On Tue, Aug 6, 2024 at 9:15 AM, D. Scott MacKenzie

<kb0fhp@...> wrote:

I have blown finals after I lent to son.? I put off getting new finals board, and now it looks like I have an expensive brick with very low time on it.? I saw some recently say they ordered the boards, and some say they are unavailable.? What is the real story?? Is there an alternative that tossing the 817 in electronics recycling?

?

From: [email protected] <[email protected]> On Behalf Of Eric van de Weyer via groups.io
Sent: Tuesday, August 6, 2024 12:12 AM
To: [email protected]
Subject: Re: [ft817] Blown final club? I think I have a membership

?

Hi Jeff,

?

You have to remember that there are over a quarter of a million of the units out there so there are bound to be some failures.

?

Remember, also, that the early units with the bipolar transistors were more prone to taking off under low battery conditions and blowing up the finals due to there being no load on them

?

73….Eric VK2VE.

?

From: [email protected] <[email protected]> On Behalf Of Jeff WN1MB
Sent: Tuesday, August 6, 2024 6:53 AM
To: [email protected]
Subject: Re: [ft817] Blown final club? I think I have a membership

?

On first blush, that appears to be an excessively high mortality rate. Any thoughts on "the why" of it all?

On 8/5/24 16:29, Ron Wright via groups.io wrote:

I am on my 3rd PA board for my FT817non-ND I bought around 2004.

?

?

Virus-free.

My soldering skills are really not up to the task. Is there anyone that can do this? Apparently Yaesu wont repair any longer.

Scott aka KB0FHP

-----Original Message-----
From: [email protected] <[email protected]> On Behalf Of Luis Miguel Casta?eda via groups.io
Sent: Tuesday, August 6, 2024 11:44 AM
To: [email protected]
Subject: Re: [ft817] Blown final club? I think I have a membership


Some third parties still sell the boards... at their prince, which isn't as cheap as they used to be. Also if you're sure that it's just a transistors fault the same mitsubishi that came with my 817ND can be bought relatively cheap from major retailers. IIRC it was 7 euros each about a year ago. Original 817 uses an older model, and a different board which I don't know how easy to find it is.

Anyway isn't an easy soldering job.

my 2c


On Tuesday, August 06 2024, 09:15:29, D. Scott MacKenzie via groups.io wrote:

I have blown finals after I lent to son. I put off getting new finals
board, and now it looks like I have an expensive brick with very low
time on it. I saw some recently say they ordered the boards, and some
say they are unavailable. What is the real story? Is there an
alternative that tossing the 817 in electronics recycling?



From: [email protected] <[email protected]> On Behalf Of Eric van de Weyer
via groups.io
Sent: Tuesday, August 6, 2024 12:12 AM
To: [email protected]
Subject: Re: [ft817] Blown final club? I think I have a membership



Hi Jeff,



You have to remember that there are over a quarter of a million of the
units out there so there are bound to be some failures.



Remember, also, that the early units with the bipolar
transistors were more prone to taking
off under low battery conditions and blowing up the finals due
to there being no load on
them



73….Eric VK2VE.



From: [email protected] <[email protected]> On Behalf Of Jeff WN1MB
Sent: Tuesday, August 6, 2024 6:53 AM
To: [email protected]
Subject: Re: [ft817] Blown final club? I think I have a
membership



On first blush, that appears to be an excessively high mortality
rate. Any thoughts on "the
why" of it all?

On 8/5/24 16:29, Ron Wright via groups.io wrote:

I am on my 3rd PA board for my FT817non-ND I bought around
2004.





* Virus-free.www.avast.com
*

--
El ánimo que piensa en lo que puede temer, empieza a temer en lo
que puede pensar.
--- Quevedo

Way, way too many counterfeit transistors/fets coming from china.

On Aug 7, 2024, at 16:58, David Fanelli <kb5pgy@...> wrote:

?

One data point. I ordered two of the finals boards in July, and I have received them yesterday. The delay was due to the fact that they used my QRZ address, which is a PO Box rather than an street address and Hurricane Beryl.

On Wed, Aug 7, 2024 at 9:35?AM Mike Bryce via <prosolar=[email protected]> wrote:

You can indeed call Yaesu and talk to the nice part lady and order the parts. However there are none in the supply pipe, so basically you're wasting your time. I talked to the service guy and he said there are NO Final units available.?

