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mw0uzo
04-28-2011, 06:08 PM
Today I had some free time to repair a random item in my pile of broken stuff. In my scrap radio box I found a Superstar 360FM. This radio was given to me by an old CB'er who had tired of radio just as I was discovering it when I was about 15. All I knew of radio comms was my 40 channel Lake ManXMan which was an utter pile of crap, based on the GECOL chassis. When I received it, I powered it up, turned it onto Ch19 and saw that 'all the channels were scrambled' and other modes didn't seem to do anything (LOL). It went to the back of a drawer and the world of SSB and DX flew me by without me even noticing.

So, with the idea of getting it to work I laid it bare on my bench. Inside was a terrible mess of 6 band mods, a horrible 'matt' of 1n4148s, snipped wires, twiddled alignments, corroded potentiometers and damaged PCB tracks. The volume/SQ control was bent and smashed and unservicable. Two segments on the LED display didn't light up, some power came out, but it was about 15kHz off frequency.

I picked up a new vol/sq pot off ebay, fitted it, cleaned up the 6 band mod and diode matrix as much as I could (miraculously it actually worked), traced all the snipped wires and reconnected as per circuit diagram. It was far off frequency because a +10kHz signal line on the PLL had been cut. That bought it close enough to be aligned properly. I realigned everything that was necessary, back to stock configuration. Modulation controls were hilariously turned up, insane amounts. Back down to sensible levels they came. I discovered a missing crystal.. ah shit. The missing segments were actually dead, so a new display required.

Tested FM, AM, SSB all seemed to work ok on RX and TX. Realigned S meter. Re-enabled the snipped roger bleep :muhahaha:
Missing crystal doesn't seem to have broken the radio at all. I have no explanation for this. I have never seen a radio with a missing crystal work properly before... maybe it doesn't need them :rofl:

The front of the radio and knobs were soaked in Cillit Bang. 'Good as new'

For the rest of the 'restoration', I need a mic, small volume or mic gain knob, a dual 7 segment common anode display and a replacement mounting bracket and thumbwheel knobs.

You might ask why all this trouble for a radio that doesn't work where I want it to (29.6fm), that has no decent frequency readout and is generally a pile of crap. It would be a very good question that I can't answer!

KG4CGC
04-28-2011, 06:34 PM
At least you had fun!

NQ6U
04-28-2011, 06:35 PM
You might ask why all this trouble for a radio that doesn't work where I want it to (29.6fm), that has no decent frequency readout and is generally a pile of crap. It would be a very good question that I can't answer!

No need to ask such a question, we all know the answer: because you could. And that's good enough.

mw0uzo
04-28-2011, 06:45 PM
No need to ask such a question, we all know the answer: because you could. And that's good enough.

Just don't tell my wifelet, she thought I was working today when really I was playing radio while she was looking after our screaming and teething little one. :twisted:

She would certainly think it a !$"%"£ good question!

N5RLR
04-28-2011, 07:19 PM
Anything that helps to keep one's skills sharp is good.

How about pics of this wee beastie? :-D

mw0uzo
04-28-2011, 07:47 PM
Anything that helps to keep one's skills sharp is good.

How about pics of this wee beastie? :-D

I'll take some tomorrow, unfortunately no pics of before the work though. Didn't really think about taking pictures.

Found a picture of my old CB. I still have it somewhere.
http://radiopics.com/CB_Radio/UK%20CB%2027-81/2-Mobile/Lake_950.htm
What a diabolical pile of crap. However, that did not stop me having a right laugh on it :-D

NQ6U
04-28-2011, 07:56 PM
Is this the radio?

http://odinn.org/radio/albums/SSB-CB-RADIO/Superstar_360_FM.sized.jpg

mw0uzo
04-28-2011, 08:09 PM
Yep thats the one

NQ6U
04-28-2011, 08:31 PM
Looks like the knobs of any Cobra radio would make a good substitute. That shouldn't be too hard to find.

KG4CGC
04-28-2011, 10:22 PM
lulz! I thought the wee beastie was the teething one!

