UK Clansman VHF Radio RT351 Inside View


I repaired 5 set of UK Racal RT351 Radio. The radio is in modular construction. But it is not the plug in type and the module is all soldering with the printed circuit board. Therefore you can not change the module one by one to find out the malfunction parts.

The RT351 is constructed using modular principles. Some modules is sealed that means can not be repaired i.e. the clock oscillator module. Each unit consists of a number of printed circuit boards that are mounted one on top of the other and interconnected by wires that support the boards and also from interconnecting paths. Some wires also provide external connection points for a unit. The printed circuit board is then enclosed in a tight-fitting cover.

The repairing of the RT351 is a hard job some times became impossible because some parts is not easy to find from the open market nowadays. The IC was special developed by Plessey for the RT351. Please see below photos. The size is about a few mm in length and can not to find the other model to replace. You have to find a dead RT351 as a parts source for repair.

I found the repairable RT351 can be ordered from BM Electronics Co. in Japan ( June 2002) and at a accepted prices. I ordered 2 set and luckily all recovered and in working condition.

The easy damaged module is the synthesizer module No.11 and the DC switching module No.20.

The RT351 was the regular VHF Tactical Military Radio for the British Army and The TRA967 is only a low costs design radio for the Third World Army. If you compare both unit inter construction then you can understand my comments. If you operates the TRA967 in a radio traffic busy city like Hong Kong you will find the TRA967's front end is easy overload. It can not handle strong signal near by. And the band is full of image interferences and the squelch control is useless. Although it is not a perfect radio,  (Sept. 2002) the brand new TRA967 can be found in UK flea market and the price is around GPB100. I think this is a good time to find a new one to add for yours collection. On the other hand it is easy to find parts for repairing.

 


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The left side is the Synthesizer module. And the right side is the DC supply module. Both unit is easily damaged. The right side is the main chassis. And the whole printed circuit board is taken out and showing the fully modular construction. The DC supply module is taken out for repair. The Printed Circuit Board Assembly is taken out . The red color rotator switch is the frequency channel selector.

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