SDS100/SDS200: Broken battery door clip due to large battery tightness

[seth21w]

I haven't had any problems with my sds100, I have always felt the pressure on the clip was tight when putting in the battery so what I always do if I remove or swap batteries is while the clip is hanging loose place battery in place and cover and sandwich and squeeze with my hand the foam into the battery and close the gap between the radio and the cover and then snap it closed. Also I squeeze it before removing the clip.

 

[Paysonscanner]

On the DB page for the system you are after, click on the Site Name of the site you think you can receive.
Then on that page, click the FCC callsign. That should open a page with a map with numbered pincushions that show the near exact locations of the transmitters for the site.
If you would only get signal from just One of those transmitter sites, the TRX-1 may work but chances are that you will get signals from two or more transmit towers for your site which is what causes the timing problems for most scanners.
You usually have a better chance if you live outside of the intended coverage area for a simulcast site as that will sometimes have a better chance in you only getting a signal from one tower in the sites mix.

If you do try a TRX-1 or 2, buy it from a place with a good return policy if it does not work. For some users, they work well but it all depends on your location in relation to the towers for a given site and if you can capture the signal from just one transmit tower in that site.
The design of the SDS models from Uniden almost guarantee they will work as long as you have a useable signal strength.

I don't think that anyone is understanding the topography of the west. There is no chance to receive the other sites on the system as mountains block everything in the greater Phoenix from being received in Payson. This for 700-800 Mhz. We can pick up some VHF high, but not much of that. Mt Ord is very high as compared with the topography around it (7128 feet). Payson, at 5,000 feet, sits in a large basin that Ord provides very good coverage of. There is the spine of a mountain range at 7,000 feet located southwest of the town. 700/800 MHz does not bend over the top of that range. All of the remaining sites on the system are lower in elevation and much further west. I'm still learning as I haven't lived here for a year yet and was over in Calif for about 10 weeks this summer. I haven't had our PSR-600 in search mode much yet and haven't hooked it up to the computer full time either. There is a record feature on the software that my late husband used a lot.

Late hubby and I didn't like proprietorial batteries at all if they can be avoided. For years we had a Bearcat handheld with them. They were not available in anything but NiCad, another thing we always avoided. The scanner lasted longer than the battery availability so we sent all the batteries to the "NiCad Lady" in SOCAL. They packed NiMH batteries into the Bearcat battery packs and that extended our use of the scanner by many years. Uniden brings out new models with unique batteries every time then don't carry the old ones after the new model is introduced. Is this a scam to increase sales of the latest model? I'm totally out of room on the desk I keep the handhelds on. Two chargers for Kenwood ham handhelds, one for a Bendix King (modified for ham) and a Maha AA/AAA charger that is capable of reconditioning NiMH batteries. We don't have an intercom in our house so everyone carries a little GMRS radio (do this for older folks as it eliminate shouting) that use AA rechargeables. Hubby bought AA battery packs for the Kenwoods and the Bendix King. There isn't room for the camera battery charger so its on the floor. We didn't like the proprietorial batteries on that, but at over 18 megapixels and SLR we overlooked that issue.

 

[seth21w]

The inherent sdr receiver design of the sds100 requires more amps than 3 or 4 AA batteries could provide. If so believe me uniden would have went with AA but comparing old nicad packs to today's lipo batteries that are in every cell and radio made today with exception of very few older radio designs Trx1/psr800 is kind of apple's to oranges. The lipo should last 2 to 3 years or more and should be available at reasonable price. Lipo technology is way ahead of AAs or nicd packs. I only wish they had incorporated a slide on battery and drop in charger such as Motorola hts baofeng tyt md380 etc.

 

[kruser]

Paysonscanner,

What is the site name and site number as listed on the database page for your system would you be able to hear in Payson?

This is way off topic for this thread though so it should probably be moved to a new thread maybe.

 

[rcool101]

Let me know what type of tape you're using and how it works. I'm looking for anything other than rubber bands.

I use a Velcro strap. No glue from tape. Since the radio is tapered it gets tighter when you slide it up. Covers the buttons but I don't need them. Just on/off and volume. I then use a nylon case.

 

[trentbob]

I was quite disappointed when I started reading the second page of this thread. Guys were painting a picture of women not being able to change the batteries on this radio correctly. Some guys need to realize there are some women on this site. I was a RN in a small hospital for 39 years and am quite capable of doing nearly anything, many things that would cause many of the men on this site to lose their lunches. I will refrain from providing additional details.

Although I'm a retired newspaper man I too am a med-surg RN BSN since the 70s

Nurses are definitely a problem solving, versatile group of people, we can fix anything with... tape.

 

[mharris]

I use a Velcro strap. No glue from tape. Since the radio is tapered it gets tighter when you slide it up. Covers the buttons but I don't need them. Just on/off and volume. I then use a nylon case.

View attachment 76277

Good Idea. Thanks, Rcool.