?

When I talked to the part lady she had no idea if or when said final unit would be available.?

?

So when the service guy said no part, and the parts lady says no part, there's a good chance there's no part.

?

Mike wb8vge

--

73 de KB5PGY

On Thu, Aug 8, 2024 at 12:51 PM, John

<ve3ips@...> wrote:

There are good techs that can fix or use it as a receiver

I was told by an extra that real hams blow finals at least once

Those that listen and never transmit will never be members

One ham I know has 3 817s and never transmitted them and he uses the built in battery.....which is a joke as it last 15 mins transmitting?

BFC stickers upon request hihi

John VE3IPS?

--
John VE3IPS
Radio is a Lifestyle not a Hobby
Oprah added the ARRL Handbook to her list

On Aug 7, 2024, at 22:23, Greg, K3RW <gregory.c.winters@...> wrote:

?

Just so I am clear on this topic, if is this the correct understanding?

?

1) The original FT-817 finals are no longer available, at all, so you have to use the 'newer' finals

2) The FT-817ND finals and FT-818 finals are the same, and will fit the FT-817 (non-ND) models

3) But at the moment, the FT-817ND/818 finals are backordered?

?

Thanks,

Greg, K3RW/KH8

On Aug 8, 2024, at 13:29, Joseph Wonoski via groups.io <N1khb@...> wrote:

?If Yaesu was a little smarter they would have made a compartment for lithium ion or similar for the 818 or even mid cycle of the ND version. The obsession with AAs was a mistake. When the 817 first came out it made a certain amount of sense but that era came and went quite a while ago.

? ?They also could have done much better with battery charging than the funky time method. Voltage sensing for charge state would have been far superior which would have ended charge at the appropriate level. I'm guessing that the design assignment of that section of the radio was handed over to a flunky fresh out of college. They got what they paid for on that one.

? ?JMHO, FWIW, YMMV, etc.

Joe N1KHB?

On Thu, Aug 8, 2024 at 12:51 PM, John

<ve3ips@...> wrote:

There are good techs that can fix or use it as a receiver

I was told by an extra that real hams blow finals at least once

Those that listen and never transmit will never be members

One ham I know has 3 817s and never transmitted them and he uses the built in battery.....which is a joke as it last 15 mins transmitting?

BFC stickers upon request hihi

John VE3IPS?

--
John VE3IPS
Radio is a Lifestyle not a Hobby
Oprah added the ARRL Handbook to her list

On Thu, Aug 8, 2024 at 4:16 PM, Ken N2VIP

<ken@...> wrote:

I wonder if changing battery technologies would have required re-designing a board that would require re-certifying the radio as if it were a brand new product? Yaesu was selling FT-817, FT-817nd, and FT-818s about as fast as they could make them... if sales dropped, they might have considered changing some elements of the design, who knows?

It was obvious at the time, to me anyway, that the FT-818 was designed to allow customers to buy new FT-817 type radio and be nearly 100% compatible with the entire ecosystem of OEM and 3rd-party accessories. Some seemed to feel that Yaesu was trying to offer the FT-818 as a new, improved design that current 817/817nd owners would want to upgrade to - I still remember the posts here complaining with statements like "I already have a TXCO, thank you very much! Epic fail Yaesu!" And my favorite "I didn't want 6 watts output, think of the shortened battery life from all that 'extra' RF!"

(I have an FT-897 that I can still buy brand-new battery packs for - and I already have the bizzare charger contraption, it came with two dead batteries when I got the radio - but I struggle with spending $120 for about 8 amps of NiMH power when a 12-15 amp LiPO battery is the same money but infinitely more useful to me... but, the NiMH batteries fit so nicely in the case...)

Be careful talking about the charging process of the 817/818 - some might label you a cry baby and blast you for not researching the radio fully before purchase! Ha-Ha, just kidding.

Ken, N2VIP

On Aug 8, 2024, at 13:29, Joseph Wonoski via groups.io <N1khb@...> wrote:

?If Yaesu was a little smarter they would have made a compartment for lithium ion or similar for the 818 or even mid cycle of the ND version. The obsession with AAs was a mistake. When the 817 first came out it made a certain amount of sense but that era came and went quite a while ago.

