Palomar Skipper 300

[Cricketsman05]

What wattage should I drive this amp with? I have been using 2.5 watts swinging about fifty from a 2517. I can usually DK around 400 and swing maybe around 550. I was wondering if my DK should be higher than the 2.5. Also It would be great if I could find an owners manual on this amp. I have a schematic downloaded from this site but it shows the amp with 6LF6 tubes and mine has the 8950's.

Thanks,

73's

[Exit_Thirteen]

2.5 watts is plenty good for a Skipper 300, I usually run at 2 watts, as the more imput you have on the tubes, the quicker the tubes burn out, because higher deadkey = more current on the plates of the tubes. AM/FM is hard on tubes, because you're applying constant current to the tubes at all times (deadkey) VS. SSB, where there is no carrier involved.

The 8950 is mechanically the same tube as a 6LF6, but with a 12 volt filament. They also have the same plate dissipation wattage (40 watts per tube). The schematic for the Skipper that you have will be the same, except for the filament voltages on the tubes, since you run 8950's, and the schematic shows 6LF6.

Hope this tidbit of info helps!

Regards,
Rick (Triple 7)

[Cricketsman05]

I can turn this amp and it will go to about 425. When I let the amp idle for a few minutes and key up again the power will go to about 250 but will slowly rise again to 425. What would cause this to happen?

Thanks