When I put a signal on the antenna I’m able to tune in on the D & C bands but on A & B bands I can’t find any signal. I do hear a tone but it’s internal if I kill the signal gen it’s still alive. Any knows issues that may cause this??

Andrew

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Thanks ... I think my marks are bang on, so probably no need to do that.

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Thanks! So what is the procedure to do that? I didn't find anything in the manual ...

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What is the purpose of the triangle marks at the extremes of the MHz and tuning dials?

Thanks!

Well, this turned out to be quite a bigger job than anticipated.
Apart from the usual electrolytic capacitor replacements, I also found all the mylar / polyester capacitors had delaminated - possibly due to the extreme thermal cycling typical of a desert miner's shack where this FRG came from.? So all of those were replaced too.?
The first mixer pair Q102 & Q103 were found to be way down on conversion gain, so replaced those with MPF102s, and Q105 was a touch suspect so it too was similarly replaced.?
T102 primary was open circuit, and after removing and opening the can, the reason became clear - tiny enamelled wires had splattered like a fuse near the PCB pins.? Probably caused by a nearby lightning strike?? Didn't look like the result of? corrosion.? Anyway, very carefully managed to resolder some hair thin wire to the open circuit wires coming out of the transformer bobbin and on to the PCB legs, and band B is in business once again.
The incandescent bulbs were replaced with white LEDs, and the luminous output of each balanced to give an even backlighting effect.
Finally, a quick & dirty alignment was done... didn't do the 1st LO chain or the 2nd IF line up (I miss having access to a tracking generator...)

After all that, happy to report this FRG-7 is working beautifully again, excellent sensitivity, great dial tracking, sounds lovely.? And the BFO stability with a ceramic element source?? It is excellent!? I've had WWVH on zero beat for an hour, and drift was less than 30 Hz.? Of course, some of that could also be partly due to 3rd LO drift as well, so the real figure for the BFO alone could be less than that.

Just waiting for the local mechanic shop to sand blast the case back to bare metal for repainting, and I have to mix up some paint to touch up a few minor bits of wear on the front panel, and the job will be 100% done.
Thanks,
Jason (happy 1st time FRG-7 - now working! - owner)

Hi Jason,
That's good timing! I was just looking at that pdf (Files Folder #7 -? FRG-7 BFO Mod.pdf) and was about to suggest that was possibly what the previous owner was going to do.

There have been reports of the existing BFO circuit drifting. When you get your FRG-7 finished you possibly could report on how well the new ceramic resonator BFO mod circuit works.

73
Roger VE7LB

Hi Roger,
Thanks for the speedy reply!
On closer examination, the original owner has done the ceramic resonator BFO mod and located the BFO on the underside chassis in it's own little shielded box, complete with feedthrough caps etc.? Really nice job, actually, though a lot of the original PCB trackwork around the BFO has been scratched off, which is a bit of a shame.
Had me wondering there for a minute!
Thanks,
Jason

Hi Jason,
Lex - one of the group members is parting out an FRG-7. His website is https://www.ph2lb.nl/blog/index.php?page=for-sale-frg7-parts .

I see one eBay seller in Hong Kong has sold 50 sets of 3 2SK19 for less than $10 and has good feedback.
eBay Item # 172163056900.

73
Roger VE7LB

Hi all,
Picked up a FRG-7 as part of an auction lot, and it's in need of a pretty heavy restoration - both cosmetically and circuit operation wise.
First up will be electrolytic cap replacement and a thorough check that all supply voltages are where they're supposed to be, and I'll go from there to see what other work needs doing.
But I also notice that the previous owner has pulled most of the components associated with the BFO, including Q408 & T406.

Looks like Q408, a 2SK19-GR, can be replaced with a common N-ch JFET like the MPF102 (being in Australia, NTE equivalents are not common here) - hope someone might be able to confirm the MPF102 is suitable?
And for T406 - guess I'll just try any donor variable inductor coil, especially if it comes from a 455kHz section of a suitable donor radio, perhaps may need to alter the value of C437 to bring it to proper resonance?? Unless someone has a suggestion for a specific, readily available equivalent?

Thanks in advance,
Jason

I put the KRS/Radio West FRG-7 info in the Files Folder /g/Yaesu-FRG-7/files/6%20-%20FRG-7%20with%20non%20GAR-7%20Digital%20Readouts/FRG-7%20KRS%20Displays about a year ago.

The KRS displays must be very rare as I have only seen one on eBay in the last 20 + years.

Radio west also sold a digital readout that replaced the drum

I forgot about the KRS version even though I put the KRS folder in the Files section last year!

Thanks for the replies , looks like it is not easy to get a Digital Frequency read out that I can connect to my?
FRG -7 without changing or modifying my set too much , I liked the one I seen on top of a FRG-7 receiver that I saw for sale on eBay ,it was a GAR-7 frequency counter and just sat on top of the FRG-7 ,if any of you fellows?
?happen to see or know where I could get a frequency like that that comes with hook up instructions please if
?you don’t mind let me me know , thanks for your time take care stay safe all the very bestRick
?

Actually that is not true.

Hi Mike,
At the end he allowed an eBay seller to make her own boards and N3ZI supplied the programmed chips. See attached pic.

The GAR-7 is the closest thing to a plug and play digital display for the FRG-7.

73
Roger VE7LB

this was an option not that many years ago, I made a digital readout in a case using this persons product but they are no longer available

https://www.pongrance.com/

Hi Rick,
The only External Digital frequency readout for a FRG-7 made was the GAR-7.? See eBay item # 353614501469 . Unfortunately the FRG-7 comes with it.

Because of the recent interest in Displays I have spent quite a bit of time, this last week, trying to find the GAR-7 installation instructions online. So far no luck. The installation would also work on any other display such as the S & S Engineering PC1. Does anyone actually have a copy of these instructions?

The hook-up would go to TP404 (Near Q404). Use RG-174U (1/8") or the larger RG-58 coax. Use a .001 capacitor in series with the coax center conductor and TP404. Ground the shield nearby.

The S & S instructions are in the Files Folder #6. Programming is just setting some dip switches that I could give you info on setting. The S & S shows up on eBay from time to time.

Or possibly someone making one of the $30 Displays, mentioned in the last week, may want to make more than one.

73
Roger VE7LB