Afaik, Shane wasn't working on the amp at the time, he was behind all the gear, and brushed up against the single, tiny strand, protruding..1-2mm sideways from the (incorrectly installed) Millen 'hv' connector. Shane learned the hard way, and now uses proper HV rated connectors. Typ, 10 kv, red Belden test prod wire (silicone covered) was used with those millen connectors...and that stuff is 18 ga stranded...and each strand is miniscule. You wouldn't even see one strand sticking out the side. Other HV cables commonly used is GTO wire. The millen connectors have several issues with em, one being, zero strain relief, not shielded, hygroscopic, not rated for 7 kv, can and will arc to the metal mounting screws, used to mount the female chassis end of the connector to the chassis.
Some will mount the female end from the inside of the chassis (RL Drake)..and some will mount on the outside of the chassis...(how millen depicts their use). If mounted on the outside of the chassis, the leakage path on the inside is non existent. If mounted on the inside, the chassis / rear panel has to be thin material. If it's too thick, the male end will bottom out onto the rear apron... and threads will not be fully engaged. I have used em off and on for 50 years. They are a stupid connector. I still use em on my drake amps, and there, they are mounted from the inside, on thin material, and max B+ is 2650 vdc. Drake used thick insulation on the hv cable, and the way it comes out of the main cable, has loads of strain relief. Other tricks to increase the leakage path is to use nylon mounting screws instead of metal, and also to install some thin, teflon sheeting between the millen female body...and chassis.
On any other amp, either hard wired at RF deck end... or both ends. If HV connectors used, proper connectors, designed for the application are installed.
Grover, next time I work on a SB-220, Henry 8k, or any other tube amp, HB or commercially made, I'll be sure to defer to some.. 'trained professional'. One can easily get killed working on an AL-811 amp vs anything bigger.
If somebody wants to sue somebody, sue the James Millen company, for their marketing of their infamous 'HV' (death trap) connectors. While you at it, sue the ARRL for their unsafe designs in the ARRL handbooks over the years. Any idiot knows a B+ meter gets directly wired between the B+ and B- of the filter cap assy in the HV supply...and NOT between the B+...downstream from the filter caps...and chassis. Any idiot knows that when the RF deck is in one box..and the HV supply is in another box, BOTH boxes get a HV meter..and both of em are wired directly between the B+ and the B-.
Some of the....'interlocks' ..... I have seen on commercial gear leave a lot to be desired. Some will just dump the power to the primary contactor....leaving the filter caps charged up...until they bleed down over time. Some will slam the B+ to chassis ground (and not directly to the B-). Never seen one ...yet, that has a redundant , correctly wired interlock safety setup. On the last B+ supply I built, we used a series pair of red neons..wired across the last lytic (B- cold end) in the HV supply. With supply on..... you can see the pair of red neons from 50' away. Multiple, redundant interlocks used, B+ fed to the B-, shorting out the supply. Power to main contactor opened off. HV fuse installed between secondary of plate xfmr and diode board. 2nd HV fuse installed in series with the B+ output..which feeds the glitch resistor assy.
Controlled magnetic hydraulic 2 pole breaker used in the 240 vac primary, with neons on both the input + output side of breaker...complete with aux contacts, and more neons. Aux contacts used on main contactor.
Separate B+ meters in both RF deck..and HV supply. It's about as safe as I can get it. I can cro-bar anything, anywhere, and nothing happens ....except blown HV fuse(s) and / or main breaker. It's fully protected...and safe. .
