[R-390] Standy or Off?

[Bob Camp]

Hi

No matter what you do with boat anchors (on 24/7 or on/off) 
*eventually* they break if you use them.

Not using them at all would be one solution to the problem. That kind 
of defeats the whole reason for owning them though.

We all do things that have risk associated with them. We get up and 
drive to work. Might get in a wreck ....

Do radios typically cause fires when they break? - no they don't. Have 
I had a radio catch fire? - yes I have. Did the radio burn down the 
house? - No it was on the bench at the time and the fire self 
extinguished. Had the same problem with a video monitor and the same 
result (fire but it went out). I also have had a lightning hit, no fire 
but lots of blown gear. Once had a 2,500 Amp 480 three phase breaker 
fail to trip and got to re-wire the left side of a building - real big 
mess ....

My experience is probably different than what others have seen. I 
certainly do run some gear 24/7. I do try to keep the amount of that 
gear to a minimum. Replacing a tube now and then is not all that hard. 
I don't like ballast tubes much so they're not an issue. Even a once 
every couple years dig for a real problem generally is not to bad. From 
what I have seen on a good radio the amount of work will be even less 
than that weather you run it 24/7 or power cycle it once a week. 
Replacing the east end of the house is a lot tougher. I won't even get 
into things that are harder to replace than simple possessions ...

Watch out for the rant coming .....

A lot of this has to do with just how incredibly dangerous a modern 
house is if there is a fire. We live surrounded by all kinds of strange 
plastics. Even stuff made from wood has crazy stuff in the finish. A 
fire turns all this crud into *very* nasty stuff in a big hurry. It's 
amazing how little time it takes from the start of a fire to a major 
hazard being present. Boat anchors are not worth dying for ...

Yes, it's a hot button with me - sorry for the rant ...

	Take Care

		Bob Camp
		KB8TQ



On Feb 27, 2005, at 2:35 PM, Cecil Acuff wrote:

> Well let me clarify my position.  What was asked was what the radio 
> liked best as far as ensuring longevity.  That is what I addressed.
>
> As far as my equipment I power everything down when I leave the shop. 
> (except the PC) I probably sacrifice longevity in doing so but I have 
> the peace of  mind that I'm not exposing myself to an unnecessary risk 
> of a fire that would take everything that is near and dear to my 
> heart.  My shop is separate from the house so you see where I am going 
> with this.
>
> I usually go out and power up the work bench and a couple of radio's a 
> few hours before I expect an evening of work to commence that way 
> everything is warmed up nicely...including the shop if it's winter.
>
> I am also a little untrusting of things like my SX-28A and leaving it 
> on unattended because the cloth wiring is showing it's age and frankly 
> I don't trust it.  I don't worry as much about the R-390A's and the 
> SP-600's as they are built to a higher standard to start with.
>
> I don't trust any newcomer to the shop for a while no matter the make, 
> so they are not left unattended and powered up.
>
> I still believe if one took two otherwise identical R-390A's and 
> placed them side by side, left one on 24/7 and only switch the other 
> on when you sat down to listen the 24/7 would prove to be more 
> dependable.  The exception might be the radio listener that only used 
> his radio once every couple of months....
>
>
> Cecil...
>
> ----- Original Message ----- From: "Bob Camp" <ham at cq.nu>
> To: "charles bolland" <ka4prf at peoplepc.com>; "R-390 HF Receiver List" 
> <r-390 at mailman.qth.net>
> Sent: Sunday, February 27, 2005 10:54 AM
> Subject: Re: [R-390] Standy or Off?
>
>
>> Hi
>>
>> My preference would be for most radios to be turned off. Having 
>> something "smoke off" out here in the country with nobody home is an 
>> *expensive* sort thing. That has nothing to do with what's best for 
>> the radio.
>>
>> There is no doubt in my mind that the radios work better after a few 
>> hours of warm up. There is also no doubt in my mind that ballast 
>> tubes mostly go from power cycling or vibration. They love to be on 
>> all the time in a fixed environment.
>>
>> If you are going to run a radio 24/7 there are a few things to be 
>> careful about:
>>
>> 1) The RFI filter is ahead of the fuse. It's well worth the effort to 
>> check it out carefully. The only thing protecting it the breaker box.
>>
>> 2) The line cord is a hand wired part on most of these radios. Make 
>> sure that the hot and neutral are correctly wired. The fuse and line 
>> switch should be in series with the hot lead rather than the neutral 
>> lead.
>>
>> 3) I must admit that not every fuse in the known universe is in stock 
>>  in the basement. From time to time substitutions get made. Check 
>> both the fuses in the radio to be sure they are both the correct type 
>> and rating (no 32 volt DC fuses allowed ...). If the ovens are turned 
>> off on the radio the line fuse can be dropped in value from the 
>> normal listed value. This is a *very* good idea in this case.
>>
>> 4) Think about what happens if a part cooks out. Setting the radio on 
>> a box of reloading supplies probably isn't a real good idea. Properly 
>> spacing it out in a metal rack away from walls and furniture probably 
>> is a good idea.
>>
>> 5) Check the electrolytics in the power supply. They have enough 
>> energy associated with them that they can be a problem if they go 
>> out. Fortunately they normally just drop in value rather than short 
>> out. When they get very leaky they will start to get hot and that's 
>> not good.
>>
>> 6) Think about where the smoke detector and radio are located (you 
>> *do* have a smoke detector in the radio room don't you?). Most smoke 
>> rises ....
>>
>> I will admit that in most cases this is much to do about nothing. 
>> R-390's do not burst into flames on a regular basis. The power 
>> transformers in them seem to be reliable and even if they do go the 
>> metal can is a pretty good fire barrier. Of course there is the 
>> smell.
>>
>> Speaking of the smell. The rectifier that drives the antenna relay is 
>> an issue. They are known to fail and when they do they both smell bad 
>> and the stuff is bad for you to breathe. If your radio still has an 
>> original rectifier in it you have a classic dilemma. Do you *really* 
>> want to replace a perfectly good working part? In general that's not 
>> a good idea. If you don't and it goes with nobody home - wow ...
>>
>> If you run the radio 24/7 then at least disconnect the antenna during 
>> thunder storm season. R-390's are rugged radios., but RF transformers 
>> simply were not designed to take the kind of energy a near by 
>> lightning hit induces in an antenna. With a direct hit, well that's 
>> why we have home insurance ....
>>
>> One good thing about 24/7 operation. A warm radio is a dry radio. A 
>> lot of the strange problems in components are related to humidity 
>> issues. If you are in a high humidity area this could be a 
>> significant issue.
>>
>> Another thing about 24/7 operation - you are more likely to *use* the 
>> radio. This also is a very good thing.
>>
>> Take Care!
>>
>> Bob Camp
>> KB8TQ
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>> On Feb 26, 2005, at 7:54 PM, charles bolland wrote:
>>
>>> Hi all,
>>>
>>> I've burnt out a couple of Ballast tubes over the months and I am a 
>>> little
>>> "gun" shy now.  I don't want to ware out other tubes in my set, so I 
>>> am
>>> wondering which will prolong the life of any tubes in my receiver 
>>> best of
>>> the three following options?
>>>
>>> 1. Completely off when not in use - thinking about turning the set 
>>> on and
>>> off all of the time.
>>> 2. Standby when not in use - thinking some tube still burning all of 
>>> the
>>> time.
>>> 3. On when not in use - thinking all of the tubes are hot all of the 
>>> time.
>>>
>>> Any comments will be appreciated.
>>>
>>> Chuck
>>>
>>>
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>>
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