"john graesser" wrote in message
...

"gb" wrote in message
...
wrote in message
oups.com...
Is there a best place to find or make a cheap power supply for a 50
watt mobile radio to use as a base station? Are computer power supply's
good?


I prefer linear power supplies for this size of radio, such as the Astron
RS-12A. Plentiful at hamfest, surplus and eBay.

IF you find an Astron that is broken and is offered to you for free (GRAB
IT) .. its like being handed money !
Astrons are easy to repair (unless transformer failed - very rare), skip
the
Pyramids (many models have under rated heat sinks or electrolytic
capacitors)

Of course then there are the Pyramids that can function 24 hours a day 7
days a week from the day you buy it. Mine has been on (except for the
occasional blackout) for over 6 years.

At this apt I turned it on when I moved in and haven't touched it since.

John -

I have heard that recent Pyramid linear models have addressed these design
issues.
(I have no "hands-on" personal experience to verify these design changes by
Pyramid).
Unfortunately, the used models I see at the hamfests are the earlier models
that I have repair experience with and had these design problems. Possibly
someone will eventually have a web based differentiation guide for these
Pyramid models.

gb