What an incredible disappointment...NOT with the radio's performance.
In some respects I believe it equals or may even surpass the Icom R75 I
recently sold. What IS a disappointment is the condition of the radio...I am
trying to communicate with the person from whom I won the auction on Ebay,
no luck so far.

Anyway, I am trying to get this radio in as new condition as possible and I
am looking for help with the following problems:

1- The frequency display does not seem to follow the tuning knob. Almost
takes a second or two to catch up.

2- the selection buttons on the bottom have to be pressed NUMEROUS times
before the radio responds. Takes 10-12 fast pushes to change mode, tuning
steps, fast or slow tuning etc.

3- There is a scratch on the display crystal (not the LCD, but the clear
plastic overlay)

4- The Volume control knob and shaft came out. I can no longer use it to
turn the radio on or off and must do that by applying or diconnecting
external power in the back !!!

There you have it. I checked the Lowe web site and they clearly indicate
that they no longer ship/sell to the United States.

I know this sounds a bit silly, but shortwave radio is my primary hobby...I
don't hang out in bars, play cards or anything else like that...after a
crappy day at work the radio is kinda' my escape...and my crappy days at
work are usually quite bad. I have one daughter in college and another
getting narried in two months, so, as you can imagine, I'm broke.

I was wondering if anyone had any advice.

Thank you so much for your time.

John, KB2COP
thecop@o...

"Pete KE9OA" wrote in message
...


1- The frequency display does not seem to follow the tuning knob. Almost
takes a second or two to catch up.

This appears to be normal. Also, there is about a 50mSec settling time for
the synthesizer if you tune in the fast mode by several MHz.

2- the selection buttons on the bottom have to be pressed NUMEROUS times
before the radio responds. Takes 10-12 fast pushes to change mode, tuning
steps, fast or slow tuning etc.

These things can possibly be cleaned. I just replaced the mode switch on
my unit. I believe that Digi-Key has the switch assemblies that you might
need. I will find out the part number later this week. I used another
switch assembly (same type, but square pushbutton) and used the keycap
from the original switch. I did, however, use the new contacter and spring
assembly. It takes about 15 minutes to change each switch. Make sure you
have a hot soldering tool to do this one; the plated through holes have a
tendency to suck the heat from low wattage irons.

3- There is a scratch on the display crystal (not the LCD, but the clear
plastic overlay)

0.7 micron lens polishing compound will clean this up. Be advised, though,
that the crystal seems to have a matte finish so you might end up with
something more shiny than the original crystal.


4- The Volume control knob and shaft came out. I can no longer use it to
turn the radio on or off and must do that by applying or diconnecting
external power in the back !!!

This control uses a collet type of knob.............this means that you
must first remove the cap from the knob assembly. Once this is done, there
is a Phillips type of screw that you must loosen. It would appear that
somebody tried to pull the knob off and removed the shaft in the process.

There you have it. I checked the Lowe web site and they clearly indicate
that they no longer ship/sell to the United States.

True.

I know this sounds a bit silly, but shortwave radio is my primary
hobby...I don't hang out in bars, play cards or anything else like
that...after a crappy day at work the radio is kinda' my escape...and my
crappy days at work are usually quite bad. I have one daughter in college
and another getting narried in two months, so, as you can imagine, I'm
broke.

I was wondering if anyone had any advice.

Thank you so much for your time.

John, KB2COP
thecop@o...

E-mail me directly if you really get stuck, and I will be glad to walk you
through some of the repair process. I just got through repairing and
aligning my own unit. It is a shame that too often, these things only come
up for sale after they no longer work properly. Don't worry...........your
unit can be restored fairly easily.

Pete


You know Pete,

I'm wondering if the frequency really needs a sec to catch up. The frequency
is actually changing in between the tuning rates. So you're not seeing those
steps displayed but you can hear the difference.

I'm glad you can help this guy out Pete. I feel badly for him. Stinkin
crooks on Ebay. I never pay for a radio without using a credit card. This
way you have some kind of recourse with these *******s.

Lucky

You know Pete,

I'm wondering if the frequency really needs a sec to catch up. The
frequency is actually changing in between the tuning rates. So you're not
seeing those steps displayed but you can hear the difference.

I'm glad you can help this guy out Pete. I feel badly for him. Stinkin
crooks on Ebay. I never pay for a radio without using a credit card. This
way you have some kind of recourse with these *******s.

