My VHF began displaying some peculiar behavior at the end of the season.
When it's turned on, it seems to work for about a second, and then goes
silent. Don't know whether the problem is in the radio, or someplace in
the
electric or antenna connections. I'm reluctant to buy a new radio if that
won't solve the problem.


What do you mean by silent? If there were a problem with the antenna and it's
connector there would still be audio and you would get some static noise. If
you have no sound but the display panel lights up you probably have power to
the radio. You could check that with a volt meter to make sure. So, if you have
power and no sound that would probably put it in the radio. If you have a
external speaker connector you could try to connect an external speaker.

Dick