I traded my Icom IC-730 late last year - it was purchased in early 1982. It still met the original specs and worked perfectly after 20 years and installation in several vehicles. One time, it was stolen and the thieves threw it out of their speeding car upon being pursued. Nothing was damaged.
The likelihood of a microprocessor or other such complex chip failing in a modern radio - barring a lightning hit - is so small as to be negligible. In fact, barring infant mortalities on all the electronic parts these days, the failure rate is just about non-existent. Once a radio has survived the first few months, it is just about cast in concrete. Of course, Mother Nature can always zing you with a static discharge - second cousin to lightning - or you can be in there fat-fingering around and damage something, but just left alone and operated, modern solidstate rigs are just about bulletproof. The vulnerable parts are the final amp devices subject to damage through misuse, etc. but that is usually a knowledgeable-user repair and power transistors and FETS will be around for a long, long time.. I guess I am coming down on the side of NOT avoiding modern gear because of the possible inability to obtain some of the smart silicon that it uses. My experience has been that if it lasts a few weeks or months, it is good to go. Although I no longer have any Drake gear, except for my MN-4 tuner, I recall fondly the days when I had two C-Lines and enjoyed them very much. I still miss those blue dial lights! 73/72, George Amateur Radio W5YR - the Yellow Rose of Texas Fairview, TX 30 mi NE of Dallas in Collin county EM13QE "In the 57th year and it just keeps getting better!" <mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]> ----- Original Message ----- From: "Jim Shorney" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> To: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Sent: Thursday, July 31, 2003 11:01 PM Subject: Re: [drakelist] Should I get rid of my 7 line? > > -----BEGIN PGP SIGNED MESSAGE----- > > On Thu, 31 Jul 2003 18:26:25 -0500, Don and Diana Cunningham wrote: > > >I'm far more worried about getting parts for my "new" Icom/Yaesu rigs in a > >few years than repairs for my 7 Line nearly 30 years later!! > > - ----- Original Message ----- > From: "Sterling Garwood" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> > > I'll second that. 'Modern' rigs tend to use a lot of proprietary > silicon that may be unobtanium in a few years. It's happened. Not to > mention the fact that they are not very easily repairable by the > 'average' ham (defined here as someone who can fix all but the most > severe problems with a Drake, with or without advice from this list). > I don't expect any of my Yaecomwoods to be functional on 30 years. > Keep it. > > They'll have to pry my TR7 from my cold, dead hands.... > > - -- > Jim Shorney -->.<--Put complaints in this box > jshorney (at) inebraska.com > nu0c (at) amsat.org > Ham Radio NU0C > Lincoln, NE, USA > EN10ps > http://incolor.inetnebr.com/jshorney/ ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Submissions: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Subscribe: [EMAIL PROTECTED] - subscribe drakelist in body Unsubscribe: [EMAIL PROTECTED] - unsubscribe drakelist in body Hopelessly Lost: [EMAIL PROTECTED] - help in body of message Brought to you courtesy of TLCHost.net http://www.tlchost.net/ ----------------------------------------------------------------------
