15-09-2024, 07:22 PM
Thanks very much for the info!
Interestingly it looks like there was MS-DOS software available to program these radios, they must've been very fancy for 1991.
That date makes sense because the batteries in there that were wired up looked like they were from the 1990s.
I measured the voltage of everything - no surprise the batteries were dead reading about two volts each, but surprisingly the solar panels were measuring 17 V (Voc) and 2.5 A (Isc) which means they appear to be producing a decent amount of power relative to their factory spec of 42 watts. I have an MPPT tester on the way for use with other panels, so I'll put it on these as well to see exactly how much power they are producing after sitting in the sun for 40 years.
Amazingly as we've been clearing away the lantana we discovered the remnants of another old radio mast a few metres away from this one. The mast itself had gone but there were three guy wires all attached to a metal ring, and another old battery nearby. So this cabinet from around 1984 appears to be the second generation of radio repeater at the site!
I noticed as I was pulling everything out, the handheld radios were connected directly to the antennas, they didn't go through the FM828. So it looks like the FM828 was part of the first lot of equipment in this cabinet, then later it was switched over to the Kenwood handheld radios. That explains why the N connector plugs were pushed into the BNC sockets - they must've forgotten they used N connectors and so built the boxes with BNC sockets on them, and when they got out to the site they realised their mistake!
Interestingly it looks like there was MS-DOS software available to program these radios, they must've been very fancy for 1991.
That date makes sense because the batteries in there that were wired up looked like they were from the 1990s.
I measured the voltage of everything - no surprise the batteries were dead reading about two volts each, but surprisingly the solar panels were measuring 17 V (Voc) and 2.5 A (Isc) which means they appear to be producing a decent amount of power relative to their factory spec of 42 watts. I have an MPPT tester on the way for use with other panels, so I'll put it on these as well to see exactly how much power they are producing after sitting in the sun for 40 years.
Amazingly as we've been clearing away the lantana we discovered the remnants of another old radio mast a few metres away from this one. The mast itself had gone but there were three guy wires all attached to a metal ring, and another old battery nearby. So this cabinet from around 1984 appears to be the second generation of radio repeater at the site!
I noticed as I was pulling everything out, the handheld radios were connected directly to the antennas, they didn't go through the FM828. So it looks like the FM828 was part of the first lot of equipment in this cabinet, then later it was switched over to the Kenwood handheld radios. That explains why the N connector plugs were pushed into the BNC sockets - they must've forgotten they used N connectors and so built the boxes with BNC sockets on them, and when they got out to the site they realised their mistake!