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Modified Galaxy 2547 Problems

Recon

NY 881
Jul 28, 2019
1,045
1,240
173
Up-State NY
OK folks, this is my horror story. I had the new 2547 for one week and AM / USB / LSB were working perfectly. For some unknown reason I decided to send ($45.00 USPS Priority) the radio out for a "peak and tweak" and have extra channels installed. Note: The $45.00 was only for postage!
One week later I received the "modified" radio and now the sideband functions did not work on the standard CB channels. I returned (two-hour one-way drive) to the shop and he kept it for one week and resolved the problem with the sideband function and I paid postage to have it returned to me. NOTE: The headphone jack was replaced with a six position rotary switch for the extra channels.
Two weeks later, the radio suddenly shuts-down as I am monitoring channel 19. My first action was to remove the top and bottom halves of the radio case and look for a broken or disconnected wire (or wires) and I did not find any issues. Now comes the big shock / surprise. I noticed the headphone jack was not removed but just lying against other components with a piece of vinyl electrical tape attached so as not to touch any other components. WHAT A UGLY, MESSY AND UNPROFESSIONAL MODIFICATION! Was the left-over headphone jack the cause of the shut-down? Who knows! I knew that I could not return the radio to Galaxy because it was modified.
Recently I sent the radio to a forum member with hopes that he can "un***k" the problem and repair the radio.
 
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I've seen that done with both headphone jacks and control knobs when the front panel hole was used for something else. The idea is to make it so the mod is reversible.

That being said, if I find it I either reverse the mod ('cause there's a lot of crap ones) or replace the tape with a layer of heat shrink tubing. Should probably be two layers, but I'm lazy and cheap.
 
I've seen that done with both headphone jacks and control knobs when the front panel hole was used for something else. The idea is to make it so the mod is reversible.

That being said, if I find it I either reverse the mod ('cause there's a lot of crap ones) or replace the tape with a layer of heat shrink tubing. Should probably be two layers, but I'm lazy and cheap.
Yes, I can understand the logic of retaining the headphone jack and doing so in a professional and neat manner. Not only was the headphone jack socket exposed, there were a few small components (resistor, capacitor, diode???) which were connected to the headphone jack that were lying against other components because the glue from the vinyl tape had semi-melted causing the components to touch against other internal components. Sloppy....sloppy.....sloppy!
 
Unhooking the headphone jack is like burning a bridge. If you want to go back you'll have to build a new one first.

If the old jack is properly insulated, laying it aside is a lesser evil. If the owner changes his mind, or sells it to someone who uses headphones the old jack is there to put back where it was.

An ugly messy job would be unprofessional. But leaving an old control still hooked up isn't necessarily a bad thing. Just so long as it's insulated from nearby metal and tied down securely.

73
 
Unhooking the headphone jack is like burning a bridge. If you want to go back you'll have to build a new one first.

If the old jack is properly insulated, laying it aside is a lesser evil. If the owner changes his mind, or sells it to someone who uses headphones the old jack is there to put back where it was.

An ugly messy job would be unprofessional. But leaving an old control still hooked up isn't necessarily a bad thing. Just so long as it's insulated from nearby metal and tied down securely.

73
The area inside the case where the headphone jack was being stored is a very tight and crowded, but I think if the person had taken the time to use the proper protective material, then maybe I would not be so ticked-off.
This reminds me when I looked at my cousin's car after the front axle shafts were replaced (by the neighborhood mechanic) and she heard a clicking noise on the right side. The (so called) mechanic installed both front axles with a new CVJ and rubber boots, but...….he did not torque the axle nuts as per the torque requirement AND...he installed a common nail and not a cotter-pin in the axle shaft nut. Needless to say, when I removed the hubcaps and noticed the nails, I wasn't a "happy camper". The cause of the clicking noise was the hub & brake rotor moving and touching against the brake pads. She would have paid the $2.00 for new cotter pins.
 
Why the hell would anyone send off a new radio for some random moron to go into with a screwdriver? "Peaks and tweaks" achieve nothing other than the ruination of the radio. If you wanted more channels there are better choices of radio to buy where you don't have to hack them up to get them.
 
I always offer to put the extra channels on the channel 9/19 switch when doing a 2547.

