[ICOM] IC-756PROIII No Transmit

Fri Jun 19 09:02:07 EDT 2009

    Larry,
    I am in western Colorado and live near the top of Dry Hollow Mesa at 
6000 ft ASL which is a high spot in the valley. I'm about 600 ft above 
the valley floor but 4000 ft below the peaks that surround the valley. 
Colorado gets the 2nd most lightening strikes of any state with FL being 
Nr one and they get them year round. If you look at the ARRL Antenna 
Handbook on  the ground conductivity map, it just doesn't get any worse 
than right here. The ground is so rocky I can't get a lightening rod in 
more that 2 to 3 ft. I forgot to mention that I had a PROII destroyed 
along with several other things by lightening coming in the neutral side 
of the power line. No antennas were connected to the rig (coaxes 
disconnected) and rig was off but I'd left the Icom PS on. PS survived 
but not the rig. I had rig control and cw keying cables from computer to 
rig and damage came in there also. Computer was off but still plugged in 
and HD toasted on that. Also lost a TV, phone answering machine and a 
few other things like a relay on my well pump. I've since had the power 
company put a "meter treater" on both my meters which has some big 
mother MOV's in them right at the meter. I also use a UPS on the station 
equipment and another on the HDTV and both trip constantly. If I'm 
leaving the house for more than a few minutes  and there is a cloud,  
power plugs in the shack unplugged from the UPS. I use a WX0B 6 PAK 110 
ft from the shack to route either of 6 or more antennas to two pieces of 
hardline into the shack. The coax from the hardline in the shack to the 
rigs  is disconnected anytime I go away or have potential WX 
conditions.  I can route any of the antennas to my PROIII or FT1000MP. I 
am not doing the SO2R thing for contesting. Amazing that I've not had 
one problem with the MP. I've been using some of the polyphasers out at 
the antennas (base of the tower). Next step is to get some of the ICE 4 
KW lightening protectors that don't have to jump an arc to discharge 
static, but are at ground potential all the time.
    Phil N0KE

Lawrence Young wrote:
> Phil: I am not an" Icom" in all cases type of guy, having owned many different rigs in over 50 years of ham and professional radio design. I certainly can understand your frustration. Not having examined and measured your stations antenna system. I am surmising that you have a severe case of ESD. This can happen in locations of dry as well as snowy weather. Usually the stations involved have little or inadequate ESD protection. This is best done at the antenna itself. All antennas should be at DC ground potential. A  1:! voltage balun, or a 1:1 dc continuity current balun will usually suffice, or an RF choke or resistor across  the antenna feed point to drain any static build up.
>    There is a video on U-Tube with a ham demonstrating an arching voltage discharge across the pl-259 plug of an antenna. Just imagine how much voltage it takes to be able to do that. Hundreds, perhaps several thousand volts.
> I just can't believe you have a lemon, but anything is possible including your antenna system.
> Larry K4LXV
>
> --- On Thu, 6/18/09, Phil Krichbaum <vailphil at sopris.net> wrote:
>
> From: Phil Krichbaum <vailphil at sopris.net>
> Subject: Re: [ICOM] IC-756PROIII No Transmit
> To: "ICOM Reflector" <icom at mailman.qth.net>
> Date: Thursday, June 18, 2009, 9:02 PM
>
>     I have a  PROIII purchased in August 2007. The first hour I used it 
> the xmit went to super QRP after two QSOs on 20 CW at 5w and one at 
> 100w. I sent it to Icom and they charged me over $250 to fix the problem 
> claiming I operated it out of warranty! I have no idea where they got 
> that idea but I did manage to get a refund but still was out the 
> shipping both ways. I was using it into a 20 m antenna with nice low SWR 
> and had not had time to hook up the amp or RX antennas before it went 
> toes up! The next three times it died the same death I sent it to 
> Midwest Technical Service for Tim Moes to work on it as I was 
> unimpressed with the attitude at Icom!  It has now died the same death 
> on transmit a 5th time less than two months after the last repair. It is 
> not the drivers or finals, but fets and diodes, mostly stuff in the 
> tuner. I'm told it is RF getting back in to it. I do have beverage 
> receive antennas but do not bring them in thru the RX antenna jacks, I 
> use one of KD9SV's DXpedition II boxes with a 160/80 preamp, 4 positions 
> of RX antenna switching and the RX antennas come in thru one of the 
> SO239 antenna plugs when not in xmit.
>     I'm seriously convinced I got a lemon from the start. I really like 
> the performance when it works right but I can't continue to go on like 
> this. I wonder if they fixed these problems in the 7600? It seems that 
> this is not a real common problem but the two of us are not the lone 
> ranger either. Does Icom have a policy for dealing with lemons? I'm fed up!
>     73 Phil N0KE
>
> k0bx at arrl.net wrote:
>   
>> Larry, thank you for your comments.  I do agree with what you said.
>>
>> But in my case, I do not have any other antenna connected.  The 1st time was on 20 CW using my Hygain 204BA 4 element monobander with no amp.  I agree that some RF must be getting back to the rig somehow, but I do have grounding devices on all my antennas.
>>
>> The 2nd time, I just (Like the other guy) just turned on the rig to find it dead on transmit.  I know that sounds like an e-bay thing, "It worked the last time I used it". 
>>
>> One of the gentlemen in my DX Club got rig of his PROIII after 3 repairs for the samething.
>>
>> I have used a TS-850S on this antenna for 12 years and when taken out of service it performed on transmit like the day it was brought.  My IC-706MK2G have been on this antenna for the last 5 years.  No problems with them.
>>
>> As far as the Burghardt BEV-756, Burghardt recommended it as a solution to my problem even though I do not use a Bev Antenna.
>>
>> It seems that others are having the same problem and only using one antenna at a time.
>>
>> Joe K0BX
>>
>>
>> Stop the insanity!
>> Please do not add me to any distribution lists (Joke, Stories or Junk) without my permission.
>>
>>
>> --- On Tue, 3/24/09, Lawrence Young <k4lxv at bellsouth.net> wrote:
>>
>>    
>>     
>>> From: Lawrence Young <k4lxv at bellsouth.net>
>>> Subject: Re: [ICOM] IC-756PROIII No Transmit
>>> To: "ICOM Reflector" <icom at mailman.qth.net>
>>> Date: Tuesday, March 24, 2009, 9:03 AM
>>> Guys: Products like the Burghardt BEV-756 are designed to
>>> serve as a front end saver for those hams who may not
>>> understand that one cannot safely transmit on one antenna
>>> and leave another one such as a Beverage receive antenna 
>>> still connected to the receiver. I am amazed at the number
>>> of hams that I know who may do this without realizing the
>>> possibility of damage to the radio.
>>> Larry K4LXV
>>>
>>>      
>>>       
>> ----
>> Your Moderator: Dick Flanagan K7VC: icom-owner at mailman.qth.net
>> Icom Users Net: Sundays, 1700Z, 14.316 MHz
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>>
>>    
>>     
> ----
> Your Moderator: Dick Flanagan K7VC: icom-owner at mailman.qth.net
> Icom Users Net: Sundays, 1700Z, 14.316 MHz
> Icom FAQ: http://www.qsl.net/icom/
> To support QSL/QTH.net: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html
> ----
> Your Moderator: Dick Flanagan K7VC: icom-owner at mailman.qth.net
> Icom Users Net: Sundays, 1700Z, 14.316 MHz
> Icom FAQ: http://www.qsl.net/icom/
> To support QSL/QTH.net: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html
>
>