[TenTec] Fwd: Re: TenTec] Omni VI+: low TX and RX on 12 meters

[Malcolm McLeman]

Excellent news Phil and one of the "solder sucker" points I was about to 
send you.
Other...
Before faulty component extraction firstly bear in mind any excessive 
heat from solding-iron to the tinned copper track will 
easily/disastrously lift the track from the pcb.
If possible isolate each connecting leg of the faulty component and
after extraction carefully  "suck" any excess solder from the track side 
connection.
For the new component replacement and without undue pressure re-drill 
the existing hole from the screen side all the way thru any remaining 
solder blocking the track side connection.
I cannot emphasise enough the word "carefully" and have found (link 
below) these little handraulic drill bits an excellent tool for the 
re-drill process. Pcb screen side faulty component extraction I find a 
crocodile clip to the leg with small length of attached insulated wire 
to give location and additional pull an ideal tool.
The Omni VI is no spring chicken and I have a spare LPF board ready for 
immediate replacement when needs must and my apols if above comes across 
as trying to teach my Granny how to suck eggs.
73/GL
Malcolm/F5VBU

https://www.amazon.co.uk/10pcs-Helical-Groove-Tungsten-Carbide/dp/B00PZYFRLI/ref=sr_1_9?ie=UTF8&qid=1546583790&sr=8-9&keywords=pcb+drill+bits

On 1/3/2019 9:42 PM, Phil Erickson wrote:
> Hi all,
> 
>    Success!  The "low 12 meter" problem was a cracked solder joint on one of
> the coils making up the 12m BPF.  Tough to spot.  Wiggling the coil a bit
> caused things to jump to life intermittently, so with the help of Will
> KD4FOV, we put it under the microscope and fixed the problem.  Tip: don't
> just dump more solder on the joint: as Gary suggested, suck dry all the old
> solder and reflow the pin.
> 
>    Things are now back to normal on both RX and TX without painful retuning
> of the BPF and RX is nominal sensitivity, while TX puts out full power.
> 
>    Thanks very much to everyone who helped on this thread.  Looking forward
> to putting it to use.  I learned a lot!
> 
> 73
> Phil W1PJE
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