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my needle is stuck in the cobra
- Thread starter es500smith
- Start date
there's two set screws on both sides of the meter under scotch tape , find a good jewlers screw driver that will fit them , "very slowly and carefully" work one of the screws well watching the meter , once you get it right you will see the needle pop back into place and you should be good to go. Unfortunately , this does not always work which means the spring in the meter is shot 
and you can also break the spring if your not careful when trying to adjust the screws They sell new meters for those for about 7 to 10 dollars shipped at many places ,give or take a dollar or two either way. Good luck.
and you can also break the spring if your not careful when trying to adjust the screws They sell new meters for those for about 7 to 10 dollars shipped at many places ,give or take a dollar or two either way. Good luck.
Sorry, with that post, you have dethroned me.
Maybe that KY could help you with that?
If the meter does not respond to your attempts to free it replacements are pretty reasonable for most models, and a simple swap out.
I was wondering how he got the cobra to hold still long enough for him to stick a needle in it without getting bit,
...but I won't. :thumbdown:
...but I won't. :thumbdown:
Generally when a meter starts sticking it means the jewel movement is worn or dirty, if it's dirty and if you can open the meter you can suspend it over a container filled with white mineral spirits for a day or 3 and the vapors will lubricate the movement, I have done this successfully with a 30ua meter movement from a bird meter which was 2 years ago and have had no problems since. It's a watch makers fix and thanks again for the tip bob85.
If it's not dirty then the easiest and best way to fix it is to replace and the meters are dirt cheap on ebay.
If it's not dirty then the easiest and best way to fix it is to replace and the meters are dirt cheap on ebay.
Dont even piss around with it as mentioned sometimes it doesnt work trying to reset it. Then if i does work how longs it going to last? I can count on one hand out of dozens that lasted more than just a few months and had to be replaced anyways. Thats why I buy those meters a few at a time and I personally have maybe 1 cobra 148 that actually uses that style meter and that radios gonna be sold soon anyways Im thinkin LOL
I certainly wouldn't go through all that , as far as the clock cleaner guy would. Those meters are to damned cheap to go through all that. Sorry your luck sucks Tony , Radios sit for years (decades even) in peoples attics and garages. I've personally been through so many of them , that they either pop right back to life or they don't . It's pretty easy to tell after you have been through a few dozen of them if there going to work correctly or not.
Those meters only really give a guy something to go on in the first place. How accurate are they really ? How many times you hear guys say they have stingy and graceful meters ? Don't get me wrong here , but I have to look at the radios and I want the meter to work one way or the other.(no matter how accurate it is) It's no different then burned out L.E.D.'s or channel read outs , drives me nuts to look at a radio with those burnt out here and there.
Does a screwed up meter or burnt out L.E.D.s stop a radio from performing as it should ? I think not. But there's nothing wrong with wanting your given radios to work and perform as they should. If you can't pop it back into a workable line , buy a new one ,there cheap. now if you want to go through a clock cleaners routine ? Have it ! I find that to be very extreme for a Cobra CB radio meter. Although I could buy something like that concerning a rather exspensive Rolex , but chances are , if I could afford one of those ? I truly doubt I would be playing watch boy guru on it myself.
Those meters only really give a guy something to go on in the first place. How accurate are they really ? How many times you hear guys say they have stingy and graceful meters ? Don't get me wrong here , but I have to look at the radios and I want the meter to work one way or the other.(no matter how accurate it is) It's no different then burned out L.E.D.'s or channel read outs , drives me nuts to look at a radio with those burnt out here and there.
Does a screwed up meter or burnt out L.E.D.s stop a radio from performing as it should ? I think not. But there's nothing wrong with wanting your given radios to work and perform as they should. If you can't pop it back into a workable line , buy a new one ,there cheap. now if you want to go through a clock cleaners routine ? Have it ! I find that to be very extreme for a Cobra CB radio meter.
Although I could buy something like that concerning a rather exspensive Rolex , but chances are , if I could afford one of those ? I truly doubt I would be playing watch boy guru on it myself. 
I think the tip about using mineral spirits is brilliant - thank you. Perhaps not for a radio where a replacement meter is readily available (and cheap), but for older/vintage radios where a replacement meter is not available I can see where using this method would be quite beneficial.