? ?They also could have done much better with battery charging than the funky time method. Voltage sensing for charge state would have been far superior which would have ended charge at the appropriate level. I'm guessing that the design assignment of that section of the radio was handed over to a flunky fresh out of college. They got what they paid for on that one.

? ?JMHO, FWIW, YMMV, etc.

Joe N1KHB?

On Thu, Aug 8, 2024 at 12:51 PM, John

<ve3ips@...> wrote:

There are good techs that can fix or use it as a receiver

I was told by an extra that real hams blow finals at least once

Those that listen and never transmit will never be members

One ham I know has 3 817s and never transmitted them and he uses the built in battery.....which is a joke as it last 15 mins transmitting?

BFC stickers upon request hihi

John VE3IPS?

--
John VE3IPS
Radio is a Lifestyle not a Hobby
Oprah added the ARRL Handbook to her list

On Aug 8, 2024, at 16:25, Joseph Wonoski via groups.io <N1khb@...> wrote:

?I don't think any research into battery type, size, etc. would have changed my mind about the purchase. As far as redesign I can't see why the radio would have required recertification unless some transmit related circuitry had to be changed, but I don't know how that process works. Does FCC actually evaluate ham equipment for compliance, or is it simply a matter of honestly meeting the required specs??

? There's also the possibility that some existing size of newer battery chemistry might already exist to fit the original battery compartment. They come in a very wide selection of sizes and shapes such as for consumer electronics. I dunno. It's obviously water under the bridge at this point, and I'm under the impression that most 817/818s run on external power with considerable more capacity than AAs anyway.?

Joe N1KHB?

On Thu, Aug 8, 2024 at 4:16 PM, Ken N2VIP

<ken@...> wrote:

I wonder if changing battery technologies would have required re-designing a board that would require re-certifying the radio as if it were a brand new product? Yaesu was selling FT-817, FT-817nd, and FT-818s about as fast as they could make them... if sales dropped, they might have considered changing some elements of the design, who knows?

It was obvious at the time, to me anyway, that the FT-818 was designed to allow customers to buy new FT-817 type radio and be nearly 100% compatible with the entire ecosystem of OEM and 3rd-party accessories. Some seemed to feel that Yaesu was trying to offer the FT-818 as a new, improved design that current 817/817nd owners would want to upgrade to - I still remember the posts here complaining with statements like "I already have a TXCO, thank you very much! Epic fail Yaesu!" And my favorite "I didn't want 6 watts output, think of the shortened battery life from all that 'extra' RF!"

(I have an FT-897 that I can still buy brand-new battery packs for - and I already have the bizzare charger contraption, it came with two dead batteries when I got the radio - but I struggle with spending $120 for about 8 amps of NiMH power when a 12-15 amp LiPO battery is the same money but infinitely more useful to me... but, the NiMH batteries fit so nicely in the case...)

Be careful talking about the charging process of the 817/818 - some might label you a cry baby and blast you for not researching the radio fully before purchase! Ha-Ha, just kidding.

Ken, N2VIP

On Aug 8, 2024, at 13:29, Joseph Wonoski via groups.io <N1khb@...> wrote:

?If Yaesu was a little smarter they would have made a compartment for lithium ion or similar for the 818 or even mid cycle of the ND version. The obsession with AAs was a mistake. When the 817 first came out it made a certain amount of sense but that era came and went quite a while ago.

? ?They also could have done much better with battery charging than the funky time method. Voltage sensing for charge state would have been far superior which would have ended charge at the appropriate level. I'm guessing that the design assignment of that section of the radio was handed over to a flunky fresh out of college. They got what they paid for on that one.

? ?JMHO, FWIW, YMMV, etc.

Joe N1KHB?

On Thu, Aug 8, 2024 at 12:51 PM, John

<ve3ips@...> wrote:

There are good techs that can fix or use it as a receiver

I was told by an extra that real hams blow finals at least once

Those that listen and never transmit will never be members

One ham I know has 3 817s and never transmitted them and he uses the built in battery.....which is a joke as it last 15 mins transmitting?

BFC stickers upon request hihi

John VE3IPS?

--
John VE3IPS
Radio is a Lifestyle not a Hobby
Oprah added the ARRL Handbook to her list