Bendix/King KX-99

[GAHorn]

In another thread:

My KX-99 handheld has this function and makes a good second nav/comm, as long as you don't need a second localizer. As I've said before, I use the belt clip feature to mount it in a readable positon on the left interior sidewall, and have interfaces to external antennas and to Com2 on the audio panel. When doing VOR checks, the KX-99 comes out dead on, where the KX-155 is usually one degree off one way or the other. The KX-99 gives you a choice between a CDI-type display or digital readout of bearing or radial.

Miles

I also have a KX-99 and use it for obtaining clearances before engine start, back-up VOR reciever, and at Fly Ins, and of course, as a backup radio for my only panel mount comm.
But, the KX-99, while a great radio, is no longer in production, so if anyone wants one they'll have to shop the used market. One nice thing tho', is that Honeywell (who bought out Bendix/King) still supports the radio with repairs and accessories.
The concern I had however, was... for how long? The battery pack for many handheld radios becomes an issue when the mfr. stops making them. Ol' Gar has at least one obsolete piece of junk he carries around to look good at Fly In's etc, but in reality it doesn't even work because he can't find a battery pack for it. (But he still thinks it makes him look cool to carry it.)
Anyway,.... Miles,....and anyone else who owns a KX-99 or intends to buy one.... I suggest you contact Honeywell and purchase their auxilliary Standard AA Battery attachment, which is intended to be used with standard Alkaline AA batteries. That way you'll never have a radio which only has Ol' Gar for a potential future owner. (You'll always be able to simply install standard AA batteries and use the radio.)
Personally, I use rechargeable AA batteries in mine. I simply remove the 10 req'd AA batteries and charge 'em up with my desk charger, and re-install them. (Miles, your comment about charging the KX-99 from ship's power using the charger cord doesn't seem to work with the standard battery-box accessory, however. I purchased an aftermarket cigar-lighter plug-and-cord with the correct end fitting, but the aftermarket rechargeable batteries don't accept a charge from the ship's power...I haven't figured out why. The electrical circuitry is exactly the same with the accy batt-box as with the original NiCd.
But at least if NiCd batt-packs become unavailable, I'll still be able to use my radio for something other than a pocket weight...unlike one of our friends to the east.

PS. You might also want to consider the headset adapter plug/set from Honeywell (Bendix/KIng) also. If you are operating the KX-99 in a noisy cockpit such as our 170's, the radio is MUCH more useful when you can simply plug in your headset directly to the unit. You can actually HEAR the conversation.

[cessna170bdriver]

...(Miles, your comment about charging the KX-99 from ship's power using the charger cord doesn't seem to work with the standard battery-box accessory, however. I purchased an aftermarket cigar-lighter plug-and-cord with the correct end fitting, but the aftermarket rechargeable batteries don't accept a charge from the ship's power...I haven't figured out why. The electrical circuitry is exactly the same with the accy batt-box as with the original NiCd.
But at least if NiCd batt-packs become unavailable, I'll still be able to use my radio for something other than a pocket weight...unlike one of our friends to the east.

George, I'm not sure what you mean by the "standard battery-box accessory". When I first bought my KX-99 in 1990, my only panel radio, an old Narco MK-12A had just gone Tango Uniform and the KX-99 served as primary comm for about a year until I could scrape the $$$ together for my KX-155 setup. I'm bad about remembering to charge batteries, and I often forget to turn the handheld off after a flight, so I just made a cable out of a Shadio Rack cigarette lighter-type of adapter with integral fuse and the appropriate plug on the radio end. Ship's power has been keeping the KX-99's original battery topped off ever since. I guess I should take it out after a long flight sometime and see how long the 15-year old Ni-Cad pack holds up. If it ever fails I guess I can just send it to Zwolle . Dealing with AA batteries just doesn't seem worth the effort.

...(PS. You might also want to consider the headset adapter plug/set from Honeywell (Bendix/KIng) also. If you are operating the KX-99 in a noisy cockpit such as our 170's, the radio is MUCH more useful when you can simply plug in your headset directly to the unit. You can actually HEAR the conversation.

The headset adapter is another item easily ginned up from parts at your local electronics supplier. There's nothing special or aviation specific about the headset plugs or the miniature jacks on the radio. Just take your radio and your headset in and tell them you want to plug them together and they'll find the right parts. My KX-99 usually stays plugged into my interface panel (which is in turn wired to the COM2 channel on my audio panel), but I keep a headset adapter in the glove box should the audio panel ever fail.

Miles

[GAHorn]

Miles, the original battery pack for the KX99 was a proprietary unit which, as you know, rotates/clips into position on the bottom of the transciever. It is not capable of being disassemled for rebuild without destroying it.
The NiCd battery pack will work just fine exactly as you've experienced for a long time until...one day...it is totally shot and will no longer work, not even when connected to an adequate source of power such as you describe. (The internally shorted/dead NiCds will drain any supplied power away and the transciever will be dead.)
If the NiCd packs should ever be unavailable, your KX99 will be on it's way to be used as a trotline anchor in Zwolle when not doing duty as a status symbol at La fly ins.
Unlesss... you have the accessory such as the standard-battery box. The cost was $19. The AA rechargeables can be left connected exactly as your present set up does, but will always be able to be replaced/serviceable as long as AA batteries are made anywhere in the world. The same cannot be said of the proprietary NiCd pack which Honeywell no longer makes. (If you're still not convinced this is a good idea, let me know so I can buy one for Ol' Gar and when you let him have your dead unit he'll have a radio which actually will transmit and recieve to carry around.)
The headset adaptor was another $16. Radio Shack wanted almost that for the connectors and didn't even include the shielded cable already soldered/assembled.