Lucky

You've got a good point there,
Lucky...................................instead of synthesizer settling
time, he is talking about an apparent latency with the display. I understand
what you mean.
I feel sorry for this fellow, too. It's a shame that some of these "mint
condition" things hit the market at the prices that they do.
It could be possible that the seller didn't know the actual condition of the
unit, but the broken volume control? I don't think so. The wear on the
switches is normal, but they aren't a big deal to replace.............still,
I understand the seller's disappointment.

Pete

That should be buyer's disappointmrnt!

Pete

"Pete KE9OA" wrote in message
...



You know Pete,

I'm wondering if the frequency really needs a sec to catch up. The
frequency is actually changing in between the tuning rates. So you're not
seeing those steps displayed but you can hear the difference.

I'm glad you can help this guy out Pete. I feel badly for him. Stinkin
crooks on Ebay. I never pay for a radio without using a credit card. This
way you have some kind of recourse with these *******s.

Lucky

You've got a good point there,
Lucky...................................instead of synthesizer settling
time, he is talking about an apparent latency with the display. I
understand what you mean.
I feel sorry for this fellow, too. It's a shame that some of these "mint
condition" things hit the market at the prices that they do.
It could be possible that the seller didn't know the actual condition of
the unit, but the broken volume control? I don't think so. The wear on the
switches is normal, but they aren't a big deal to
replace.............still, I understand the seller's disappointment.

Pete

"John Schneider" wrote in message
...
First...thank you Lucky, Steve and Pete for taking the time to respond to
my plea for help !!

To answer some of the questions: Unfortunately I did not bid on the set
with the speakers as I knew it would be beyond my limit :{ I can turn the
tuning knob 6 or 7 times with no change in the frequency display I may
have been responsible for the fiasco with the volume control shaft, but I
must admit that it took VERY little in the way of pulling!

Insurance on this item was not an option The auction did not offer a
picture of the radio, but it wouldn't have mattered much as the defects
are internal. The scratch on the display is something I can live with, but
I believe it should have been mentioned.

Here is the link:

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll...e=STRK:MEWN:IT

Anyway it looks as though I am going to be on a hunt for the parts I need
and Pete has, most generously, offered to help when I need it.

Thanks again to all.

John, KB2COP



"thecop" wrote in message
...
What an incredible disappointment...NOT with the radio's performance.
In some respects I believe it equals or may even surpass the Icom R75 I
recently sold. What IS a disappointment is the condition of the radio...I
am
trying to communicate with the person from whom I won the auction on
Ebay, no luck so far.

Anyway, I am trying to get this radio in as new condition as possible and
I am looking for help with the following problems:

1- The frequency display does not seem to follow the tuning knob. Almost
takes a second or two to catch up.

2- the selection buttons on the bottom have to be pressed NUMEROUS times
before the radio responds. Takes 10-12 fast pushes to change mode, tuning
steps, fast or slow tuning etc.

3- There is a scratch on the display crystal (not the LCD, but the clear
plastic overlay)

4- The Volume control knob and shaft came out. I can no longer use it to
turn the radio on or off and must do that by applying or diconnecting
external power in the back !!!

There you have it. I checked the Lowe web site and they clearly indicate
that they no longer ship/sell to the United States.

I know this sounds a bit silly, but shortwave radio is my primary
hobby...I don't hang out in bars, play cards or anything else like
that...after a crappy day at work the radio is kinda' my escape...and my
crappy days at work are usually quite bad. I have one daughter in college
and another getting narried in two months, so, as you can imagine, I'm
broke.

I was wondering if anyone had any advice.

Thank you so much for your time.

John, KB2COP
thecop@o...





No problem John. In LSB, USB, and ASL and ASu you can turn it a few times
till it changes. Yes I remember that auction and wondered why no picture.

How did you pay him?
Stay in touch with Pete. He knows his stuff and can help get it back to good
condition.

Lucky

"Dale Parfitt" wrote in message
news:AlqZd.5320$b_6.3450@trnddc01...

"thecop" wrote in message
...
What an incredible disappointment...NOT with the radio's performance.
In some respects I believe it equals or may even surpass the Icom R75 I
recently sold. What IS a disappointment is the condition of the radio...I
am
trying to communicate with the person from whom I won the auction on
Ebay,
no luck so far.

Anyway, I am trying to get this radio in as new condition as possible and
I
am looking for help with the following problems:

1- The frequency display does not seem to follow the tuning knob. Almost
takes a second or two to catch up.

