I had the bottom done up in St. Augustine last month and en route my radar antenna decided to quit working. It a Raymarine 48" antenna and the innards were replaced under warranty about 2 1/2 years ago.
Hoping it was a belt or something easy I didn't tell the yard to fix it and when I got home I climbed up on the hardtop to check it out. The antenna would turn but sounded like a bunch of broken gears and was very difficult to turn. Removing the four bolts and opening it up showed some water in the bottom and corrosion everywhere, things were looking expensive.
Fortunately I know a Raymarine guy and called him. Fortunately again he was not only in the state but in the area and he came buy and took a look. We took it apart and put it on the bench in my shop and found lots of bad stuff including one of the electronic modules. Being a Raymarine guy he had the parts, cleaned, lubricated and replaced everything and when all was done the bill was less than $300.00.
There are still some honest and nice folks out there and I have a working radar and didn't have to sell one of the grandkids.
Plus, and this is a good plus, he gave me a few tips on operating and reading that I, who have been using radar for more than a dozen years, didn't know.
Mike
Hoping it was a belt or something easy I didn't tell the yard to fix it and when I got home I climbed up on the hardtop to check it out. The antenna would turn but sounded like a bunch of broken gears and was very difficult to turn. Removing the four bolts and opening it up showed some water in the bottom and corrosion everywhere, things were looking expensive.
Fortunately I know a Raymarine guy and called him. Fortunately again he was not only in the state but in the area and he came buy and took a look. We took it apart and put it on the bench in my shop and found lots of bad stuff including one of the electronic modules. Being a Raymarine guy he had the parts, cleaned, lubricated and replaced everything and when all was done the bill was less than $300.00.
There are still some honest and nice folks out there and I have a working radar and didn't have to sell one of the grandkids.
Plus, and this is a good plus, he gave me a few tips on operating and reading that I, who have been using radar for more than a dozen years, didn't know.
Mike