[C320-list] Ham radio (or SSB) antenna

[Robert Seastream]

There are three grounds to consider here; AC, DC, and RF ground.  It 
strikes me that if the AC and DC grounds aren't made common (tied 
together) from the factory, there may be reasons.  I'd consult Catalina 
before arbitrarily tying these grounds together.  If you've seen no ill 
effects you could carry on, but I'd call Catalina to be safe.

My understanding is that the mast and associated rigging are usually 
grounded to the boats' DC ground, and that marine HF radio installation 
grounds (grounding plate and/or copper straps) share that ground as 
well.

Bob

On Mar 29, 2007, at 4:51 PM, Dave Anderer wrote:

> When I looked at his last year on my boat (#642), the AC and DC 
> grounds were not tied.  (I did tie them myself.)
>
> I don't *think* the rigging is tied to anything.
>
>
> On Mar 29, 2007, at 4:28 PM, Robert Seastream wrote:
>
>> Hmm...never occurred to me that the backstay wouldn't necessarily  
>> have to be insulated.  Might be a problem transmitting at dockside if 
>> tied into shore power, though.  I don't know if the AC ground and the 
>> DC ground (engine/backstay/etc.) are common.  I'm looking towards 
>> using either an IC-735 or IC-7000 with an autotuner on trips.
>>
>> Bob Seastream
>> 'Intuition' hull 906
>
>