In regard to your number 3 (socialized medicine), you need to visit the following website:

http://Http://www.Iwantsomeoneelsetoprovidehealthinsuranceformysorryass.com

According to the FCC, you have to wait until they update their database.  Here's the link:

http://wireless.fcc.gov/services/index.htm?job=about_1&id=amateur

Another update.  Buck followed up with a series of insulting, threatening emails, containing lie after lie.

Here are some examples of his ramblings:

"I’m sure Bryan at PayPal will be glad to see what kind of sickie you really are.

You are simply compounding one lie with another.  Get some medical help…


Any further conversation will be with our lawyers."


www.BUXCOMM.com


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------


We just spoke with PayPal Merchant services.  They advise that only your account will be faulted since it is you who initiated the order cancellation.

Further, they advise there will be no interruption to our PayPal merchant account.

PayPal also informed us that fees are charged regardless, because in this case, it is the paypal client who took the action to cancel the order.  Had it been the merchant, the fee would have been levied to them.


www.BUXCOMM.com


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Talk to PayPal, we have no control over how they issue the REFUND,

You owe u for two hours employee for the time it took to make the refund .

 
Our attourneys Bradford Assts will be in tough with you.  We were just told thatyou have placed a lie on eham, and that it is definitely defamation of business character.

 
You also lied as PayPal says you must resolve any dispute with them, as we DID indeed refund the full amount, and PayPal is the firm who withheld the fee, NOT BUXCOMM.
 

Since you are unable to understand the procedures as applied by PayPal;  it appears that you are a very sick individual, and you should see a doctor and get some help and medication for your sickness.

 
73  de  BucK4ABT


_____________________________

After the tirade, I was contacted by an actual grownup at Buxcomm, Jan, who apologized but told me to call PayPal to get my account credited with the fee, so I did so.  PayPal also told me that I should "educate" Buxcomm about correct refund procedures.

Bottom line, if there are any problems with your order, forget customer service. Buck is nothing more than an insult machine, so why patronize him?

I've done a lot of business with them for small stuff, but a recent experience put me off. I mistakenly sent in a duplicate order for a cable, and then realizing my mistake, I immediately sent an email to their customer support address instructing them to cancel. To be on the safe side, I then called and Buck answered. He said that the order couldn't be cancelled because it had been processed a half-hour before. He then told me that all the employees have left for Thanksgiving an hour before, so he was obviously lying. He then told me to call back "first thing Monday" and tell them to cancel the order.
I can tolerate a lot of stuff from a company, but once they lie to me, they're off my list for good.  
 
 
Well, as an update, I got an email from a different employee, who said she had cancelled the order (proving Buck had lied through his teeth). Only problem was that they didn't do a PayPal REFUND, they sent the money back as a separate transaction, costing me a fee. When I contacted them again, Buck replied that I really should owe them more money because of the 'two hours' it took the employee to process the PayPal transaction (it takes 5 minutes, tops).
What a bunch of incompetent, lying crooks!

One of our MARS members said the other day, that a Buxcomm balun had burned out after only a short time, and when it was checked out, it proved to be cheap and shoddy.

Well, as an update, I got an email from a different employee, who said she had cancelled the order (proving Buck had lied through his teeth).  Only problem was that they didn't do a PayPal REFUND, they sent the money back as a separate transaction, costing me a fee.  When I contacted them again, Buck replied that I really should owe them more money because of the 'two hours' it took the employee to process the PayPal transaction (it takes 5 minutes, tops).
What a bunch of incompetent, lying crooks!

Lon,

Amen.  I can't get used to the mentality that thinks making a profit on your labor is somehow evil.

Unfortunately, the PK-232 can only do PACTOR I.  It does the job for me, at least with the one HF radio I can get it to work with, but if I was a heavy user of WINLINK, I would cough up the bucks for an SCS product.  The demise of the dollar is making them jump in price, though.

73

Dwight

I've done a lot of business with them for small stuff, but a recent experience put me off.  I mistakenly sent in a duplicate order for a cable, and then realizing my mistake, I immediately sent an email to their customer support address instructing them to cancel.  To be on the safe side, I then called and Buck answered.  He said that the order couldn't be cancelled because it had been processed a half-hour before.  He then told me that all the employees have left for Thanksgiving an hour before, so he was obviously lying.  He then told me to call back "first thing Monday" and tell them to cancel the order.
I can tolerate a lot of stuff from a company, but once they lie to me, they're off my list for good.

Well, a TNC on its own is a doorstop.  It's not like there are a gazillion HF amateur rigs available, so, it shouldn't be rocket science to produce one that works with at least most of the newer rigs out there from the "big three".  Now, on the other hand, a radio does stand alone, but they put accessory ports on them for some reason, and there aren't that even fewer tncs on the market.  Possibly, the problem with Timewave is that the PK232 basic design, which they inherited from AEA, hasn't really changed much in 20 years.  They've only added a bunch of firmware updates and mods for DSP, etc., and the folks at Timewave seem to be a lazy bunch who are content to keep milking the legacy stuff.  I do know that they really aren't interested in hearing about any problems with their products.  
I can see your point about sound card interfaces.  There is some real junk on the market, plus the quality of the sound cards in pc's varies widely.  I've never had any problems with sound card interfaces with multiple rigs, though.  I use a rigblaster, and it has worked well.  I have heard of people having problems with the Signlink with WINMOR, though.

Those mods may work, and they may not, but consider what you're saying:  buy a $1500 radio and a $500 TNC and then immediately modify them so they'll work like they're supposed to.  That apparently is Timewave and ICOM's plan.
This problem has also been reported with several Kenwood rigs.

Exactly.  The 13 pin accessory jacks on the 706 series and the 7000 have the same problem with the PK232.  Also, connecting through the mic connector doesn't help, either.
You are also correct about the IC-718...it is immune to the problem, although it has the same type of accessory jack.


ICOM and Timewave are both in denial regarding the problem.  No more business from me for either of them.

Time to revissit.  Timewave's tech assistance and customer assistance has gone down the toilet.

If you have a problem, they ignore it.  They apparently are only interested in selling you things.

Want a TNC?  Buy a KAM or a SCS.

Mike,

I doesn't matter whether it's in radio 1 or 2...it doesn't even matter if it's on at all.  After trying to narrow down the possibilities, it seems that most of the problem comes from the AFSK connection between the 232 and the rig.  

I've gotten several responses from ICOM.  The first said that both they and Timewave have never heard of the problem (I told them to do a Google search and they'd get an education), and then several going through elementary stuff such as ground loops, etc.  

Timewave's tech support is useless...and I mean ABSOLUTELY useless.  They tell you to email, and then they do not respond.

In the meantime, the 232 does work with the IC-718, for some reason.

Dwight

Just received the following reply from ICOM  "Tech Support":


"I have contacted Timewave ,and confirmed that we both have never heard of this issue."


I guess these weenies have never done an internet search.  The problem has been around for a long time and is not peculiar to ICOMs.  Kenwood transceivers have experienced the problem as well.

I guess it's a Timewave problem and they've just decided to ignore it.

Lesson learned:  Buy Kantronics or SCS!

AA4PB,

Thanks for the advice.  I did as you suggested and the problem is still there.  I soldered a 10K ohm resistor in series with the AFSK to mod input and it has no effect whatsoever.  

The crazy thing is that the distortion is there even when the PK232 isn't powered on.  Just unhooking it from the rig cures the problem.  Again, the only ICOM rig it doesn't affect is the IC-718.

I contacted ICOM again, but they're all in hiding, I guess.

Dwight