RADAR PROBLEMS

[phil23]

I would appreciate comments on my problem. I have a JRC 1000 MK11 radar which has functioned perfectly until very recently.
Last week I turned the unit on the scanner rotates and the screen operates perfectly however I am not getting any images ie nothing on screen but all functions operating rain/range etc etc.
Does this sound fatal

[donradcliffe]

Not necessarily. The first place I would check is the co-axial cable which carries the received signal from the scanner to the display. Is there a splice in the radar cable where the cable comes out of the mast (very common to allow unstepping the mast)?? Make sure that both the signal (inside) and the shield of the coax are clean and well connected.

It should be also possible to query the radar to see how many hours are on the magnetron and compare that to expected life, but the fact that the radar went quickly from operating well to not at all tells me to check the connections.

[Lepke]

Check antenna for rotation. Check for a fuse in the dome. Check and clean connector points between the dome and screen. Check the wire run for a damaged cable.
Sounds like the antenna isn't sending a signal to the main set. Antenna may not be transmitting, or receiving.
I have no experience with your radar, but I have been using marine radars for a long time. In the marine environment plugs, terminal strips, etc., tend to corrode and cleaning sometimes does the fix. One radar I used on many boats tended to pop a fuse in the dome if the set got a return that was too strong. Like getting a return from a very close ship or metal building on a close pier.
Look for a users forum.

[Celestialsailor]

I have the same unit. They are getting long in the tooth, as they say. Coming down the coast of Ca. to Mx. The unit would "phase out" after a few hours of use. I got worst as time went on. I called JRC and they told me 2 things. 1) It could be the Magnatron or the board. But they said it was more likely the Magnatron. But JRC was out of them and since the unit was discontinued and none to order. They recommended I call Richardson's Electronics and ended up with the last one in existence. I'm sorry for the bad news but feel free to call around.