It was a few years ago, but I was shot down pretty quick when I was inquiring about a service manual for the radio.

I at least tried lol. But you are right... 1st 980 SSB for some reason the board outright put out crappy power on SSB. Maybe it always did it and I didnt catch onto it. I got that radio in 2016. Held onto the thing and a couple years ago, a parts 980 landed on eBay for cheap. (Think it was $40 + shipping). The radio worked but of course suffered the display problem. Swapped the working display from the broken 980 SSB to the one that came from eBay. Works great for now. I did unlock the clarifier on it too. (I will not keep it in the car as to not expose the display to extreme cold or heat.)