[cessna170bdriver]

If the NiCd packs should ever be unavailable, your KX99 will be on it's way to be used as a trotline anchor in Zwolle when not doing duty as a status symbol at La fly ins.
Unlesss... you have the accessory such as the standard-battery box. The cost was $19. The AA rechargeables can be left connected exactly as your present set up does, but will always be able to be replaced/serviceable as long as AA batteries are made anywhere in the world. The same cannot be said of the proprietary NiCd pack which Honeywell no longer makes. (If you're still not convinced this is a good idea, let me know so I can buy one for Ol' Gar and when you let him have your dead unit he'll have a radio which actually will transmit and recieve to carry around.)

George, you finally said it enough different ways that I now get it. At first I didn't understand what you meant by standard-battery box. It is an empty box that will mate to the radio and will accept 8 removable AA batteries. The online stores call it an Alkaline Battery Case. I checked several pilot supply houses and found current prices in the $30-$40 range. What kind of AA batteries are you using? If they are NiCd, then the charger in the radio SHOULD charge them correctly. If you use rechargeable alkalines, then the internal charger may not work, and may in fact damage the batteries and/or the charger circuit in the radio.

While searching for the battery case, I ran across an outfit called Batteries America who I noticed also sell aftermarket batteries for the KX-99 (see above web page). One is a NiCd (1500maH) for $49.95, and the other is a NiMH (2700maH, almost double the capacity) for $69.95. Both are the same size as the original battery, and are said to “charge from original equipment”. They even have the foil KX-99 “cheat sheet” attached. See http://www.batteriesamerica.com/newpage71.htm

Whether you go with replaceable cell case or a new sealed pack, it nice to know our $600-700 investments are still a long way from being trot line anchors.

The headset adaptor was another $16. Radio Shack wanted almost that for the connectors and didn't even include the shielded cable already soldered/assembled.

I didn’t realize they were that cheap. That’s definitely the way to go. I actually built mine out of parts from my electronics junk box. Being an instrumentation engineer, I’ve also been able to procure “samples” of cable and connectors from vendors from time to time.

Miles

[N4281V]

I've bought two batteries for KX-99 units from Batteries America and have had good experience with them. I didn't know Honeywell still repaired the units. Maybe I'll get them fixed now that I went and bought two ICOM handhelds....figures...

[GAHorn]

What kind of AA batteries are you using? If they are NiCd, then the charger in the radio SHOULD charge them correctly. If you use rechargeable alkalines, then the internal charger may not work, and may in fact damage the batteries and/or the charger circuit in the radio.

Whether you go with replaceable cell case or a new sealed pack, it nice to know our $600-700 investments are still a long way from being trot line anchors.

Miles

Actually, I've had only bad experiences with rechargeable alkalines (corrosion), and I prefer rechargeable NiMH batteries.
The problem I've run into is that the original wall-charger for my KX-99 died and there are no replacements available. Amazingly, Honeywell (Bendix/King) pointed out to me that the original charger was actually rated at 18 VDC and put out a few hundred mA's of current. I haven't managed to locate a suitable replacement, and even if I did, I already have the rechargeable NiMH AA's in my "alkaline" battery case.
The problem with NiCd batteries in use with a hand-held radio is, that the NiCd batteries give best service if used frequently and discharged/re-charged frequently and when discharged....done so completely. This is because NiCd batteries tend to develop a "memory" and if only discharged partially, they will then refuse to deliver full capacity in subsequent use. They also require regular serviceing because of their tendency to hang onto their charge and refuse to give it up. Also, when charged, they should be charged in long-cycle chargers at slow rates.
Not so NiMH (Nickle Metal-Hydride) batteries which can be charged in rapid chargers and do not fail to give their full capacity regardless of long term storage. (Which is the most common use hand-helds are put to. If you carry a hand-held for emergency use, and if you have stored it with NiCd batteries, then the very moment you need it...it may fail to deliver. NiMh or Alkaline are much better at this sort of task.)
At the present, I simply remove my NiMH's from the case and recharge them in the unit which came with the batteries when I bought them. Since I started using NiMH's, I've quit buying regular AA's for any other devices I own, and have used only rechargeables for several years now. And there's good news. I've saved a bunch at Geic.... er... I think I've saved a bunch of money by now.

(Just adding it all up, I use AA's in two cameras, 4 family-band walkie-talkies, at least 4 penlight-type flashlites in the cars and plane, the GPS, my laser-pointer, and two volt-ohm meters. With the spare set of 10 for the KX99, and the spare set of 4 for the GPS that makes 45 double "A" rechargeable batteries I use regularly. If I had to buy those every other month or so, it'd really add up compared to the $19 for the high-quality charger and the $48 initial investment in rechargeables which have lasted me almost 3 years so far. I never buy regular AA batteries anymore.)