[R-390] R389 and R390 faults

Barry Hauser barry at hausernet.com
Wed Mar 22 03:15:28 EST 2006


Hi Tom

Rob's primary message was a request for info on the R-389 and R-390/URR. 
Mark (as he later realized, having fallen prey to the R-390/R390A confusion 
syndrome) mistakenly referred him to the Y2K manual which is strictly 
R-390A.  I fortunately noticed how Rob had referred to the 
interchangeablilty of certain modules which, although I am not intimately 
familiar with the R-389, was the tip-off that he truly meant an R-390 and 
the absence of the "A" was not accidental.

I was well aware that Rob was referring to his R-390A's regarding the BFO 
counter knob, but it doesn't really matter.  While they are probably more 
often found added onto R-390A's than R-390's, they could have been added to 
either receiver -- and there I was merely amplifying on Mark's explanation. 
They do not have vernier/reduction built in and were probably originally 
manufactured to use with 10-turn pots.  As it "turns out" though, Mark's 
receiver has a separate 3:1 vernier drive added behind the panel.

Now that all that is squared away ..... who's on first?  heh heh

Barry



> No, if you read further down, Rob does ask about the 390A counter knob.
>
> "3. I have a couple of R390A rxs which have a mechanical counter for  the 
> BFO, why was this used over the standard knob?"
>
> So you gave the correct answer
>
>
> Tom
>
> On Mar 21, 2006, at 2:04 PM, Mark Huss wrote:
>
>> Opps, Caught by the R-390/R-390A confusion again!
>> About the BFO Counter knob.  Your right, it is not a vernier knob.   But 
>> someone in the history of mine must have replaced the shaft  extension 
>> with a 3:1 vernier reduction gear.  Very handy.
>>
>> Barry Hauser wrote:
>>
>>> Hi Mark, Rob
>>>
>>> Not sure what comes first logically, but here goes:
>>>
>>> First -- the R-390A Y2K manual on my website is the original, not 
>>> revised version.  If that's what you need, suggest you go to Al 
>>> Tirevold's site for the later version.
>>>
>>> Second -- Rob is asking primarily about the R-389 & R-390 (without  the 
>>> A) --  apparently, as the '389 is related to the '390, not the  A. The 
>>> Y2K manual on my website and Al's is strictly for the R-390A.
>>>
>>> I am not that familiar with the R-389, but if the power supply and  AF 
>>> deck -- which is mostly power supply/regulation components is  the same, 
>>> same applies to both:  The 6082's throw a lot of heat.   The AF deck is 
>>> mounted upside down so the heat rises and tends to  cook the components 
>>> under the chassis.  In particular, it is  recommended to replace the 47 
>>> ohm resistors (4 of them I think) as  per Dave Medley's advice.  In 
>>> addition, it's a good idea to use a  small fan set up to exhaust the 
>>> heat from that side of the  mainframe. R-390/URR's -- the pre-cost 
>>> reduced edition -- do not  exhibit the same capacitor failure patterns 
>>> as the R-390A/URR's.   Component and tube compliment are very different.
>>>
>>> AS for the counter knob on the BFO, they are not vernier/gear  reduction 
>>> drives, just counters which were added to improve reset- ability of the 
>>> BFO -- unless someone also added a 10-1 reduction  drive as well, but 
>>> it's not part of the counter-knob mechanism.
>>>
>>> hope this helps,
>>> Barry
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> ----- Original Message ----- From: "Mark Huss" 
>>> <mhuss1 at bellatlantic.net>
>>> To: "Rob Filby" <robsr390a at btopenworld.com>
>>> Cc: <R-390 at mailman.qth.net>
>>> Sent: Tuesday, March 21, 2006 2:02 PM
>>> Subject: Re: [R-390] R389 and R390 faults
>>>
>>>
>>>> First, you may want to reference the R-390A manual at http:// 
>>>> www.hausernet.com/r390a/
>>>> It should have everything you need.  Pay particular attention to  the 
>>>> Capacitor replacement listing.  AWlso, for some reason, 2.2K  resistors 
>>>> in the R-390A's seem to change value considerably.   Otherwise, just 
>>>> watch the list.  Good Luck.
>>>>
>>>> The counter knob on the BFO was added to R-390A's used for RTTY 
>>>> reception. Makes tuning the BFO to FSK tones much easier.
>>>> Rob Filby wrote:
>>>>
>>>>> Hi.
>>>>>     I have recently bought an R389 and a pair of R390 rxs. They  are 
>>>>> all complete and in good condition.
>>>>> At first appearance it seems as the PSU, Audio stage and IF  strip are 
>>>>> interchangable. I have a few questions which I would  to ask the group 
>>>>> and perhaps somebody could help me please.
>>>>>
>>>>> 1.Were any parts listings produced for the above rxs, ie  detailing 
>>>>> the wattage of resistors and the voltage
>>>>> ratings of other components?
>>>>>
>>>>> 2.Are there any common faults or other troublesome components  that 
>>>>> fail or give trouble that I need to be
>>>>> aware of?
>>>>>
>>>>> 3. I have a couple of R390A rxs which have a mechanical counter  for 
>>>>> the BFO, why was this used over the standard knob?
>>>>>
>>>>> Thanks for your help
>>>>>
>>>>> Rob.  _____________________________________________________________
>>>>> R-390 mailing list
>>>>> Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/r-390
>>>>> Help: http://mailman.qth.net/faq.htm
>>>>> Post: mailto:R-390 at mailman.qth.net
>>>>> Unsubscribe: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/options/r-390
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> -- 
>>>> More women than men believe in ghosts, while more men than women 
>>>> believe in UFOs. This proves that men will believe almost  anything if 
>>>> it comes with really great gadgetry.-- Captain Ed --
>>>>
>>>> _____________________________________________________________
>>>> R-390 mailing list
>>>> Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/r-390
>>>> Help: http://mailman.qth.net/faq.htm
>>>> Post: mailto:R-390 at mailman.qth.net
>>>> Unsubscribe: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/options/r-390
>>>>
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>
>>
>> -- 
>> More women than men believe in ghosts, while more men than women  believe 
>> in UFOs. This proves that men will believe almost anything  if it comes 
>> with really great gadgetry.-- Captain Ed --
>>
>> _____________________________________________________________
>> R-390 mailing list
>> Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/r-390
>> Help: http://mailman.qth.net/faq.htm
>> Post: mailto:R-390 at mailman.qth.net
>> Unsubscribe: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/options/r-390
>
> _____________________________________________________________
> R-390 mailing list
> Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/r-390
> Help: http://mailman.qth.net/faq.htm
> Post: mailto:R-390 at mailman.qth.net
> Unsubscribe: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/options/r-390
> 




More information about the R-390 mailing list