"Bruce in Alaska" wrote in message
...
In article ,
halibutslayer wrote:

I have a GROL with a radar endorsement and would still like to find a
good book on modern radar repair. The FCC test is based on vacuum tube
technology that hasn't been used since the 70's

True enough. Most of the technical stuff involved in maintaince of
modern Maritime Radars would be in the OEM's Operations and Maintainance
Manuals and 99% of the Qualified Tech's in the field gained their current
knowledge via OJT, and not from books that would be obsolete before they
gained an circulation. The basics of Radar Technology was worked out at
MIT in the late 30's after trading the British Magnitron Prototype
for all those Lend - Lease Destroyers.

Bruce in alaska who also has one of those things on the wall......
--
add a 2 before @

I also would be interested in what current books or in depth magazine
articles are out there. The days of servos and synchros, long wave guide
runs full of water, etc., are long gone, as are vacuum tubes (except for
maggies). I work on radars quite a bit and a good service manual for the
unit is invaluable, as is a spare magnetron and a spare MIC. Substituting
those one at a time solves the majority of the problems, along with motor
replacement and bad modulator or signal processor circuit assemblies. The
modulator FETS and the power supply FETs fail quite a bit also. And of
course, water damage problems are usually the result of poor installation or
exposed locations.
Although I have seen Raymarine equipment corroded, the problem is always
poor installation. The other brands are just as likely to come in encrusted
with salt, etc. The guys who insist on mounting the all around light in the
lid of a radome are just setting themselves up for water damage later on.
A cheap test instrument for radar transmission is one of those under $ 10
microwave oven leakage meters. Of course, the old neon bulb on a wooden
dowel still works also.
Doug K7ABX