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Reviews For: OLD HAM DAVE

Category: Amateur Radio Equipment Repair

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Review Summary For : OLD HAM DAVE
Reviews: 12MSRP: varies by service
Description:
Old Ham Dave is David Lyndon, professional electrical engineer and extra class amateur AK4AA, well-qualified to repair, align, and refurbish amateur radio equipment using laboratory quality test equipment. Dave's specialty is the Kenwood series of "hybrid" transceivers, the TS-520 through TS-830S. He also services most solid state Kenwood transceivers and other amateur equipment for which documentation is available.
Repair, Alignment,Refinishing, FUll Service

Product is in production
More Info: http://www.oldhamdave.com/
# last 180 days Avg. Rating last 180 days Total reviews Avg. overall rating
00125
K9CTB Rating: 2019-04-08
Like receiving a new rig! Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
I've had my Kenwood TS-940S/AT for a lot of years now ... I love the rig and in my opinion, it is one of the best all-around HF rigs ever made on the planet. This year, I decided to keep it until the estate sale, along with a lot of other gear I just can't part with for an "upgrade".

I wanted an overhaul done and Dave's reviews helped me make the decision. Dave is very popular and very busy, but the wait time was totally worth it. He went through the rig completely ... when I shipped it to him, it was practically deaf on a few bands, had power output problems - 70 watts out here, 100 watts there and maybe 50 watts over there ... and although I tried to keep the inside clean, it wasn't.

What I got back was a TS-940S/AT that looked as if it was brand new. Super clean - inside and out, it operates to specifications, including the very limited (for its day it was pretty good) antenna tuner!!

I highly recommend Dave and I'm pretty sure you'll get the same fine service with any rig you send him from his list.
K8HP Rating: 2015-07-14
Highly recommended Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
After very bad experiences this summer with both major shippers, I wanted to find someone as close to me as possible to work on my much loved, but not always faithful, TS-940. Dave Lyndon was the ideal solution. First, he was only a day away. More importantly, he’s one of a dwindling number of people who will work on this classic rig. When I shipped it off to Dave it was definitely showing its age. The ATU and random controls would turn off and on under their own power, a fan was emitting a metal-to-metal shriek and the S-meter light went dark when the VOX/PTT switch was touched. Dave tightened, tweaked, lubed, cleaned, aligned and tested the rig to bring it back to factory specs. Then he sent me a detailed report on the results of his work. It all proved accurate when I got the rig back on the bench. Dave is a skilled technician and an absolute gentleman. I can’t recommend him highly enough.

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Earlier 5-star review posted by K8HP on 2015-04-09

I contacted Dave about a squealing fan in my venerable TS-940.

Dave replied within hours of my inquiry. He suggested I simply open the rig up and adjust the position of the fan blade. I suspect he's right on the money.

Considering he could have told me to pack it up and ship it, Dave saved me both time off-the-air and a fair amount of money.

I recommend him highly.

Harry K8HP
W5KVV Rating: 2015-02-19
My official go to guy for repairs Time Owned: N.A.
I picked up a TS-820S from a SK estate sale two years ago. It had sat in his closet since the mid 80's when he purchased a solid state rig (TS-430). Needless to say it looked like new, but I felt 30 years of sitting idle had started to take its toll on the rig.

I emailed Dave asking him for his services & he replied promptly advising he would notify me when he was ready for me to ship it to him. Some time past & he advised he was ready to work on my rig. Turn around time was same day. Once he got my rig on the bench, he had it working like a top in no time. Once he puts you in the queue, be patient. Dave's work is highly sought after & he's BUSY, but he WILL get to you.

Dave did a fantastic job. Good communication throughout the process. Price is right on the money as well. Our club has an ailing TS-850SAT that I hope to send him for repairs soon.
W4CAN Rating: 2015-01-27
Wait is a little long...but worth it! Time Owned: 6 to 12 months.
Being a new ham and not wanting to spend too much money on a brand new transceiver, I bought a classic Kenwood TS-820S transceiver and wanted to get a "physical" for it to make sure everything
checked out okay. I had read some repair/service reports on Eham and decided to go with Old Ham Dave...mainly because he was fairly close - but also because of the excellent reviews he had
been receiving. I emailed him and explained my situation and he put my name in the queue. Several months had passed, and he had been very diligent about keeping me up to date on his work
situation and when he expected to be able to service my transceiver. Eventually I received the email stating that my turn had come. I packed it up and shipped it to Dave. He let
me know when it arrived and after a few days sent another email describing exactly what type of work he had performed.

