[R-390] Power Cords on eBay

[John Lawson]

On Wed, 5 Oct 2005, Jack/AE7DX wrote:

> I was given an R-390 a couple of weeks ago and had to replace a damaged power
        ^^^^^^^

Take $20 for it? I pay shipping....

;}



> cord. Upon turning the radio on I found that it trips the GFI outlet in my 
> shack/garage even with no antenna connected. I then disconnected the ground 
> (yes, only temporarily as a test) and find that the '390 works without out 
> tripping the GFI. I have no documentation so I cannot determine a cause at 
> this point.
>
> I am curious as to how I can determine whether this is an R-390, an R-390A or 
> some other variation. It has been many years since I have seen one and this 
> unit has had the front name plate removed so I don't even know the 
> manufacturer. Can anyone suggest any identifying marks/labels/etc to assist?



   (I learned this here)   If the "ANT TRIM" knob is at the top of the 
panel, centered over the frequency readout - you have an R-390A.  If the 
"ANT TRIM" knob is beneath the "CARRIER LEVEL" meter, it's a 'non-A'. 
Also, if the power cord is attached to the back of the radio (under a 
cover) - it's an "A".  If the cord plugs into the back with a right-angled 
4-pin plug, it's a 'non-A'.  From your description of the power cord, it 
seems you have an R-390A.


    If your radio is tripping the GFI with the ground pin active, then I'd 
hazard a guess that the line filter unit inside has developed a leaky 
capacitor, or other high-resistance leakage path to ground, which of 
course will upset and trip your protection circuits - it's actually doing 
what it was designed to do. Another place to look might be replacing the 
power cord again, on the off-chance that the cord itself is bad.

   I would first download the full docs on your set, and then you can do a 
bit of troubleshooting. Obviously things are bordering on being unsafe as 
it stands now.

  I hope this points you in the right direction....   this List is a 
wonderful resource for keeping the 390s alive and well.


    Cheers

John  KB6SCO
R-390A, R-390, R-388