.  I was delighted when the parts girl gave me the invoice; about $60.00.  Two or three days later, I got the bill for shipping.  Tessco sent it Motor Freight and the bill was $130.00 FOR JUST THE SHIPPING.  Suddenly I wasn't delighted any longer.  At least it did remind me to look at all aspects of a purchase before committing to it.  I was told that that was the only way it could be shipped as it exceeded size and/or weight limits for UPS, FedEx, etc.
Tom

I'm not familiar with the 221, but as it's been a while since you posted with no comments, I'll offer my best guess.  I have worked on my TM-241 with a display problem and, if they're similar, this might help.  The display (on mine at least) is surface mounted to the display board and the lights are not visible without removing the display assembly.  This would be done with a hot air or possibly IR rework station in order to prevent damage to the display.  I know of no way that it could be removed safely without those tools.  Fortunately, in my case, the lights were OK so I didn't need to address that issue.  I realize this is kind of sketchy with a lot of "if's" but, at least it's a start.  WHERE ARE THE KENWOOD TECHS. OUT THERE???  C'MON GUYS, GIVE US A CLUE!  Other than that, you might try to find a "parts" radio that you could get the display board from.  Good Luck,
Tom

If, by "hardline" you mean the FSJ4-50, loss is 1.28 and 2.31db per 100 feet for 2meter and 70cm respectively.  For 130 feet, then, the loss would be 1.67db for 2m and 3.0db for 70cm.  Your 30 feet of LMR400 would lose about 1.6 db at 2m and about 2.8db at 70cm per 100 feet for a net loss of 0.48db and 0.84db respectively.  Total loss on 2meter would then be 2.15db and on 70cm it would be 3.84db.  You didn't mention if the run up the tower is included in the 30 feet of LMR400 or not.  If not, you would have to add that loss.  What does this all mean?  Well, assuming the above is the total length of cable, your power delivered to the antenna on 2 meters, with 50 watts out of the radio, would be about 30.5watts and at 70cm, with 35watts out of the radio, about 14.5watts would be delivered to the antenna.  On 2meter receive, with a 1uV signal out of the antenna, about 0.89uV would appear at the radio's antenna connector.  On 70cm receive, with 1uV at the antenna terminals, about 0.64uV would be available to the radio.  All this pretty much confirms what an earlier poster noted.  While it would work OK for strong, local signals, DX would certainly be out of the question.  You would probably be better off with a moderate length mast on the house for your VHF/UHF work.  Good luck,
Tom

"Nobody on this forum is involved in "armature" radio."

Besided, that'll just keep you going in circles!

Another issue that I haven't seen mentioned:  Don't forget the patient/victim privacy issue.  In today's environment with laws like HIPPA and more, discussing a victim's injuries, etc. in an open forum such as amateur radio could be another hazard you would prefer to avoid.  Encription cannot be used on amateur radio (the called party couldn't decode it anyway) and discussing medical issues for all the world to hear is another can of worms best left tightly shut.
Tom

Depends on which version of Saber RSS you have.  The early RSS would not run on even a 486/33Mc machine, it had to be a 386 or lower.  That issue was resolved after about the third or fourth revision as I recall and the later versions would run on a 486 but I don't recall all of the details; it's been too long ago.  Either Batlabs or RB had an Excel file of RSS, the latest revision available, the computers it would run on, etc., etc.  I'm pretty sure I saw that on Batlabs, but check out both sites again.  Also, post your question there, there are quite a few people that are pretty sharp on that older SW and can answer your question off the top of their head.  Just be sure to pick the programming thread, they're both pretty persnickity about posting on the right thread.  Good luck,
Tom

"Now, once a light load is applied, I can see where the current begins to rise..."

OOooopppsss!  Time to go to bed!  I meant to say, "...I can see where the POWER begins to rise..."

"The RS/M 35 amp supply (were talking linear) will draw .. no current useage on DC.. about 50 watts an hour. Yep you got it. The 50 series will draw a whopping 70 watts per hour and the bigg'n almost 85."

OK!  I'm confused.  Where is that power being dissipated?  I have left my supply (an RS50) on for hours with no load while working at my test bench and there is no noticeable heat from the pass transistors.  Upon looking at the schematic, I can't find a load for the output, just a couple of capacitors across the output.  Are you suggesting that the regulator circuit draws that much idling current?  And, if so, why is the idling current higher for the 50 series and higher still for the 70 series when they use the identical regulator board.  Now, once a light load is applied, I can see where the current begins to rise as the series resistance of the pass transistors is very high and they are dropping a fair amount of voltage to maintain the preset output of 13.8 volts under light load.  As the load increases, the series resistance of the pass transistors decreases, the voltage drop decreases and the power dissipated as heat decreases.  But when the emitters of the pass transistors are essentially open-circuit, where does that 50 to 85 watts go?
Tom

Actually, the "THUMP" is caused by the inrush current at turn-on trying to charge the 64,000 uf input capacitor (in a 35 series supply) which, for a few cycles, looks like a dead short to the transformer and rectifier diodes.  Conventional wisdom would dictate turning the supply on and off as little as possible or, better yet, installing an inrush current limiting circuit to protect the supply, HOWEVER, as has been pointed out many times on this thread, for some unknown reason, the Astron supplies seem to take it and operate almost indefinitely with frequent on/off cycles.  As the saying goes, "Nothing succeeds like success." so just do whatever is most convenient to your operating procedure.  It seems to make little difference in actual practice.
As a side note the 50 series supply has to charge a little over A TENTH OF A FARAD on power-up and and the 70 series even more than that.  Like the TIMEX, they just keep ticking too.
Tom

"...vets frequently board pets for a rasonable daily fee."

Now here is someone who, apparently, hasn't had a pet in a while!  Nowadays, vets don't do anything for a reasonable fee.  My vet just tried to charge me $30.00 for the very same medicine that I got online at a vet supply house for $3.99.  When I confronted my vet, she acknowledged that they buy from the same place.  I don't begrudge anyone a fair profit, but...
HOWEVER,
As a previous poster humorously noted, FOR THEIR OWN SAFETY, leave your pets at home.  Take them somewhere where they can be the center of your attention, not a distraction to be ignored while perusing the items on display (and the radio gear, too) at the hamfest.  AND bring them a steak, or at least a hamburger, when you get home.
Tom

1/8" is 3.175mm so the poster was correct when he indicated that 3.5mm is not identical with 1/8".  The 1/8" jack fits kind of sloppy in the jack and, as you noticed, is hanging up on the center contacts.  Buying the correct metric plug is no doubt the answer.
Tom