Uniden PC 244 - Alignment Help

[buickid]

Hey there, my friend gave me three PC 244 that he bought as a lot, since a 244 was the first SSB radio he had, and he wants one. They're all a bit rough, one looks like it's speaker was blown, and has wires running through the back of the case for what appears to have been an external speaker. One only briefly flashes the display on when you plug it in and turn it on, then goes blank. If you turn it back off and wait a few moments and turn it back on, it will flash again. Perhaps some kind of power problem?

The third and final one is promising, it turns on and makes noise, but lays 20W+ of carrier in the sideband modes. AM appears to work, haven't done a radio check. Tried to do an alignment according to these directions, but came to a halt at the section "Carrier Oscillator". It says TP5 should read 10.6925 on LSB and 10.6975 on USB, and to adjust L21 and L20 accordingly. When I attempted to do those adjustments, LSB gave a reading of 10.6975 and LSB gave 10.6925 (reversed), and adjustment at the specified points did not change the reading, as far as I could tell. Whats going on here?
I have a Sencore FC45 frequency counter here, and a SG1144/U signal generator that I'm in the process of repairing (tantalum caps in the power supply acting up). Looking for an oscilloscope as well.

Aloha,
Trevor

 

[9C1Driver]

The Uniden 244 is an outstanding SSB radio.

 

[Ocean cruiser]

Hey there, my friend gave me three PC 244 that he bought as a lot, since a 244 was the first SSB radio he had, and he wants one. They're all a bit rough, one looks like it's speaker was blown, and has wires running through the back of the case for what appears to have been an external speaker. One only briefly flashes the display on when you plug it in and turn it on, then goes blank. If you turn it back off and wait a few moments and turn it back on, it will flash again. Perhaps some kind of power problem?

The third and final one is promising, it turns on and makes noise, but lays 20W+ of carrier in the sideband modes. AM appears to work, haven't done a radio check. Tried to do an alignment according to these directions, but came to a halt at the section "Carrier Oscillator". It says TP5 should read 10.6925 on LSB and 10.6975 on USB, and to adjust L21 and L20 accordingly. When I attempted to do those adjustments, LSB gave a reading of 10.6975 and LSB gave 10.6925 (reversed), and adjustment at the specified points did not change the reading, as far as I could tell. Whats going on here?
I have a Sencore FC45 frequency counter here, and a SG1144/U signal generator that I'm in the process of repairing (tantalum caps in the power supply acting up). Looking for an oscilloscope as well.

Aloha,
Trevor

Hey there, my friend gave me three PC 244 that he bought as a lot, since a 244 was the first SSB radio he had, and he wants one. They're all a bit rough, one looks like it's speaker was blown, and has wires running through the back of the case for what appears to have been an external speaker. One only briefly flashes the display on when you plug it in and turn it on, then goes blank. If you turn it back off and wait a few moments and turn it back on, it will flash again. Perhaps some kind of power problem?

The third and final one is promising, it turns on and makes noise, but lays 20W+ of carrier in the sideband modes. AM appears to work, haven't done a radio check. Tried to do an alignment according to these directions, but came to a halt at the section "Carrier Oscillator". It says TP5 should read 10.6925 on LSB and 10.6975 on USB, and to adjust L21 and L20 accordingly. When I attempted to do those adjustments, LSB gave a reading of 10.6975 and LSB gave 10.6925 (reversed), and adjustment at the specified points did not change the reading, as far as I could tell. Whats going on here?
I have a Sencore FC45 frequency counter here, and a SG1144/U signal generator that I'm in the process of repairing (tantalum caps in the power supply acting up). Looking for an oscilloscope as well.

Aloha,
Trevor

Hey, did you ever get carrier oscillator figured out? Maybe you could share how it’s done. Thanks

 

[Robb]

Might want to test the AM Regulator mounted on the back inside wall near the power plug to see if it has failed. There is also a companion transistor next to it that might have failed as well. That would explain the high power in SSB.

I use a PC-244 as my 'daily driver' for the base station. Repaired, recapped, unlocked, and aligned. I also had the same problem with mine, and it was one of those two parts; can't recall which ATM. You can also use an upgrade AM Regulator than the OEM part, as the stock part is pretty wambly.

 

[Ocean cruiser]

Might want to test the AM Regulator mounted on the back inside wall near the power plug to see if it has failed. There is also a companion transistor next to it that might have failed as well. That would explain the high power in SSB.

I use a PC-244 as my 'daily driver' for the base station. Repaired, recapped, unlocked, and aligned. I also had the same problem with mine, and it was one of those two parts; can't recall which ATM. You can also use an upgrade AM Regulator than the OEM part, as the stock part is pretty wambly.

Hey Robb, what is your process when it comes to checking the carrier oscillator frequency’s? I’ve seen a couple of different ways to do it and I’m not sure which is correct. Could you run me through the process? Thanks in advance

Might want to test the AM Regulator mounted on the back inside wall near the power plug to see if it has failed. There is also a companion transistor next to it that might have failed as well. That would explain the high power in SSB.

I use a PC-244 as my 'daily driver' for the base station. Repaired, recapped, unlocked, and aligned. I also had the same problem with mine, and it was one of those two parts; can't recall which ATM. You can also use an upgrade AM Regulator than the OEM part, as the stock part is pretty wambly.

Might want to test the AM Regulator mounted on the back inside wall near the power plug to see if it has failed. There is also a companion transistor next to it that might have failed as well. That would explain the high power in SSB.

I use a PC-244 as my 'daily driver' for the base station. Repaired, recapped, unlocked, and aligned. I also had the same problem with mine, and it was one of those two parts; can't recall which ATM. You can also use an upgrade AM Regulator than the OEM part, as the stock part is pretty wambly.

Hey Robb not sure if my other reply went through but do you have a process you do when doing the carrier oscillator alignment? Maybe the equipment you use and the steps you take to get it done. I’ve read 2 different ways of doing it but both have turned up bad results. I can’t seem to get the frequency’s to stabilize. Let me know. Thanks

 

[buickid]

I accepted that it was probably beyond my skill level, haha. The radio(s) are on a shelf, waiting for the time that I send one off to be gone through and polished up. The friend that gave them to me passed away a few years ago, so I definitely don't want to be mucking them up.