Bad eBay radios - need help to fix!

losangelescop · Post by **losangelescop** » Wed Dec 20, 2006 9:21 am

Ok, so here goes.....I just recieved the radio package that i bought off of eBay. it consists of a Motorola GP328 (HT750) UHF 4 channel, and a GP328 VHF 16 channel. I bought a radio from this seller a while ago and it was fine, so naturally I trusted them with this sale. As usual from this seller, there is a very short description with the assurance of "working fine", and one lousy zoomed out photo. The last time this happened to me there was no problems, so this time i trusted them again.

So today I get the package. The VHF is fine but had stiff knobs and what looked like a home-attempted job to install a new refurb kit because the buttons on the side were hard to push down. The battery was a little stuck but managed to come off fairly easily. It would not go back on any of my current Waris radios easily though. (anyone notice the way the Waris series batteries always have difficulty comfortably attaching to the radio..GRRRR!!!) SO anyways then I take the battery and it looks fairly new but the grooves on the battery don't match up with the grooves on the charger for some reason and u havta hold the battery against the contacts in the charger cup for them to work....as i'm doing that the battery displays the red flashing "unchargeable" light. I was going to sell the VHF as i dont use the VHF band, and by this stage i was getting VERY annoyed that I had spent $300 on a trusted seller and got crap in return...but the worst wasnt over....

I took the UHF, and attempted to take the battery off, for 30 MINS. it is stuck on the radio. one of the clips comes down easily, the other is hard to pull down but it does go all the way down. the battery is stuck on one side. I pull and pull and pull and end up inserting a butter knife in between the radio and the stuck battery and trying to prise it open for 30 mins, but nothing works, so in anger i give up.

Then I took one of my other radios and found a channel that it talked on with the one i just got in the mail. the new one (with the stuck battery) transmitts fine but when recieving there was a LOT of crackling in the background. Frustrated, I put it into clone mode just to muck around with it (dont really know why) and from that point on, the radio constantly had nothing but a loud crackling/buzzing noise on RX, which it would recieve all the time for the past 4 hours. either this ruined the internals of the radio more, or the channel knob is busted, because no matter what channel you put it on you get the same annoying buzzing NONSTOP. the radio will transmit well and another radio will pick it up, but it wont recieve anything but crackles with the transmitted message being so feint it's nearly impossible to hear.

And FINALLY to top it all off, the photo did not show up the fact that one had a giant white-out number 4 on the front case, the other had messy engraving all over with no motorola symbol visible on the case anymore, that the speaker mic provided was dusty and covered in white paint with a stiff lapel clip, and that the charger spacing adapter piece included does not fit properly into the charger!

Sorry to whine on, but I'm so annoyed that I trusted this seller once, and then the second time round i spend $300, get fed a bunch of crap merchandise described as "working fine", and get the radios shipped to me well past the due date of shipping, with a $20 difference between the shipping cost quoted on eBay, and the one on the receipt stuck to the padded envelope from the post office that the radios came in.

Anyway, to get to the point....does anybody have suggestions on how to remove the battery that's stuck to the radio, what the buzzing problem on all 4 channels causing the weak if not non-understandable signal is, and if there is any hope in restoring these things to useable condition with a very small amount of money??? - I spose every eBay deal has it's risks, too bad this is my first bad deal ever after having so many good sales... Oh well, at least I didn't pay THAT much for them (even though $300 is a little expensive)

Post by **wavetar** » Wed Dec 20, 2006 12:37 pm

Here's the secret to removing the Waris batteries...human nature makes us try to pull on the battery while sliding the clips down...it seems like it should work. BUT, you should actually be pushing the top of the battery in towards the radio while you slide the clips down. That will allow the clips to clear the retaining tabs. Of course, this only applies to OEM Motorola batteries which become a little difficult to remove from regular wear & tear...aftermarket batts & batteries in which people have been prying with butter knives may not work with the above

.

As far as your TX/RX issues...pretty well impossible to say without being able to physically check the units out with a service monitor.

Todd

PS - I changed the title of your post slightly to reflect the fact you want help fixing the ebay radios...not the actual ebay deal.

