R1 Tech Note #1 (c) 1991 Paul Flaherty


The BNC connector on most HTs leaves something to be desired, and the R1 and
cousins are no exception.  The connector nut and the back case form a smooth -
smooth metal boundary, and the connector eventually will come loose.

If this happens to you, do *not* merely retighten the nut.  Instead, take
it off, place a lock washer underneath the nut, and *then* retighten.  If
you don't, you'll wind up with a cycle of loosening and retightening.  This
is not a good thing, since the wire connecting the BNC to the PC motherboard
is solid, and the solder connection leaves something to be desired.

If you've already managed to twist the wire loose from the PC board, all is
not lost; the wire may be reattached.  WARNING: The following instructions
are *NOT* for the faint of heart.  If you have *ANY* doubts about your
technical abilities (especially soldering), find someone experienced with 
repair of handheld radios to do it for you.

You'll need:

A low wattage soldering iron, preferably cordless
The soldersucker of your choice
A very small phillips screwdriver (the smallest standard Craftsman will do)
Some fresh eutectic solder, thin variety
An anti - static wrist strap
Mouse clips or a small pair of needle nose pliers

0.  Strap yourself in.  Doubtless, the R1 can be zapped by static.

1.  Take out the two long screws on the upper right of the back case,
    the small screw in the upper right of the front case, near the tether hole,
    and the two screws in the bottom of the front case.

2.  Separate the front case from the rest of the radio.  There is a printed
    circuit ribbon connecting the front case to the motherboard, and the ribbon
    is located on the right (viewed from the front) side.

3.  Remove the four phillips screws which hold the motherboard to the back.

4.  Now, a few notes on how the R1 is put together.  The gray plastic plate,
    on which the three controls on top of the R1 (squelch, volume, tune) are
    mounted, slides free from the back case.  The gray plastic plate, the 
    controls, the power and speaker jacks, and the motherboard all remove as
    one piece (thank the Great Engineer).

5.  Remove the 300 maH battery by pulling toward you (it's held in place by
    a metal clip) (and note that it's nicely connectorized for replacement
    somewhere down the road).  Now, pull on the lower (eg, the part that was
    nearest the battery) portion of the motherboard, while pushing the power
    and speaker jacks thru the holes, and then lift up on the gray plastic
    top piece.  The whole mess will come free.  Take note of the small piece
    of rubber which fits between the motherboard and the back case.  This
    forms the shock mount for the board.  Also note the small piece of gray
    rubber which forms the light/lock pushbutton.

6.  Take a breather, or have the nurse sponge down your forehead.

7.  Remove the BNC connector.  Curse loundly.

8.  Remove the solder and wire from the PC board hole (in the corner of 
    the board).

9.  Reattach the BNC connector to the PC board.

10. Now for the fun part.  Insert the BNC connector into the hole, while
    pushing the motherboard back into position, taking note to reinsert the
    gray pushbutton piece on the right side of the case (as viewed from the
    front).  Refit the gray top piece.  Place the small rubber shock mount
    behind the pc board, and reinstall the four screws (I used a pair of
    surgical mouse clips for this, but a pair of needle nosed pliers will do).

11. Reinsert the battery, replace the front cover, and reinstall screws.

12. Turn on.  If you've done everything right, you'll have a working R1.
    If not, make sure you havn't pinched any wires in between the case halves.



One final note.  The antenna that comes with the R1 leaves a lot to be desired.
Try using a Radio Shack PRO-34 scanner antenna instead; the improvement is
impressive.

--
-=Paul Flaherty, N9FZX        | "Gentlemen do not read each other's mail."
->paulf@shasta.Stanford.EDU   | - Henry L. Stimson (1929)