It's just sitting there doing nothing and its even a rotary switch so you can switch down for lower channels, mid for CB channels, and up for upper channels.

Yes, you lose out on one of the channel banks but you get the actual useful channels.

a shop that does not have heat shrink tubing and cable ties is not a shop.
I remember repairing an X force base amp that had just come back from the local CB shop, and the AC wires were shorting to the case because he used electrical tape.
LC
 
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Why the hell would anyone send off a new radio for some random moron to go into with a screwdriver? "Peaks and tweaks" achieve nothing other than the ruination of the radio. If you wanted more channels there are better choices of radio to buy where you don't have to hack them up to get them.
OK....let me go back to 2002. I purchased a new Uniden Grant XL from ( I thought) a small / private CB Radio Shop and he supposedly "peaked and tweaked" it before he sent it to me. I installed the radio in my truck and it worked great for two years and then I stored the radio for several years because I left the area for my work assignment.
Moving fast-forward to a few months ago. Out of pure trust and customer loyalty I called the same person to purchase a 2547 and he told me that he has stopped selling radios but continues to "adjust and repair" them. I purchased a new 2547 via Amazon and delivered (two-hour one-way drive) it to him at his so called CB Radio Shop. When I arrived at the "shack" in his backyard and met the guy face-to face for the first time and looked at the unorganized "repair area", I had second-thoughts about leaving the radio with him. Being that I had driven two hours, I had taken the risk and left the radio with him. I should have made an about-face and walked out of the shack as soon as I had seen the messy and cluttered repair bench but I did not want to "judge the book by its cover". And now you know "the rest of the story".
 
Unhooking the headphone jack is like burning a bridge. If you want to go back you'll have to build a new one first.

If the old jack is properly insulated, laying it aside is a lesser evil. If the owner changes his mind, or sells it to someone who uses headphones the old jack is there to put back where it was.

An ugly messy job would be unprofessional. But leaving an old control still hooked up isn't necessarily a bad thing. Just so long as it's insulated from nearby metal and tied down securely.

73
I'm not implying that the sloppy-stored headphone jack was the cause of the radio quitting. The cause of defect could and may be totally unrelated to the headphone jack, but after seeing how the headphone jack was just lying there makes me wonder about the quality of the peak and tweak and the installation of the extra channels. As I stated in a previous post, I should have realized something was wrong when the sideband functions did not work on the regular CB channels.
 
Trust me. Buy a side mic Cobra 148, Uniden Grant XL or any Uniden Cobra Realiatic SSB radio from the late 70s to mid 90s. If you need power add an amp. Also go by my rule, If it has Echo or roger beep from the factory its junk! For the money I see some people spending on these "export" radios they could buy the bottom model Icom or Yaesu. And never ever get a "tweak and peak"
 
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Trust me. Buy a side mic Cobra 148, Uniden Grant XL or any Uniden Cobra Realiatic SSB radio from the late 70s to mid 90s. If you need power add an amp. Also go by my rule, If it has Echo or roger beep from the factory its junk! For the money I see some people spending on these "export" radios they could buy the bottom model Icom or Yaesu. And never ever get a "tweak and peak"
I do have an original (2002) Grant XL and about one month ago after buying MFJ-870 meter, I realized the dead-key output was set at 10 watts. The same person who tinkered with the 2547 had tinkered with the Grant when it was new and before he sent it to me. I have sent the Grant and 2547 to a forum member with hopes he can repair and cure all the ailments with both radios.
 
Trust me. Buy a side mic Cobra 148, Uniden Grant XL or any Uniden Cobra Realiatic SSB radio from the late 70s to mid 90s. If you need power add an amp. Also go by my rule, If it has Echo or roger beep from the factory its junk! For the money I see some people spending on these "export" radios they could buy the bottom model Icom or Yaesu. And never ever get a "tweak and peak"
I never had any desire or need for the echo and roger beep functions.
 
Trust me. Buy a side mic Cobra 148, Uniden Grant XL or any Uniden Cobra Realiatic SSB radio from the late 70s to mid 90s.

For the amount of money you spend on "10m export radios" and the fact you're going to be using it illegally you would be far better served buying an amateur radio HF set which will have better performance and 100W out of the box, requiring no peaking and tuning for not much difference in price.
 

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