On the other end of the price scale . . . .
A really good friend and neighbor, Don Willian, came by to visit and share a few drinks a while back. He asked what the deal was with the big antenna next to my shop. I told him it was a cb station, kinda like ham radio, and offered to show it to him. The skip was running strong that day and I told him to give it a try. He speaks fluent English, and after making several nice long contacts all over the US, he was hooked. He asked if I could put together a station on his farm, and I agreed. I have several good 858SSb rigs here, but he wanted my old TRC457. The Don is a retired "farmer" (not Coke) and made plenty of money over the years. So we settled on a price, and I sold him the 457, a Contex 500 linear, and all the accessories. I had a new MACO M104C beam that I never used, and we mounted it horizontal on a 40' wooden power pole he had laying around. So now he's up and running, and loving it. "Unit 808 Old DW, Medellin Colombia." Chan 36 - 27.385 lsb.
Bottom line was ... I needed a rig to replace my trusty TRC457. I always wanted a Cobra 139XLR because it was the ultimate 858SSB base out there. Looked at a lot of beat-up junk at ridiculous prices on Ebay, and, luckily, stumbled across this.
The radio was just as advertised. Relay chattered when keying-up in ssb. Popped in a new C179, replaced the Volume Control and the RF Gain/SWR Cal pots, sprayed contact cleaner on the chan selector and she worked good as new. Replaced the E-caps, made several mods/upgrades, and cleaned it good. Aligned it spot-on, and now it's the most kick-ass 858SSb rig I've ever had. GREAT DEAL at $53.03/ free ship.
We're on vacation in Ecuador now, and will start driving back sometime next week. Plan to take our time and check out Colombia. Look for me to be on the air in 2-3 weeks.
73s.
- 399
P.S. - I didn't realize this was so long-winded 'til I proof read it. Kinda feel like Handy Andy
.
A really good friend and neighbor, Don Willian, came by to visit and share a few drinks a while back. He asked what the deal was with the big antenna next to my shop. I told him it was a cb station, kinda like ham radio, and offered to show it to him. The skip was running strong that day and I told him to give it a try. He speaks fluent English, and after making several nice long contacts all over the US, he was hooked. He asked if I could put together a station on his farm, and I agreed. I have several good 858SSb rigs here, but he wanted my old TRC457. The Don is a retired "farmer" (not Coke) and made plenty of money over the years. So we settled on a price, and I sold him the 457, a Contex 500 linear, and all the accessories. I had a new MACO M104C beam that I never used, and we mounted it horizontal on a 40' wooden power pole he had laying around. So now he's up and running, and loving it. "Unit 808 Old DW, Medellin Colombia." Chan 36 - 27.385 lsb.
Bottom line was ... I needed a rig to replace my trusty TRC457. I always wanted a Cobra 139XLR because it was the ultimate 858SSB base out there. Looked at a lot of beat-up junk at ridiculous prices on Ebay, and, luckily, stumbled across this.
The radio was just as advertised. Relay chattered when keying-up in ssb. Popped in a new C179, replaced the Volume Control and the RF Gain/SWR Cal pots, sprayed contact cleaner on the chan selector and she worked good as new. Replaced the E-caps, made several mods/upgrades, and cleaned it good. Aligned it spot-on, and now it's the most kick-ass 858SSb rig I've ever had. GREAT DEAL at $53.03/ free ship.
We're on vacation in Ecuador now, and will start driving back sometime next week. Plan to take our time and check out Colombia. Look for me to be on the air in 2-3 weeks.
73s.
- 399
P.S. - I didn't realize this was so long-winded 'til I proof read it. Kinda feel like Handy Andy
.
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