Hector Posted May 24, 2019 Report Posted May 24, 2019 All: It appears my old but reliable COM2 radio (KX-170b) finally met its maker at the hands of an inept hangar fairy (me). It did not die a natural death; I killed it, although unintentionally. I had to remove it for access (new transponder for ADS-b upgrade) and I turned the allen wrench more than 360 degrees to unlock the radio destroying the wafer switch. Looking online, it appears this failure mode is beyond economical repair. When I purchased this airplane 7 years ago I had planned to replace this radio at the first sign of trouble, but it was so reliable and crystal clear I never had a reason to do so. I have an avionics upgrade planned for next year so I'm looking for an interim solution that does not involve rewiring. If anyone has a TKM MX-170 they want to sell let me know. Likewise, if you have an old KX-170b that still works I may be interested in that as well. By the way the picture below shows the wafer switch cracked in half. It is what happens when you are careless. Quote
bradp Posted May 24, 2019 Report Posted May 24, 2019 Hector my 170b died recently for a slightly different reason - one of the gear teeth that drives the water broke. I think the wafer is intact if you want a parts donation. Quote
carusoam Posted May 24, 2019 Report Posted May 24, 2019 Beat the hangar fair gently... encourage him to use some super glue sparingly... fix his mistake... As far as wiring goes... how many wires is it? Power and antennae are probably most of the hard time consuming part... a few wires to the audio panel after that... Slide in replacement is a good idea... If/when not available.... Send the elf to see what is on Sanford’s shelf... PP thoughts only, -a- Quote
Hector Posted May 25, 2019 Author Report Posted May 25, 2019 Beat the hangar fair gently... encourage him to use some super glue sparingly... fix his mistake... As far as wiring goes... how many wires is it? Power and antennae are probably most of the hard time consuming part... a few wires to the audio panel after that... Slide in replacement is a good idea... If/when not available.... Send the elf to see what is on Sanford’s shelf... PP thoughts only, -a- Already sent him a note. Has one but needs to be sent out for repair. Still an option if he gets it back before I find another. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk 1 Quote
Hector Posted May 25, 2019 Author Report Posted May 25, 2019 Hector my 170b died recently for a slightly different reason - one of the gear teeth that drives the water broke. I think the wafer is intact if you want a parts donation. Wow, thank you. That could work I hope. I’ll talk to the tech (hangar fairy has been fired) and see if a parts transplant is possible. If the wafer transplant is not possible maybe the gear is. I’ll pm you for details Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Quote
Hector Posted June 2, 2019 Author Report Posted June 2, 2019 Hector my 170b died recently for a slightly different reason - one of the gear teeth that drives the water broke. I think the wafer is intact if you want a parts donation. Wanted to thank you for the offer but in the end I found a shop that repairs these at a reasonable price and that’s what I’m doing. Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk Quote
Hector Posted June 29, 2019 Author Report Posted June 29, 2019 Hector my 170b died recently for a slightly different reason - one of the gear teeth that drives the water broke. I think the wafer is intact if you want a parts donation. Looks like I may need a part after all. I repaired my kx170 but it has a broken guide pin and that is causing it to not properly aligning itself in the tray sometimes. If your offer still stands I would very much like the radio so I can harvest the backplate with the guide pins. Let me know and I can PayPal you shipping cost. Thanks. Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk Quote
Hector Posted June 30, 2019 Author Report Posted June 30, 2019 Sure [mention=10018]Hector[/mention] check your PMs. Will do! BTW if you want to keep the bulk of your radio for some reason the only part I need is the back plate with the guide pins. You will need to remove a few screws to separate it form the rest. Alternatively don’t bother and send the whole thing and I’ll perform the surgery. Thanks again and I’ll keep watching for a pm from you. Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk Quote
Raptor05121 Posted July 3, 2019 Report Posted July 3, 2019 On 6/2/2019 at 7:16 PM, Hector said: Wanted to thank you for the offer but in the end I found a shop that repairs these at a reasonable price and that’s what I’m doing. Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk What are the details on this shop? I have a KX-170 and the transmit is staticy and NAV is off by a few degrees. Wonder if they can make it better? Quote
N201MKTurbo Posted July 3, 2019 Report Posted July 3, 2019 8 minutes ago, Raptor05121 said: What are the details on this shop? I have a KX-170 and the transmit is staticy and NAV is off by a few degrees. Wonder if they can make it better? The nav adjustment is in the indicator. Quote
Hector Posted July 4, 2019 Author Report Posted July 4, 2019 What are the details on this shop? I have a KX-170 and the transmit is staticy and NAV is off by a few degrees. Wonder if they can make it better? Alex, got my radio back but the jury is still out as to whether I have a good radio or not. Long story. The shop definitely fixed the wafer switch that was cracked but now I’m having some issues receiving on some frequencies. It transmits fine at all frequencies and receives just fine at some but not all. That being said, my radio is missing one of the guide pins and I have reason to suspect it it not properly aligned when in the tray. It could be that I have a tray issue as well but not sure. The shop said they tested the radio and it worked perfectly. Anyway, I just picked up a used TKM MC170b and I’ll be headed to the airport tomorrow praying that it works. It would be interesting to see if my kx170 works in your plane. Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk Quote
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