Bat2way · Post by **Bat2way** » Wed Dec 20, 2006 1:35 pm

wavetar wrote:Here's the secret to removing the Waris batteries...human nature makes us try to pull on the battery while sliding the clips down...it seems like it should work. BUT, you should actually be pushing the top of the battery in towards the radio while you slide the clips down. That will allow the clips to clear the retaining tabs.

I have sent this to a customer who continously uses the largest screwdriver whilst attempting a battery changeout. Hope it helps. Thanks.

losangelescop · Post by **losangelescop** » Wed Dec 20, 2006 1:48 pm

Thanks for the help, as I have been using many Waris radios for years I usually have no problems with the battery changeouts. I decided to try this idea anyway, and thanks! it actually worked on one of my other stubborn radios. BUT it didn't work on the radio in question....unfortunately

It almost seems if this radio was subject to a prank ages ago so that the battery could not be fully pulled off. Of course that is most likely not the case...but one side of this battery has a super-glue-strength hold on the back of the rig

if there are any further suggestions on my issue from anyone please feel free to help. Thanks!

N9LLO · Post by **N9LLO** » Wed Dec 20, 2006 1:48 pm

If the battery wont fall off in your hand when the release are pulled the radio frame is likely bent. This happens when you step on the radio or it gets run over by an IPV (industrial powered vehicle) or similar incident.

This may also explain the other problems. Pull the chassis out and look for signs of physical damage sich as bent speakers, crushed shields on the PC board and the like. I have 700 MTX9250's on my system at the plant and you wont believe some of the stuff that happens to them. The toilet really doesn't really hurt them as bad as the cooling tower well or the waste treatment lift station pit, but the big triple blade PTO lawn mower can really do a number on a Waris radio.

Chris
N9LLO

losangelescop · Post by **losangelescop** » Wed Dec 20, 2006 3:54 pm

N9LLO, Thanks for the help. I checked this and there appears to be no obvious damage to the chassis. Wow this really has me stumped....

Nic

Post by **HumHead** » Wed Dec 20, 2006 4:06 pm

One other possibility to consider:

On those batteries, the release has a little plastic tab that pulls down the metal spring catch.

If the metal catch manages to pop free and ends up above the tab, the tab actually acts as a lock and makes it darned near impossible to get the battery off. It sounds a lot like what you are dealing with.

Try pulling the latch all the way down, and see if you can see the actual little metal tab holding the battery to the tab on the radio chasis.

If that is your problem, see if you can use one hand to pull the latch down and push the battery and radio together while using a small screwdriver to try to reach in through the slot and pull the metal tab down until it releases. (You'll probably be holding a flashlight in you teeth too).

If you cannot get at the metal tab this way, it is time to accept that that battery is already toast. Grab a bigger screwdriver and just pry the plastic slider until it breaks and comes out. Remove whatever pieces it leaves behind. Now, you will have unobstructed access to the metal latch tab and can apply whatever amount of force is necessary to make it untderstand that it is time to let go of the radio chasis.

Remember- if brute force doesn't work, you haven't used enough

(Important corollary: If it breaks, it was due for replacement anyhow)

losangelescop · Post by **losangelescop** » Wed Dec 20, 2006 4:20 pm

thanks, i tried your first idea with not much luck, so now im working on getting rid of this darn battery latch - man they r strong, too!

losangelescop · Post by **losangelescop** » Wed Dec 20, 2006 4:50 pm

FINALLY got it off! thanks for the help! now all thats left is to sort out the tx/rx crackling issues.......also the radio has a black seal around the contacts instead of the orange, blue or green ones that i have seen before.... what do the different colors mean????

thanks ppl.

Bruce1807 · Post by **Bruce1807** » Sun Dec 24, 2006 6:17 am

black is the original seals
Then I think it was orange, then green then blue being the latest

losangelescop · Post by **losangelescop** » Sun Dec 24, 2006 7:47 am

Thanks, is there any significance for the color change, such as better contact between the battery contacts and the battery cells, or is it just another way moto decided to show the radio's age to techs and customers, or what?