What can go wrong? Inside is probably a cadmium sulfide photoresistor. If it's like these, the conductive path follows a serpentine pattern, which kinda looks like an inductor. The inductance is probably fairly small (I couldn't find a number). At
1MHz, the inductance probably has little effect, especially with the padding. However, if things act strangely in your testing, you might want to measure the inductance with a common LRC meter.-- Jeff Liebermann jeffl@cruzio.com 150 Felker St #D http://www.LearnByDestroying.com Santa Cruz CA 95060 http://802.11junk.com Skype: JeffLiebermann AE6KS 831-336-2558
I had good success when I used the Vactrols on my Flag antenna, and many have used them for variable terminations, I don't suspect much inductance. I didn't have a good night for finding any front to back. My antennas acted about the same. Sometimes atmospherics will do that, I'll try another night or two before I revert back to a fixed resistor. I went to use the Vactrol ass'y I took off my Flag antenna during testing, I found the 300ohm series resistor was measuring 10Mohm and the Vactrol resistance section was open, I suspect lightning may have damaged it. I installed a new Vactrol and resistors. I have one Vactrol on the shelf, I can measure it when I get my Rigexpert. I have an LCR meter, but the highest frequency it goes to is
100kHz. Mikek MikekElectronDepot website is not affiliated with any of the manufacturers or service providers discussed here. All logos and trade names are the property of their respective owners.