Palomar 225 questions

[loosecannon]

hi all,


i recently purchased one of these amps used, and there is an electrolytic cap missing from it.

its the only electrolytic on the board, and im thinking that is is the SSB delay cap, and was removed because the amp was probably driven with an AM only radio.

so, my questions are; am i correct about what that cap was for?
and if so, does that mean that the Palomar 225 always has a delay when you unkey no matter whether you are on AM or SSB?

i dont see a SSB switch on it, so i figure the delay is always there.

also, anyone forsee any problems with leaving this cap out?
i too will be driving the amp with an AM only radio, so i really dont need the cap at this time.

im also interested in hearing about anyone else's experience with these amps.

here is a pic of the inside from ALA.
the cap im talking about is in the upper left portion of the pic.

http://www.amateurlinearamplifiers.com/productimages/palomar225inside.jpg

thanks!
LC

 

[9C1Driver]

The SSB delay is auto for that amp and is on all the time. Like you said, the previous owner probably got tired of missing the first half a word of the other persons traffic on AM. You can change the value of the part and shorten or lengthen the delay time.

 

[loosecannon]

any idea what the stock value was?

thanks for the reply,
LC

 

[BOOTY MONSTER]

i have that same amp and use it with a uniden 78ltw with absolutely no problems .
Genuine Palomar 225 LINEAR Amplifier

 

[loosecannon]

booty,

how many watts are you deadkeying into that amp?
LC

 

[BOOTY MONSTER]

i forget LC , ill try to remember to take my 700 with me and check it when i go out later today and post back tonite .

 

[Switch Kit]

The SSB delay is auto for that amp and is on all the time. Like you said, the previous owner probably got tired of missing the first half a word of the other persons traffic on AM. You can change the value of the part and shorten or lengthen the delay time.

He's right ! I bet that amp has MRF 455s in it as well ? (look at the date code on them) That amp should be from the 90s and it is one of the first run blue face AB boxes. Yeap ! They all had the same problem in the beginning , The delay on AM was a second or two long ......pain in the ass ! No problem on SSB though. (whomever had it ? more then likely took it out for AM sakes)

1.5 to 2 watts DK on AM should handle 20 pep on SSB OK ....or less. (I like cap resistor for AM) I believe the cap was a 10uf at 50 volt little dude.

 

[loosecannon]

thanks for the input SW!

i also just picked up an old palomar "TX 500" i think its called.

inside is different than any ive seen before.
4 pills, strapped over, low pass filter with two coils instead of just one.
green PCB, and a couple of TO-220 style transistors mounted to the heatsink.
maybe these are for biasing?

ill see if i can get a pic, but that might take a while.
ever seen one like this?
LC