Yes, it is normal for the fan to run when you key the transmitter, regardless of mode.  When you unkey, the fan should stop unless it's been putting out power for a few minutes.

To K5LXP: After I received the OO card I had someone about 100 miles away check me out.  He said he could hear me on 80 but that I was distorted and weak, and about 50 dB weaker than on 160.

To K5LXP: After I received the OO card I had someone about 100 miles away check me out.  He said he could hear me on 80 but that I was distorted and weak, and about 50 dB weaker than on 160.

One of the problems encountered when using this type of an antenna, as with any trap antenna, is that if your harmonic suppression is not all that great you may be heard on the next highest frequency band.  It happened to me running a TS-940 into a 1500 watt amplifier, and got cited by an Official Observer for it.  I was transmitting SSB on 1865 kHz and was heard loud and clear on 3730 kHz...using a 160/80 fan dipole.

Usually depends on how much power you put into the antenna and where the tree limbs are with respect to the high voltage points on the wire.  I run the same type of insulated wire you're using on 160...the inverted L is draped over a tree crotch at the 60 foot level where the voltage is low.  I run a kilowatt into it with no arcing on the tree branch.  

Joe:  I bought one about 3 years ago.  I had the same problem, especially on 40 meters driving with as much as 100 watts I could not get more than 400 watts output.  I talked to Mike Ennis of Ameritron and he said they ship these amps out with a heavy duty swamping resistor in the input so people don't blow up the amp with 100-120 watts of drive.  He sent me a different swamping resistor and that allowed me to drive the amp with much lower power and improved the output on 40 meters up to 500+ watts.  You may want to give him a call and get the details...the replacement resistor is free if your amp is still under warranty.  Ron, W4VR

I have dropped the ends of a 160 meter dipole to make it resonant in the band with very good results.  I'll tell you one thing, it is more efficient than a shorter, loaded dipole.  Even zig-zagging a dipole on a small lot to make it resonant is better than using loading coils or other contraptions.  Good Luck!

Anyone out there ever had this problem with the PRO2 besides me.  Turning on produces no rx or tx.  Turning it off and on again, everthing ok.  If I wait a few hours and turn it on again...same problem.  I've reset the microprocessor twice and does not fix the problem.  Any suggestions besides sending the radio back to Icom??  Is there a hard microprocessor reset inside the radio I don't know about??

Most people place them parallel to each other and space them apart to get additional gain.  However, if you put them at right angles to each other you may want to consider phasing them...similar to a turnstile.  Better yet, add one more element to one half square and call it a bobtail curtain.

I've never heard of measuring the impedance of a transceiver, or coax for that matter; but if you want to measure the impedance of your antenna you can do it with the MFJ or Autek analyzer.  The Autek one is about a third of the price of the MFJ one.  Good luck.

Mike:  I had tube amplifiers for many years and had pretty good luck with them...with the exception of a few bad tubes (inter-element shorts, bad filament welds, etc.).  I recently bought two Icom PW-1's and just love them; these put out a minimum of 1 kilowatt on HF and 6 meters.  They're a bit more expensive than the Tube types but they are a heck of a lot easier to operate, and in my opinion are more reliable than the tube amps...they also run much cooler than the Alpha 89 I used to have.  As for distortion products of SS amps, sure they're a few decibels higher than the tube types, but they still meet FCC requirements so who cares.  If you buy a solid state amp make sure it has a built-in automatic tuner...that puts the icing on the cake.  I'm done with tube amps after what I've experienced with the PW-1.

Number 1....your antenna is to close to your house.  Number 2....on some bands the transmission line radiates as much as the dipole itself.

My friend, in a phone contest anything goes, including working split on top of an on-going qso.  No one really gives a damn during a contest.  That's just the way it's been for decades and the way it will be for the indefinite future.  That is why I spend my time on 17 meters during a phone contest.

I have the HM-10 microphone.  There is a built-in foam wind screen inside the mouthpiece (grill)...unscrew the top part and you will see it.  There is no need for an external wind screen.  I tried an external wind screen, which I purchased at Radio Shack, and I also got the same bassy reports....it sounds crispier without it.  Ron

Get a DC power supply...they are really cheap...under $100 for a good Astron switching supply.  With regard to the station ground, if your radio is located not too far away from the service entrance ground connect to it.  Using multiple ground rods (i.e., a separate one for your radio) is a no-no from the standpoint of lightning protection.  A common ground is important in any building/home situation.