[Kenwood] TS-950SDX battery

[Berry W6EZ]

I just bought a TS-950SDX (701xxxxxx serial number series, 1995
production year), and I wondered what shape the memory back up battery
might be in.

I just went through this same procedure a couple of weeks ago with my
TS-850SAT that is actually a year older that my "new" 950 but
still, after reading all the horror stories about battery leakage 
ruining the
traces on the boards they are mounted on in the 850s, I thought it
would be a good idea to check the 950 for the possibility of the same
problem. (Besides, it would be a good excuse to be inside the radio to
do the 60 meter modification.)

As it turned out, my fears were well founded. Once I removed the top
and bottom covers of the radio, tilted the front panel forward I
immediately noticed the tell tale signs of battery leakage, namely a
discoloration of the plating on the battery case.

Fortunately, I bought two of the batteries from Kenwood (it never
hurts to have a backup) so I had the parts and did the job while I had
everything apart. The battery in my TS950SDX was the same as in my 850.

I have uploaded a set of photos to
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/KenwoodTS-950SDX/
in the photos area and each photo has a caption that will help explain
what you are looking at in each picture.

This is not a hard job to do, from start to finish it was less than an
hour, but I do have a desoldering tool and that helps a lot.

I hope someone may find this information helpful.