UNIDEN BEARCAT 980 SSB

[@jonhammes6209]

Ive had 3 of these radios fail in the last month. First one, no transmit. I warrantied it out. The second one, the screen faded in less than a week. The 3rd one wouldn't shut off, so i unplugged it, and it, of course, wouldn't cut back on. The 4th radio is still in the box. Im running my PC68, but im thinking about getting a President McKinley or forgetting SSB and getting the Harrison

[@dxradioshop]

These Bearcat 980ssb radios aren't what there all advertised as. They have many issues such as the ones you have described along with the display failing which is the biggest failure of these radios. The newer president radios are nice depending on which ones you buy. A lot of the newer radios are going to menu driven and the down fall to them is if something were to fail such as PLL then your screwed because you would have to buy another radio as the microprocessor is not sold for techs to put in so therefore are just throw away radios if they were to fail depending on what the problem is with the radio like NO TX/RX leads back to the PLL processor. I prefer the older radios because there are still parts for them and they are usually fixable radios. So do your research first before buying a menu driven radio. If it is a good unit and has good reviews then give it a try otherwise save your money. Every radio has it's own flaws but has many good advantages as well.

[@sizzlersshop]

It would be REAL COOL if a service manual or even just a schematic for the 980. I have a few first gen. 1 of them keeps blowing the 10 ohm resistor that feeds the mosfet. I cannot figure out why it keeps blowing even after swapping out the finals and drivers. On receive the resistor is fine but then if I go on AM and key up, the resistor gets hot. As soon as I switch to ssb, even without any mod, the moment I key up it fries the resistor and it keeps frying after I unkey. Any ideas?

[@RFMaster6]

I’ve got three. Two have defective screens The other is good because I leave it turned off.

[@dxradioshop]

Common problem is the displays. Set them low and they will last a little longer otherwise they burn out fast.

[@KE8ODY-WV-Ares-Ham-Dad-3O4]

Just bought one but wish I would've got a Washington or a George.. I have a 503 rm italy haven't hooked it up yet

[@dxradioshop]

Washington would be a good choice from what I hear but definitely stay away from the 980ssb radios as they have many issues

[@KE8ODY-WV-Ares-Ham-Dad-3O4]

@@dxradioshop that sucks just bought a version 2 as a base smh

[@KE8ODY-WV-Ares-Ham-Dad-3O4]

@@dxradioshop yeah even new ones worry me.. You know much about the Anytone 6666 pro

[@KE8ODY-WV-Ares-Ham-Dad-3O4]

Ceramic screwdrivers work good?

[@dxradioshop]

Anti-Static Ceramic Screw Drivers are the way to go for sure!