[R-390] a long time lurker pops his head up

[mlmccauley]

HI

Name is Mike, WB5MYY. I bought Motorola R-390/A s/n 2755 a LONG time ago 
from a fellow on the west coast who held out that it had been taken out 
of service working. Thus far, I have not powered the set up. Examination 
by an untrained novice eye indicated that the set shows no signs of 
extreme wear or mechanical damage.

The time is finally right for me to put some time into the radio in 
order to fully determine its condition, such that I can decide if I want 
to commit to the substantial time investment that will be required to 
properly rebuild it, or not.

I'm wondering, other than powering the set up slowly (over ? hours), 
what "killer" parts should I replace to reduce the probability of any 
vital components being trashed at startup. I have heard of such, but I 
want to make very sure I have all bases covered before I throw the power 
switch.

Also, is there a list of generally accepted pre-power up checks? No need 
to reinvent (retype?) the wheel here, if a reference document exists 
somewhere that contains this information, referring me to it will be great.

I have zero hours of experience with these sets, either as a user or 
repair technician, so please don't assume that I know any "standard" set 
of things to do or not do.

Thanks in advance for the help!

Mike