This radio goes back quite a few years, and in fact I had two of them: the Tecsun DR-920 and the alternate branded Lextronix E1100. I gave the Tecsun to a friend years ago who had been a ham radio operator and was terminally ill with cancer. [Documentary evidence unearthed shows that the DR-920 is not the one I gave to my friend, but something else. I sold the DR-920 on eBay. Still it reminds me of my friend.] I still have the E1100. Here are both:
The radio is unusual, one of the few of its type, an analog tuned single-conversion superheterodyne radio with a digital frequency counter readout. It combines the best of both worlds: the smooth continuous tuning of an analog with the precise frequency readout of a digital.
I have a sentimental attachment to the radio because of my friend, now long passed, who got its twin, and so I note with sadness today the passing of my Lextronix E1100 radio.
The Lextronix E1100/DR-920 has a tuning wheel that’s connected through dial stringing and pulleys to a varicap on the circuit board. The varicap froze up and the dial stringing sprung. I couldn’t come up with any way to access the pulley mechanism without cutting a dozen wires that I have no hope of ever being able to repair. A photo of the destructive disassembly is included below.
I think the best thing will be to replace it with a DR-920C that looks almost identical to the older model. A new one, I hope, will last longer than an antique, and will be just as good a memento.