[ICOM] Lightning vs PS-125

[Phil Krichbaum]

Mike,
    I lost a PROII two years ago. Lightening did not come in the antenna 
as none was connected but did come in thru DC power cord (PS125 was on 
(bad idea) but rig off and I still use the PS), CIV, CW keying line from 
puter LPT port all delivered ESD to the rig. HD in puter also fried 
along with the control relay in my well control box, TV, phone, garage 
door opener etc. I sent the rig for repair (you may need an expert to 
satisfy your Insurance Co that damage was from lightening and not a 
surge coming in the AC lines or phone lines,  which they might not want 
to cover but blame the power company for that)! Bottom line was the 
repair tech spent some time on the rig and concluded that even if he got 
it working again, the was no telling how long it would keep working 
before something else went wrong and he declared it a basket case.
    A friend had a similar experience with a FT1000MP and Yaesu 
estimated $1100 to get it working with NO guarantee included on it 
continuing to work. He took his insurance money and got a new rig. He 
gave  the toasted rig to a friend who spent around $450 getting all but 
the ATU repaired. It worked for awhile but is starting to have some 
strange things happening and is not reliable.
    The insurance CO did not want to cover the TV unless I could find a 
TV repairman to say it was lightening damage. Neither of the TV repair 
shops with in 75 miles would even look at it! I found a deal on line 
with Sony where they would look at it, $100/hour, 4 hours minimum plus 
expenses. If it wasn't deemed lightening damage I had to pay Sony! I 
bought a new TV that is now on a decent sized UPS along with my ham 
shack gear.
    73 Phil N0KE



Mike Reublin wrote:
> ----------------------------------------
> From: mikea <mikea at mikea.ath.cx>
> Sent: Thursday, August 06, 2009 3:06 PM
> To: ICOM Reflector <icom at mailman.qth.net>
> Subject: Re: [ICOM] Lightning vs PS-125 
>
> On Thu, Aug 06, 2009 at 01:43:45PM -0500, Mike Reublin wrote:
>   
>> My station was whacked Sunday afternoon, and it got most everything.
>> There are matching burn marks on the Pro II and the PS. The Pro II is
>> fried.
>>
>> The PS-125 shows 14.35 V. How can I determine if it's safe to use?
>>     
>
> Oh, man, I'm _sorry_ to read that. Put the PS under enough load to draw
> the key-down operating current that the Pro II would draw, and monitor the
> output voltage and ripple. If they stay within the limits the Pro II manual
> says are OK, then use it cautiously. 14.35 V does seem a bit high; if you
> can locate a pot to tweak it back down to around 13.8, that probably would
> be better. A careful inspection certainly is in order, too. 
>
> I see that you're in JAX, so the lightning isn't any sort of surprise, but
> it's still a really serious bummer to lose a rig. I really, really hope the
> rig was insured. 
>
> An illustration of one of the weird things lightning can do is shown in
> these two images:
>
> The cans in the images were stacked just as you see them, full of Schweppes
> Ginger Ale, and unopened. Lightning zapped them, the microwave to their
> left (it has been working well ever since), the refrigerator to their right
> (also working well), and the man standing at the microwave. No other damage
> was found, nothing else was affected, though our ears did ring for a while
> after the strike.
>
> Thanks. Mike -
>
> After reading these posts. I think I'll not use it, but send it off for repair with the rig. It's insured. nd  do have a backup.
> Oddly the links to your pix don't show up in my email. Huh!
>
> 73. Mike
>
>
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