You may have a defective encoder- never seent his with the 4 150's I have
owned, but it could happen.

2- the selection buttons on the bottom have to be pressed NUMEROUS times
before the radio responds. Takes 10-12 fast pushes to change mode, tuning
steps, fast or slow tuning etc.

3- There is a scratch on the display crystal (not the LCD, but the clear
plastic overlay)

4- The Volume control knob and shaft came out. I can no longer use it to
turn the radio on or off and must do that by applying or diconnecting
external power in the back !!!

As Pete mentioned, this is a collett knob- attempts to pull it off will
ruin
the pot.

One other thing to watch out for - do NOT use non rechargeable batteries
AND
the plug in power supply- this will cook the alkalines and cause them to
leak. Of the 4 RX I have had, only my current one has a pristine battery
box.

Dale W4OP



Dale,

I just bought a 8 way niCd battery charger off Ebay. I won't even recharge
the batteries in the radio. No way. My boxes are clean. I hear people have
been using regular NiMH batteries in it. They leave them in recharging
continuously since they recharge more slowly. I wouldn't try it.

Lucky

I'll be glad to help you anytime, John...................I have also learned
the brutal lesson in disappointment!
I will also extend this help to anybody else on the NG that has any
questions. A couple of weeks ago, I was really stuck when it came to
repairing this receiver but Tony, over at Lowe UK was super helpful for my
getting this unit up and running. Also, I have to publicly thank that great
fellow in England for scanning and sending me a copy of the service manual
for the HF-150. I couldn't have done it without either of their help.

Pete

"John Schneider" wrote in message
...
First...thank you Lucky, Steve and Pete for taking the time to respond to
my plea for help !!

To answer some of the questions: Unfortunately I did not bid on the set
with the speakers as I knew it would be beyond my limit :{ I can turn the
tuning knob 6 or 7 times with no change in the frequency display I may
have been responsible for the fiasco with the volume control shaft, but I
must admit that it took VERY little in the way of pulling!

Insurance on this item was not an option The auction did not offer a
picture of the radio, but it wouldn't have mattered much as the defects
are internal. The scratch on the display is something I can live with, but
I believe it should have been mentioned.

Here is the link:

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll...e=STRK:MEWN:IT

Anyway it looks as though I am going to be on a hunt for the parts I need
and Pete has, most generously, offered to help when I need it.

Thanks again to all.

John, KB2COP



"thecop" wrote in message
...
What an incredible disappointment...NOT with the radio's performance.
In some respects I believe it equals or may even surpass the Icom R75 I
recently sold. What IS a disappointment is the condition of the radio...I
am
trying to communicate with the person from whom I won the auction on
Ebay, no luck so far.

Anyway, I am trying to get this radio in as new condition as possible and
I am looking for help with the following problems:

1- The frequency display does not seem to follow the tuning knob. Almost
takes a second or two to catch up.

2- the selection buttons on the bottom have to be pressed NUMEROUS times
before the radio responds. Takes 10-12 fast pushes to change mode, tuning
steps, fast or slow tuning etc.

3- There is a scratch on the display crystal (not the LCD, but the clear
plastic overlay)

4- The Volume control knob and shaft came out. I can no longer use it to
turn the radio on or off and must do that by applying or diconnecting
external power in the back !!!

There you have it. I checked the Lowe web site and they clearly indicate
that they no longer ship/sell to the United States.

I know this sounds a bit silly, but shortwave radio is my primary
hobby...I don't hang out in bars, play cards or anything else like
that...after a crappy day at work the radio is kinda' my escape...and my
crappy days at work are usually quite bad. I have one daughter in college
and another getting narried in two months, so, as you can imagine, I'm
broke.

I was wondering if anyone had any advice.

Thank you so much for your time.

John, KB2COP
thecop@o...

"Dale Parfitt" wrote in message
news:_pCZd.8074$oa6.752@trnddc07...

"
I just bought a 8 way niCd battery charger off Ebay. I won't even
recharge
the batteries in the radio. No way. My boxes are clean. I hear people
have
been using regular NiMH batteries in it. They leave them in recharging
continuously since they recharge more slowly. I wouldn't try it.

