Andy,
Understood. It happens sometimes. Not all the Gremlins retired after the war.
To clarify for some readers:-
The problem with a vehicle arises when the starter motor is engaged. There is a significant volt drop across the cable from the battery negative to the car chassis and or engine block. The 200 to 400 A cranking current through maybe 10 milliohms is 2 to 4 Volts. The coax screen connects from the car chassis to the rig PCB which connects to radio’s negative lead from the battery. If the resistance in this parallel arm is 100 milliohms then maybe 18 to 36 A flows. If the resistance is less more current flows. There are various ploys used to avoid this and negate the need for the fuse in the negative line. Having a seperate battery for the radio for example.
It’s good pactice to have a heavy wire bonding an amplifier and/or ATU to the rig whether at home or in the field. Something I sometimes forget to do I admit.
We are all much smarter just after the smoke gets out.
73
Ron