N8YX
05-03-2011, 06:15 PM
Had one of those.

Traded it off for some Cybernet-based all-mode.

Traded that off for a 1st-gen RCI2950.

It sat on my shelf for 20 years.

Previous owner bought it back in December.

mw0uzo
05-05-2011, 08:26 AM
Is anyone aware of a mod to get it to work on 29.600? I've had a look through a few places, nothing seems to get it to go that high. Will I have to delve into the workings of the PLL divider...

W3MPS
05-05-2011, 11:47 AM
Try this

http://www.lu1dma.com.ar/modificas/CB%20Modifications.htm

or this

http://kg4zpn.netai.net/cb/pllfreqmods.htm

But everything I'm looking at only does up to 28.705 MHz in the first link.

On the second link, about all the way to the bottom, is a section dealing with the MC14008 PLL. It looks like you could do from 29.185 to 29.585 MHz

*EDIT*

Crap, never mind. You said 29.600. Looks like you'll have to go swimming around in the PLL and play with the dividers, pins, and all that fun stuff.

NQ6U
05-05-2011, 12:02 PM
The only CB I have is this one:

http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/31GGFRQ0ZML._SL500_AA300_.jpg

It's over ten years old but they still make them.

N2NH
05-05-2011, 12:03 PM
Is anyone aware of a mod to get it to work on 29.600? I've had a look through a few places, nothing seems to get it to go that high. Will I have to delve into the workings of the PLL divider...

The CB radios here have AM/SSB tranmitters. Most people here couldn't operate on 29.600 with them since it's 10Meter FM.

KC2UGV
05-05-2011, 12:14 PM
The only CB I have is this one:

http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/31GGFRQ0ZML._SL500_AA300_.jpg

It's over ten years old but they still make them.

Cobra 29 series? Nice radios. They sound really nice on all modes (SSB and AM). I had a 29NWST, which got lifted from my car while living in Texas... They even gutted the antenna off my car, leaving the cable in place (They clipped it at the radio, and at the antenna). Fucking savages.

NQ6U
05-05-2011, 12:22 PM
Cobra 29 series? Nice radios. They sound really nice on all modes (SSB and AM). I had a 29NWST, which got lifted from my car while living in Texas... They even gutted the antenna off my car, leaving the cable in place (They clipped it at the radio, and at the antenna). Fucking savages.

Yep, specifically the 29NWST, in fact. Mine is AM only, I didn't need SSB since it spent almost it's entire life tuned to Channel 19 (or 17 on the Left Coast north of the Grapevine Pass).

KC2UGV
05-05-2011, 12:27 PM
Yep, specifically the 29NWST, in fact. Mine is AM only, I didn't need SSB since it spent almost it's entire life tuned to Channel 19 (or 17 on the Left Coast north of the Grapevine Pass).

I thought the 29NWST had SSB?

mw0uzo
05-05-2011, 12:50 PM
Try this

http://www.lu1dma.com.ar/modificas/CB%20Modifications.htm

or this

http://kg4zpn.netai.net/cb/pllfreqmods.htm

But everything I'm looking at only does up to 28.705 MHz in the first link.

On the second link, about all the way to the bottom, is a section dealing with the MC14008 PLL. It looks like you could do from 29.185 to 29.585 MHz

*EDIT*

Crap, never mind. You said 29.600. Looks like you'll have to go swimming around in the PLL and play with the dividers, pins, and all that fun stuff.

No, thanks for finding that! The 29Mhz mod doesn't reach 29.6, but the mod is so simple that combined with the datasheet and some fiddling, I would bet that it goes up another 'band' to cover all that I want. :agree:

NQ6U
05-05-2011, 01:02 PM
I thought the 29NWST had SSB?

Nope, at least not mine.

http://www.hififorless.com/showProduct.php?productid=53251

KC2UGV
05-05-2011, 01:07 PM
You're right... I must be confusing that one, with a later rig I had gotten, to replace it, those Rat Bastards (TM).