 

[mharris]

*UPDATE*

I asked Uniden to escalate my request for a new battery clip to corporate. 24 hours later, I received an email advising I am now able to order the battery clip if I feel like I can replace it myself. However, they told me the clip is on back order and wont be available until 12/12. So I won, but not really because they don't have any. Ughhhh.

 

[jonwienke]

But you're benefiting everyone else, once the clips are in stock.

 

[Paysonscanner]

Although I'm a retired newspaper man I too am a med-surg RN BSN since the 70s

Nurses are definitely a problem solving, versatile group of people, we can fix anything with... tape.

Why not? Everyone expects us to use a sewing needle and thread to treat mega lacerations in the backcountry!!

 

[Paysonscanner]

The inherent sdr receiver design of the sds100 requires more amps than 3 or 4 AA batteries could provide. If so believe me uniden would have went with AA but comparing old nicad packs to today's lipo batteries that are in every cell and radio made today with exception of very few older radio designs Trx1/psr800 is kind of apple's to oranges. The lipo should last 2 to 3 years or more and should be available at reasonable price. Lipo technology is way ahead of AAs or nicd packs. I only wish they had incorporated a slide on battery and drop in charger such as Motorola hts baofeng tyt md380 etc.

I'm confused, is a "lipo" battery one using Lithium Ion? I have some of those for 2 Kenwood TH-F6A handhelds. There are 2 sizes of batteries for them. The smaller sized is about 3.125" wide by 2.25" high and 0.5" thick. Its rating is 7.4V and 2000 mAh. The large one is twice as thick and rated @ 3600 mAh. We also had AA battery holders for these radios squirreled away in our cars and backpacks. My late hubby's BK field programmable handheld he bought for volunteer FD use has a holder that uses 9 replaceable alkaline AA batteries. All of these radios last at least 8 hours while they are scanning and transmitting. None have the pretty colors on their displays. I have a home weather station with a thermometer, anemometer, wind vane, barometer, rain gauge and humidity sensor that has 3 AAA lithium ion batteries that only have to be replaced about every 2 years. It sends data in very quick pulses, but is on all the time. When I think of those and look at a receive only radio that is larger than the Kenwood transceivers I wonder why it cannot be equipped with AA batteries, even if they are the more expensive lithium ion type.

I'm not being argumentative, mind you, I want to understand.

 

[Paysonscanner]

Paysonscanner,

What is the site name and site number as listed on the database page for your system would you be able to hear in Payson?

This is way off topic for this thread though so it should probably be moved to a new thread maybe.

I'll start a new thread in Arizona.

 

[jonwienke]

The BCD436HP uses standard analog RF circuitry, and it draws about 200mA when playing audio with the screen backlight on. With 3 AA batteries, you get a little over 8 hours of battery life.

The digital RF circuitry in the SDS100 draws about 700mA under the same conditions. So battery life would be less than 2.5 hours on AAs. Powering it with enough AA batteries to last 8 hours would make it significantly bulkier than it already is--not an option.

 

[Nasby]

*UPDATE*

I asked Uniden to escalate my request for a new battery clip to corporate. 24 hours later, I received an email advising I am now able to order the battery clip if I feel like I can replace it myself. However, they told me the clip is on back order and wont be available until 12/12. So I won, but not really because they don't have any. Ughhhh.

This is a very positive move by Uniden. Clearly, there's an issue with the battery door and its not a matter of "if" but "when" the door will crack.
I've been very careful with mine but who knows when it will break apart? Kinda like the cold solder issue (fingers crossed).

 

[Paysonscanner]

The BCD436HP uses standard analog RF circuitry, and it draws about 200mA when playing audio with the screen backlight on. With 3 AA batteries, you get a little over 8 hours of battery life.

The digital RF circuitry in the SDS100 draws about 700mA under the same conditions. So battery life would be less than 2.5 hours on AAs. Powering it with enough AA batteries to last 8 hours would make it significantly bulkier than it already is--not an option.

I'd be willing to forgo the fancy color display and use a single led color "bulb" like the GRE PSR models to cut down on power use. I don't know how much of the 700 milliamp draw the color display accounts for. I use 2700 mAh NiMH AA's in a PSR-500 and it lasts a long time, more than 8 hours - usually about 12, in a rural area anyway. I would not be looking to power a scanner for more than 8 hours on 4 AA's. I would not mind the extra bulk of 8-10 AA's so that if I'm backpacking a couple hundred miles, pass through a town of 200 people and go into a tiny store I can get some AA batteries to power the scanner. I would like to recharge AA's in the small emergency solar chargers I carry in cars and at home for extended power outages. Hubby and I carried these small rollup solar chargers in our backpacks on long backpacking trips for the ham radios (including the boat anchor BK) and a scanner. We were biting off about 200 miles a year on the Pacific Crest Trail and were thinking about doing the whole thing at once after we retired.