Lucky

Hi Lucky,
The niMH are fine- I've had a set in my latest 150 for 2 years now-
continuously trickle charging.
As before, the problem is when users place alkalines in the battery box
and
then use the AC adapter. It would have been nice if Lowe had included a
charge/no charge switch on the rear apron.
Dale W4OP



Got my 8 way battery charger yesterday. Does NiCDs in 5 hours, NiMH in 8.
There is no way I'll recharge and keep batteries in my 150 for a long
period. I'm too protective of it.

Lucky

I too just bought a HF-150 and I am happy with the performance. I guess I
got lucky with my purchase as the radio seems to be in really good shape
(I'm the lucky guy who bought the set with the speakers.

Scanning the different stations using the tuning knob seems to take quite a
while (I'm impatient), so I ordered one of those wireless remotes that can
have a variable tuning rate. They say that you can also access the memories
with the remote which the keypad can't do.

You might consider one of those as a nice accessory if your radio didn't
come with a keypad. I don't know how well they work, though. I haven't
gotten mine yet to try it out.

Good luck with your restoration.

Albert.

"thecop" wrote in message
...
What an incredible disappointment...NOT with the radio's performance.
In some respects I believe it equals or may even surpass the Icom R75 I
recently sold. What IS a disappointment is the condition of the radio...I
am
trying to communicate with the person from whom I won the auction on Ebay,
no luck so far.

Anyway, I am trying to get this radio in as new condition as possible and
I am looking for help with the following problems:

1- The frequency display does not seem to follow the tuning knob. Almost
takes a second or two to catch up.

2- the selection buttons on the bottom have to be pressed NUMEROUS times
before the radio responds. Takes 10-12 fast pushes to change mode, tuning
steps, fast or slow tuning etc.

3- There is a scratch on the display crystal (not the LCD, but the clear
plastic overlay)

4- The Volume control knob and shaft came out. I can no longer use it to
turn the radio on or off and must do that by applying or diconnecting
external power in the back !!!

There you have it. I checked the Lowe web site and they clearly indicate
that they no longer ship/sell to the United States.

I know this sounds a bit silly, but shortwave radio is my primary
hobby...I don't hang out in bars, play cards or anything else like
that...after a crappy day at work the radio is kinda' my escape...and my
crappy days at work are usually quite bad. I have one daughter in college
and another getting narried in two months, so, as you can imagine, I'm
broke.

I was wondering if anyone had any advice.

Thank you so much for your time.

John, KB2COP
thecop@o...

My keypad does a great job of accessing memories. Just enter the one or two
digit number and the number sign. 1#, 01#, 45# etc. I've never had a problem
with it.

Dave

albert wrote:

I too just bought a HF-150 and I am happy with the performance. I guess I
got lucky with my purchase as the radio seems to be in really good shape
(I'm the lucky guy who bought the set with the speakers.

Scanning the different stations using the tuning knob seems to take quite a
while (I'm impatient), so I ordered one of those wireless remotes that can
have a variable tuning rate. They say that you can also access the memories
with the remote which the keypad can't do.

You might consider one of those as a nice accessory if your radio didn't
come with a keypad. I don't know how well they work, though. I haven't
gotten mine yet to try it out.

Good luck with your restoration.

Albert.

"thecop" wrote in message
...
What an incredible disappointment...NOT with the radio's performance.
In some respects I believe it equals or may even surpass the Icom R75 I
recently sold. What IS a disappointment is the condition of the radio...I
am
trying to communicate with the person from whom I won the auction on Ebay,
no luck so far.

Anyway, I am trying to get this radio in as new condition as possible and
I am looking for help with the following problems:

1- The frequency display does not seem to follow the tuning knob. Almost
takes a second or two to catch up.

2- the selection buttons on the bottom have to be pressed NUMEROUS times
before the radio responds. Takes 10-12 fast pushes to change mode, tuning
steps, fast or slow tuning etc.

3- There is a scratch on the display crystal (not the LCD, but the clear
plastic overlay)

4- The Volume control knob and shaft came out. I can no longer use it to
turn the radio on or off and must do that by applying or diconnecting
external power in the back !!!

There you have it. I checked the Lowe web site and they clearly indicate
that they no longer ship/sell to the United States.

I know this sounds a bit silly, but shortwave radio is my primary
hobby...I don't hang out in bars, play cards or anything else like
that...after a crappy day at work the radio is kinda' my escape...and my
crappy days at work are usually quite bad. I have one daughter in college
and another getting narried in two months, so, as you can imagine, I'm
broke.

I was wondering if anyone had any advice.

Thank you so much for your time.

John, KB2COP
thecop@o...