[BC] Here's something you really don't see/read very often.

[Jerry Mathis]

Just wanted to relate a recent experience I had repairing a transmitter. What's different about this is that I'm *praising* the transmitter maker for making the job about as easy as it could be.

Product: Harris Z-10 FM Transmitter. Problem: Blower motor quit.

Now all other transmitters I've ever worked on, this is a mechanical nightmare to fix. So I approached this with a lot of apprehension. But as I progressed, I was pleasantly surprised at every step of the way. Here's a step-by-step of my experience:

1. The blower and motor are in a cabinet attached to the back of the transmitter. Held on with 8 screws, easy to get to, and, at the top, two nuts, one on each side. There are threaded studs at these locations, and these studs will support the blower cabinet in place while you remove or re-install the screws.

2. There are handles built into the sides of the cabinet, so it is easy to grasp the cabinet and lift it off  the studs.

3. The wiring to the blower consists of 4 wires going to a plug-in connector. No screws to loosen, no dangling wires, just pull the connector loose.

4. Once the cabinet was loose from the transmitter, I started fretting about getting to the motor. There is a metal grill on the air intake side that guards the motor, and the cabinet sides are solid. A quick examination revealed about half a dozen small screws that held the blower motor and the supporting frame, or skeleton as I likened it, inside the cabinet. I took these screws out, and the skeleton slid right out of the cabinet, just like a glove. No special blocks or supports necessary, the skeleton was designed so the motor support would allow the skeleton to sit upright on the floor. In fact, at this point it was easy to just pick up the skeleton, put it in the back of my van, and haul it to my shop to work on.

5. The skeleton sat upright and stable on my workbench. It was easy to get to the setscrews that held the fan onto the motor shaft. The fan is constructed of a large solid metal (aluminum?) hub, and fan blades made of what looks like carbon composite material. They were rugged, and you did not have to worry about bending and deforming the blades while handling it.

6. The rear of the motor where the wiring terminals are was easily accessible.

7. The motor mounting bracket bolts and nuts were also easily accessible.

It turned out the motor was bad internally. I suspect the start switch had gone bad, but I didn't really get to investigate that. We don't have much of a motor repair shop in town. Harris had the replacement motor, and they over-nighted one to us.

Replacement was just as easy.

1. I didn't even bother to change the motor mounting bracket. I just took the two clamps loose on the two resilient bushings on the ends of the motor, lifted the old motor off, and set the new one on.

2. I put new crimp terminals on the ends of the wires. One had been overheated, but the big problem there was that the crimp terminals (90 degree angled slide terminals) wouldn't go through the opening on the side of the motor. I made a diagram when I took the wires loose from the old motor, so I was sure I got the wiring correct on the new motor.

3. Slid the fan blade assembly onto the motor shaft, tightened the setscrews, and headed to the transmitter.

4. The skeleton slid right back into the cabinet, the screw holes lined up perfectly, and I installed and tightened them.

5. Plugged the wire connector back in.

6. Lifted the blower cabinet onto the two mounting studs using those handy handles, installed the nuts and one set of screws, and tested the transmitter. The blower turned right on and ran perfectly.

7. Installed the rest of the mounting screws, and I was done!

Now, I'm assuming that Harris designed and built this blower cabinet assembly, and didn't just buy an "Off-the-Shelf" assembly to use with their transmitters. But unlike so many other transmitters I've worked on (and we've *all* worked on during the course of our careers), this part of this transmitter seemed to have been thoughtfully designed to make it easy and convenient to service when it needed it. Everything about it said, building it like this will make it easy to take apart, service, and put back together. The handles on the side of the cabinet. The studs to hold the unit in place while the screws are put in. The plug connector instead of a terminal strip. The skeleton fitting neatly into the cabinet without needing supports or an extra set of hands. The skeleton that will sit upright and firmly on a workbench without needing braces or supports. A fan blade that won't get bent out of shape--literally--while removing and installing it.

No, folks, I don't work for Harris, I am not one of their sales people or service representatives, and I wasn't paid to write this story. And I don't usually "gush" over a product that I use.

But I just wanted to say, at least this one time, that *someone* who designed this product seems to have had us, the Engineer in the field who has to keep the thing running, in mind.

Kudos, guys, whoever you are (were). You did good.

Sincerely,

--
Jerry Mathis