[CQ-Contest] [Fwd: Repair or replace rigs?]

[Alfred J. Frugoli (KE1FO)]

Hello fellow contesters,

Looking for some collective wisdom from the group about repairing or replacing rigs.

I've got 2 TS-940's that I like, know well and feel like they work well 
for me (i.e. I'm not missing the 2nd or 3rd tier of stations because I 
don't have IF DSP or narrow 1st IF filters, it's limited antennas due to 
CC&R).  Both of them have some minor annoyance issues that make 
operating them less than 100% convent, but none of the issues make the 
rigs unusable.  Things like a vox delay slider that only works if it is 
slid just the right way, a narrow/wide filter switch that seems to 
switch in the narrow filter every 3rd time it's pressed, a power supply 
fan that is dead, etc.  As I said, fairly minor issues from an operating 
standpoint, however I don't have a clue how much they will cost to repair.

So herein lies the dilemma.  It seems that a good condition 940 with the 
IF10B installed goes for somewhere between $800-$900 on the online swap 
sites.  A reasonable replacement would be in the $2k range in my opinion 
(i.e. k3 or ft-2000).  The question becomes how much is it worth 
spending on repairing these issues on a radio that's now 3 or 4 
generations old.

My initial thought was that I would be willing to spend 25% of the cost 
of a new rig on repairing a rig (i.e. around $500).  But then I realized 
that amount is more than 50% of the value of the rig.  With Beltronics 
bench rates just under $70/hour it seems a repair could easily push $500 
depending on how quickly they can identify the issue, how much digging 
is involved in fixing the issue, and how available the needed parts are.

I would be appreciative of any thoughts or wisdom you could impart.

Thanks.

73 de Al, KE1FO