A while back I posted here looking for the Antenna Coupling Switch for my GK 500A. One of the shorting fingers burned on it and another had been so hot that it lost contact with the wafer side. Several fine gentlemen had switches that they offered but none were indexed to the marks on the panel so I continued to look hoping that I could find one.
My search took me to MFJ parts via Ameritron. In the GK 500 series the switch has 7 positions and the original was special order from Centralab series 231. Electro Switch Corp. (electro-nc.com) has the rights to this particular switch and it is their E4 Series. However, none of the stock switches are made to progressively short 6 positions. They would build and supply what I needed for wafer replacement, cost ~$85.00. The problems were I had to order through one of their retain sales outlets like Mouser, Allied, Digikey, etc. but the drive shaft for the wafer is now different. Ameritron uses a two wafer band switch from Electro Switch model E4 in their AL 1200 and 1500 amplifiers that would do the job. The problem is the cost ~145.00. Since I have owned this this King since 1994 and I received it from the original owner, I decided to go this route. Installation is pretty straightforward, requiring you establish which position you want for #1 then moving the opposite stop one place farther down the line. The switch is a 1 pole 17 position switch and once you have decided which positions you will use, one jumper wire must be installed on the switch to make it work. You have to remove the front wafer and only use the rear one that comes on the switch. Then you have to cut the shaft to 1/2 inch length and the wafer drive appropriately. This particular switch will short only 5 positions consecutively but there are two more shorting contacts located further around the wafer that can be made to give the needed 6 pole short. So after Grand Ole UPS freight charges I have over $160 dollars spent. But the switch looks and acts like the one that was there. Another reason for mentioning this switch is the same thing is used in the final tank to switch bands. This is an expensive way to go, but I decided to do it to keep the radio as it was both electrically and operationally. I guess I am happy now. Jim/W5JO ______________________________________________________________ Our Main Website: http://www.amfone.net AMRadio mailing list Searchable Archives: http://www.mail-archive.com/[email protected]/ List Rules (must read!): http://w5ami.net/amradiofaq.html List Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/amradio Post: [email protected] To unsubscribe, send an email to [email protected] with the word unsubscribe in the message body. This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html
