My wife and I both have touch lamps at the bedside.   I installed (plug/plug) and plug in strip to control both.  When I am on the air, I turn them off.   Otherwise they cycle in random ways.

If the sweep is an issue, integrate a plastic conduit elbow.  These have a door on the backside for pulling the wire and then redirecting in the new direction.   Using one of these would allow use of larger conduit -- plastic isn't that expensive.

Not long ago, I came across a roll of number 12 copperweld wire -- about 200 pounds of it. I had a long wire about 5-6 hundred feet back on the farm.  My dad used quite a bit of it to build electric fences, but I still have about 100 pounds or more of it left, just waiting for that rhombic that I'm going to build.  Well, I say, not long ago.  I'm 65, and I bought this when I was fifteen.  Seems like just yesterday.  I've drug this all over the state of Missouri -- with no small amount of cursing.  Finally have three acres, and I might just get some of that stuff in the air.

I believe new antennas use the hose clamps.  Not as elegant, but very effective and cheap.

A call to MFJ / Hygain would yield an answer.   I'm guessing many parts designed for the current TH 7 model would work.   I obtained several parts for my 7 last year.

I'm far from an expert on the subject, but I'd guess part of the issue is the output expected out of the tubes.  My old 2K-4A is barely audible, but it isn't rated at 1500 watts output.  When the two 3-500's are put in a 3K, more air is needed to save the tubes, and my understanding is that there is much more noise.

I'm actually surprised eat the output folks advertise from their used L4Bs, and other 3-500 combos.  I seem to get only about 12-1300 out at maximum, but that's with tubes about 35-40 years old. 

The R-8 is still in current production with MFJ. I would imagine they would sell exact replacement parts.  I recently obtained several specialized parts for a TH-7 that is probably thirty years old from them.  They were very reasonable, although I had to shake their tree a bit to get them.

Looks like the choke input hasbeen replaced with caps. Rebuilt to ham standards.

I used a homemade rooftop for years.  Confident it wasn't going to come down in wind or ice.  This was about eight feet high made of steel square tubing.  Angle iron would likely work fine.  Biggest problem is not safety but roof leaks.  If you hAve a steep roof on a two story house, though, I'm beginning to get cold feet.   Otherwise it's a pretty simple project.  Price the steel, though first.

I get RF into my 2000 at times when using my amp.   I've found that disconnecting the additional antennas from the back of the radio solves this problem.

My guess is that one of the wires is broken in the connecting cable either in the meter case or the in-line unit.   This would be the most obvious place to look initially.

If it was a diode problem, it would probably only be one, and that would only affect either forward or reverse.

I think what WIK is trying to say is -- It doesn't sound like you know what you are doing and taking a tower down is all too easy.   Unfortunately, you may be close to the top when it happens.

I see a lot of them for sale with varying prices, with the stipulation of removing it.    If your tree trimming buddies have a cherry picker truck, you may be in business, though.

For $1500, if you are willing to do the work yourself, I would think you could shop for some used combos.   That will buy a lot of steel and aluminum on the market today.   Haunt Craigslist especially.   For example, I have less than $200 in a TH7, rotator, and 70 foot tower.

It's actually a very poor radio.  I had one of these that I built new as a kit back in about 62.   It drifted, had harmonic radiation, -- Earned me a couple of OO reports -- would advise staying away from it if possible.   I was about 14 years old at them time, and I wrote Allied -- I had traded my Globe Chief Deluxe on the T-150.  They ended up refunding the 150's price to me, and I sent the radio back to them.  It's not in the same league (for "badness") as the Eico 753, (which I also unfortunately tried to make work), but close.  I built a Heath Apache -- much, much better.