[BC] Nautel 2 Armstrong

[Ernie Belanger]

1) Yes we do have a lot of screws on our and front panels.  They are also 
interlocked both are for safety.

2) The tube should have been manually installed when the transmitter 
arrived. Tubes ship separately. SO whoever did the install may have 
improvised something.  In my field days, I had a couple of boxes that 
required a 2x4 leveraged to allow for proper insertion because the socket 
was nice and tight.

To the best of my knowledge Eimac still makes tube pullers.

3) The battery is located in the controller chassis. The switch location on 
earlier models was a problem and was later changed.

4) I've been with Armstrong 8 years now.  We have not used an answering 
service for at least 7 years. The way tech support works is this: Call the 
factory number, the answering machine will give you the cell phone of the 
tech on call and you then call them direct. We decided answering service 
arrangement did not offer a quick enough response.

Best to All
Ernie
----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Miltron" <miltron at mindspring.com>


> I've had some experience with two Armstrong FMs, niether one exactly 
> user-friendly. The first thing you notice is the need for an electric 
> screwdriver to gain entry and to close.
> In both, there was a need for some tool or accessory that does not exist 
> to extract the 3CX3000 tube from the cylinder into which it seemed to have 
> been pressed with a heavy duty ram of some sort. Took lots of effort, 
> ingenuity, and bad words to accomplish removal.
> In the FM-3500T, it was necessary to disasssemble the cabinet to find a 
> switch that bypassed a battery, which, when dead, caused off-air-ness. 
> (The actual location of the battery is still unknown to me; further 
> disassembly is apparently required.)
> After going through an answering service to get him and waiting a while, 
> the night man gave the needed info when he called, but seemed far less 
> than enthused to help.
> M