My KA-1101 has begun eating battery power at a tremendous rate. I've had
this radio for over a year, and it will go close to 40 hours on a full
charge. As of the past few weeks, it will only go about 12 hours on a full
charge. At first, I thought I had purchased a bad set of rechargeable
batteries, so I went out and got a new set. I employed the new set of
batteries, and it still drained out in about 10 hours. I did a test with
non rechargeable AA cells, and found that it ate those up way to quickly
too.

My best guess tells me that it has developed a non critical short.

My KA-1102 has always had a defect with the volume always coming on full
blast after power up, and now, my KA-1101 has developed problems too.

Both are good performing radios for their price, but they have
quality/construction problems.

Now I'm waiting for my PL-550 to start crapping out. I'm not disparaging
Chinese consumer products, but I am respectfully pointing out that they have
a way to go yet. That statement applies for both their manufacturing
procedures and their sociopolitical ideologies.

I look forward to the time when I can by a Chinese radio that will have the
same quality as an American, German, Japanese radio. Not to mention, that
such a Chinese radio will also be made by people that are guaranteed under
law to have the same freedoms, human rights and quality of life guaranteed
to those who design, assemble and sell great radios like Drake, and Icom.

Stay with it over there... You'll get it right eventually...

Michael