I received the transceiver a few days later and am having very good reports on my signal. Everything checks out great. Plus I think his prices are fair. I would definitely recommend Dave for work on your old Kenwood hybrid.
W5BXY Rating: 2014-10-10
The Best! Time Owned: 6 to 12 months.
Several months ago I bought a very nice used Kenwood TS 940S AT knowing that it had bad memory batteries in it. Like an idiot I decided to replace the memory batteries in it myself and created a multitude of problems. I let it sit on the bench for a couple of months not working then decided that of all my 4 HF rigs I really liked this old radio the best. I searched the Internet and found “Old Ham Dave”. Long story short, I shipped the rig to him and asked him to repair it as if it were his own. He was busy and it took a little while but he made me a new TS 940 out of my old one. Absolutely the best service I’ve ever had and I highly recommend him for Kenwood repairs.
KD0BXU Rating: 2014-03-13
Super Good Time Owned: more than 12 months.
I had the pleasure of meeting Dave near his home where he picke up my kenwood ts940. Not only did he do a termendous job repairing the unit but realigned it to boot. Great pricing and turn around time on to of a vey nice person. I would highly refer Old Dave to any one Great people!!
WW4Q Rating: 2014-03-07
Excellent work. Time Owned: more than 12 months.
Dave did some ESSB work to my TS-940SAT and I'm very happy with the radio. It was well worth the money and I'm going to send him another one to work on.
KF5HTK Rating: 2013-12-06
Thank you, Dave! Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
Dave did a fantastic job repairing my TS-830s.

Before sending it to him for repair it was ok mechanically, but the receive was very low and it had many inexplicable (to me) problems. In my three years as a ham this is the first radio with a tube I've had the pleasure to encounter. I did my best with a can of DeOxit and a new drive tube but lack the knowledge to attempt any further repair. The radio is a gift to me from a close friend and has some sentimental value.

Dave took wonderful care of my radio. It came back in absolutely perfect condition, functioning like it would have new.

The waiting list for Dave's service is long, but well worth being on. Once my turn came, he had the radio back to me in just over a week. Amazing! Now the radio hears and talks as good as it looks. Being a Kenwood Hybrid, that's really good!

Communication from Dave was excellent. During the week he had my radio, he kept me up to date on what work he had done and the result.

So, if you've got an old Kenwood hybrid that deserves some TLC, Dave is the guy to send it to. I wouldn't hesitate recommending him to a friend or the eHam community.
KB0SYH Rating: 2013-03-29
Great service Time Owned: more than 12 months.
Dave got my TS 820 in & out timely, and was able to bring it back to life in style. The radio is a joy to operate, and has been working well over the last almost 2 years since repair. Thanks Dave.
KH6DAN Rating: 2013-02-02
Knows his stuff Time Owned: 3 to 6 months.
I was able to pick up a TS-530S on eBay for a good price. I had one a few years back but was sorry I sold it. This "new" one smelled of tobacco and was drifting like crazy. I sent it to another gent renowned for his knowledge of the old Kenwood Rigs, but the poor guy had a health setback and, being bogged down with 30 or so rigs in his house, he had to slowdown (he had the rig almost 2 years !). I asked him to send it to Old Ham Dave, who had it about a month. I was very happy with what Dave was able to do to the rig (I even checked the serial to make sure he didn't send me back the wrong rig it was so nice looking). I've been having so much fun with it now I haven't touched my primary FLEX radio in a couple of weeks. I'm loving it. Dave really gave me the feeling that he cared and knew what he was doing .Great communication. It cost about the same for him to work on it as what I paid for it, but the fun of using it again has outweighed the cost. I would suggest you highly consider Dave to work on your treasure if you are like me and don't have the knowledge or the time.