I bought a used Ham III sometime ago that needed help. Never had one apart before. I used this resource. http://www.hayseed.net/~jpk5lad/Rotors/Rotator%20Repair.htm

It's been up for 2 years without fault.

73,, Roger

Guess I should provide the link !

http://bama.edebris.com/manuals/ampsuply/lk500

This manual seems to cover both ZA and ZB, though it's title for the ZB.

73,,Roger

Diagram 2, Page 15 of DXE-RTR-1 seems pretty straight forward. Your transmit ground will need to be Y'd from the radio to the RTR and the amp. You can build one or buy a ready made RCA (m) to 2 RCA (f) Y adapter at most audio video places. Then use your existing RCA cables to complete the connections.

73,, Roger

I find that my 1 wl horizontal 80m loop actually has a higher noise level than my dipole. That said, the loop seems to be much less susceptible to power line static or E field noise than the dipole.

73,,Roger

Folks, I'm only repeating what I read in a very recent news article. And the new sets may not generate the rf that many plasma sets do. So please don't shoot the messenger. Just trying to alert those who may want to run out and buy one to check for the rf hash.

And my 50" Panasonic plasma is terrible with rf noise up through and including 20m.

73,,Roger

I can't speak for the 857, but a lot of rigs use the MON function to feed the mic audio into the headset output. Perhaps the 857 does this also. If that's the case, a high impedance tap off the the headset socket would provide both tx and rx to the soundcard or station monitor.

73,, Roger

In the news, Samsung and Panasonic are about to start delivery of 3D televisions. Ham operators beware! The 3D TV's are based on the plasma screen technology.

73,,Roger

Sounds like you may be taking your readings when in the Tune mode. To get full output while tuning, you must switch to CW Mode, set the switch to Send, then close your key. The tuning procedure doesn't tell you this, per se.

73,,Roger

I'd say your best approach, given the time limit, would be not a slide presentation but a picture show. With a very brief introduction, provide many photos of ham radio in action. From an old timer rag-chew to Amsat and everything in between. Perhaps with minimal commentary during the show. Photos of highly recognizable personalities such as Walter Cronkite (SK) and photos of ham operators in crisis situations, i.e. Katrina, or hams in the Antarctica. There is something for most everyone in ham radio. Tell the story through pictures, plant the seed and then for those who are really interested, they'll come to you.

Good Luck, Roger

Most important: DO tie all of your grounds/ground rods together.

This is curiously strange.

A trap is essentially a low pass filter. So, if the antenna is working as before on 20m, then your traps are not open or shorted. If there is any evidence of problems on 20m then you have a possible trap issue.

When you "take the tuner out of line", are you completely removing it or just bypassing the tuning circuit with the front panel bypass switch?

You stated "40 watts out", what do you expect to see and where are you reading this power indication?

Have you tried tuning up on 15 and 10 thru the tuner into a dummy load? Your problem could reside in the final tuning circuit of the radio or at the band switch.

I would start at the radio with minimal components, short known good cable and dummy load and test all bands, then progress outward from there.

73,,Roger

My Panasonic 50" plasma is a wonderful unit...until I turn the radio on. I bought the tv before I got back into radio. My Panasonic LCD is absolutely clean. I'm very curious to see how the newer LED technology will fair with radio.

I've heard of plasma units that do not cause the interference. Try doing a search on this site for more threads. As I recall there were some non-interfering units listed.

73,,Roger

After re-reading your post, I see that you did offer quite a bit of the information I suggested. My apologies. That's my old age rearing it's ugly head, again.

73..Roger

The 80m band of late has been terrible (long) and you may be experiencing some of that. Lots of static and very low signal levels.

Do you have a plasma tv? Does one of your neighbors have a plasma tv?

Vertical antennas are very susceptible to power line noise. This time of year with lots of moisture in the air will often times cause that noise to increase.

A little more information regarding your situation may help the forum to evaluate your issues. Questions to answer include: New installation, radio or antenna? New to ham radio? New QTH? When did you notice the problem? Have you confirmed it's every day or every night or is it perhaps random? Is it isolated to only a portion of a band or across several bands? As mention before, can it be associated with public works activity (street lights, etc)?

73,,Roger