When hubby was alive we did a lot of traveling in some wonderfully remote areas, both on foot and in our 1975 Toyota Landcruiser. Most of our closer friends car camped in pretty remote locations and we all used our backpacking/emergency power solar chargers for week long trips. I think about hubby and I when we backpacked in a place called "the Maze" in Canyonlands National Park, Utah. We had towed that Landcruiser on a flatbed behind our pickup from the west side of the Sierra Nevada to Hanksville, Utah, which took 3 days. We hit a cafe at opening for breakfast in town, got in the Landcruiser, stopped at the Hans Flat Ranger Station for about 45 minutes, stopped about 30 minutes for lunch, changed out one flat and then got to the trailhead, set up our camp and finished dinner after sunset before crawling into our sleeping bags to "sleep under the stars." Distance from Hanksville was about 90-100 miles. We started our 4 day backpacking trip the next morning. We had two short rappels on our route. I'm sorry to go on about our travels. I still have a lot of backpacking left in this 64 year old body, maybe not as extreme. A scanner that doesn't use AA batteries has been and will continue to be pretty worthless to me.

BTW, Mom and Dad took a trip to The Maze in the early 1950's and I always wanted to go there. Hubby heard about the place at U.C. Davis in the mid 1970's so he had an itch to go as well.

 

[jonwienke]

The SDS100 color display only draws 50mA at full brightness, compared to about 35-40mA for the 436HP. Most of the power is consumed by the backlight, not the LCD itself. The ADC tuner chip draws by itself as much as the 436HP, and there are 2 CPUs that draw considerable power as well. You can recharge lithium batteries with solar chargers, you just need a higher-wattage panel to recharge the larger battery for the SDS100 than you would for a couple AAs.

If you don't mind extra bulk, something like this will run a SDS100 for a long time:

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B016BJCRUO/

 

[Paysonscanner]

The SDS100 color display only draws 50mA at full brightness, compared to about 35-40mA for the 436HP. Most of the power is consumed by the backlight, not the LCD itself. The ADC tuner chip draws by itself as much as the 436HP, and there are 2 CPUs that draw considerable power as well. You can recharge lithium batteries with solar chargers, you just need a higher-wattage panel to recharge the larger battery for the SDS100 than you would for a couple AAs.

If you don't mind extra bulk, something like this will run a SDS100 for a long time:

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B016BJCRUO/

Thank you for another reply and alternative for me to consider. This device you linked to is 1 pound, 1.5 ounces. That is major weight when backpacking more than one night, really it is major weight when day hiking. Then there is the weight and room needed for power cords. I also wonder how many times it would charge a 2700 mAh AA battery. We didn't need any type of power source for 2-3 day trips cause we just carried extra batteries. Beyond that the weigh and bulk of the extra batteries reached a tipping point where carrying the charger started to pay off. We weren't "ultra light" backpackers, but the expression "if you sweat over the ounces, the pounds will take care of themselves" was always on our minds. I have two solar AA rechargers where the panel rolls up like a paper towel (obviously thicker!). I don't have time to hunt and peck for the latest model charger hubby and I were using, but here is something similar:

Amazon.com: PowerFilm AA Foldable Solar Charger

Amazon.com: PowerFilm AA Foldable Solar Charger

www.amazon.com

We would tie these things to the outside of our backpacks so it could be in the sun for a period of hours while we hiked during the day. We used alkaline batteries for our other powered devices, which we limited to LED flashlights only. We didn't carry cell phones, we didn't carry GPS units and we didn't carry "SPOT" devices. I wonder how many times one of the portable power units would charge a battery pack. Ours are all of 31" long like this one, which is pretty long on your back, but hubby was tall and so am I (for a woman anyway), so they didn't bug us too much.

If you have never backpacked it is nearly impossible to convey the logistics of 4-25 night trips. My longest was 18, but hubby took a 25 night trip from Yosemite down to south of Sequoia-Kings National Park when he was in college, with no resupply and a side trip to the summit of Mt. Whitney. I also think of how well you can eat in the backcountry when you carry 17.5 ounces of additional weight. That's enough for a couple or three nights each of some tasty desserts! For backpackers older than 50, hubby had the mighty Kelty Model BB5 he used for long trips. The little Honda I had right out of college weighed less than his fully loaded BB5!

 

[Paysonscanner]

Ooops,

 

[jonwienke]

The device I linked has the energy storage of approximately 44 AA NiMh rechargeables. How much would they weigh?

 

[Paysonscanner]

The device I linked has the energy storage of approximately 44 AA NiMh rechargeables. How much would they weigh?

Thanks for the info. As I said above "we didn't need any type of power source for 2-3 day trips cause we just carried extra batteries. Beyond that the weight and bulk of the extra batteries reached a tipping point where carrying the charger started to pay off." Hubby was an engineer and he sort of knew how to analyze things like this. I'm nearly positive I will find that and dozens of other analytical projects in the 4 filing cabinets and a bazillion megs of hard disk space the movers brought from California. I roll my eyes every time someone mentions the word analyze since I was a little girl, given my daddy was an engineer also. I like the veterinarian who looked at one of hubby and I's dogs one time for several minutes using a tongue depressor, stethoscope, flashlight, etc., hubby and I nervous about our dog's condition and then saying very optimistically "well he's wagging his tail." Seat of the pants diagnosis I would say!