[TowerTalk] HDR-300A rotator questions (bit long)

Bob Wruble ai7b@teleport.com
Wed, 7 May 1997 16:23:33 -0700


TAKING THEM DWN AND SENDING BAK SURE IS A pain in the ass.
these tower product always seem to ferget that aspect of their lovely
warranty policies....in my opinion the hdr300 and telex are both a pain 
to deal with .... earlier on i went thru 3 of these hdr and swore i wud
never own another only to eat those words a few months ago when i 
put up a k5iu rotating r55 twr....dick specs the hdr for his system so
i bot a 300A ...so far so good.....

you can get reading variations from wet connections/connectors and 
rf interference as well as bad pots.....try removing the cases from the
rotators and spraying the pots with wd-40....if u can get any into them
as i recall they maybe sealed......no excuse for these pots failing so 
soon.....get them to send u new pots and install ur self.....its easy to
do.....mite be able to do on the tower??  good luck

w7gg 

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> From: Carcia, Joe,  NJ1Q <jcarcia@arrl.org>
> To: 'smtp:towertalk@contesting.com'
> Subject: [TowerTalk] HDR-300A rotator questions (bit long)
> Date: Wednesday, May 07, 1997 11:41 AM
> 
> 
> A few months ago, I purchased a new HDR-300A to replace an old HDR-300
> I had in service.  (The 300A can be set for either North or South centered.)
> 
> The new rotor system had been functioning normally.  Recently, the display
> on the control console was giving me erratic readings.  Finally, all
> it reads now is -99 (telling me there is a possible problem with the rotor 
> potentiometer).
> 
> I determined that the potentiometer's wiper (pin 6) is open.  I get a 
> resistance
> reading between pins 5 and 7, but nothing from pins 5 to 6, or 6 to 7.  I 
> get
> no reading no matter which direction the rotator is spun.
> 
> Now, the old HDR-300 was sent to Hy-Gain for repair and upgrade to 300A 
> status.
> When I got it back, I bench tested it, and it worked fine.  No problems. 
>  (And yes,
> the control console was also upgraded for either North or South centered.)
> 
> The now-overhauled HDR-300 was placed on a different tower, and was 
> functioning
> okay for a few days.  However, I now experience similar problems with this
> old 300 as I do with the new 300A.  The only difference is that I get a 
> resistance
> reading between all the 300's pot's pins, but the control console still 
> indicates a problem.
> The resistance readings also do not jive with those in the manual.
> 
> (And, just to be sure, I switched between the two control consoles I have, 
> and each
> react the same way.)
> 
> I've already called Hy-Gain, and they tell me to check the wiring.  If 
> that's okay,
> and I still have a problem, I could send the unit(s) back.  Easier said than 
> done.
> 
> My questions:  Has anyone who has also purchased the new HDR-300A rotator
> experienced similar problems, especially with the potentiometer?  If so, if 
> you took
> corrective action, what did you find useful--short of returning it to 
> Hy-Gain of course?
> 
> Tnx!
> 
> 73,
> 
> Joe, NJ1Q
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
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