Full kits,
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Harry, you betcha the's a market for full kits! As I write this, I have a Bitx-40 on the bench, just completed a Kn-q7a, and the rest of my gear ranges from MKARS-80 through to three MST-xx. On top of this, I've modified a Codan 7727 to vfo. Never happier than when I have a soldering iron in my hand (by the handle of course......)
Cheers Norm McLaren Vale South Australia Sent from my iPad ______________________________________________________________ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:[hidden email] This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html Message delivered to [hidden email] |
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I have a K2 half built on the Bench and a mcHF on my desk that I built last summer
I would love to see a multi-band BiTX (I have built a BiTX20A in the past as well). I'm let to believe that there is a market out there for full kits so maybe I'm just not looking in the right places. From: Norm Lee <[hidden email]> To: [hidden email] Sent: Sunday, February 12, 2017 6:30 PM Subject: [Elecraft] Full kits, Harry, you betcha the's a market for full kits! As I write this, I have a Bitx-40 on the bench, just completed a Kn-q7a, and the rest of my gear ranges from MKARS-80 through to three MST-xx. On top of this, I've modified a Codan 7727 to vfo. Never happier than when I have a soldering iron in my hand (by the handle of course......) Cheers Norm McLaren Vale South Australia Sent from my iPad ______________________________________________________________ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:[hidden email] This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html Message delivered to [hidden email] ______________________________________________________________ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:[hidden email] This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html Message delivered to [hidden email] |
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In reply to this post by Norm Lee
Constructing my old K2 was one of the most fun and challenging things I have done with electronics. Before that I built a few things long ago with Heathkit.
Top end modern transceiver technology has moved beyond the K2, which is why Elecraft did a complete redesign with the K3 and K3s. The K2 is a nice rig, but the K3s is so much more. Modern electronics is all about miniaturization. Nearly all the components are smaller, they have to be installed at the surface instead of via through-board solder holes. The result is that you can now create transceivers that have top notch performance yet fit in the palm of your hand. Witness the K3s and K2s. To work with miniaturized surface mount components you need specialized equipment and specialized skills. A simple $100 soldering station and some rework tools is no longer good enough for this kind of work. There are relatively few amateurs who could or would tackle a kit where the great majority of the components are tiny and surface mounted. I imagine Elecraft could re-engineer the K3 with non-surface mount parts. I imagine the box will have to be a lot bigger. Same performance? Perhaps, perhaps not. That will be a significantly different beast. I think the added cost of re-engineering would probably make the kit prohibitive. There are still kits around, and smaller projects are still reasonable using traditional construction methods and parts. However, the era of solder-your-own kits is definitely in decline. Or we could all lease some equipment and learn how to surface mount. From: Elecraft [mailto:[hidden email]] On Behalf Of Norm Lee Sent: Sunday, February 12, 2017 3:30 PM To: [hidden email] Subject: [Elecraft] Full kits, Harry, you betcha the's a market for full kits! As I write this, I have a Bitx-40 on the bench, just completed a Kn-q7a, and the rest of my gear ranges from MKARS-80 through to three MST-xx. On top of this, I've modified a Codan 7727 to vfo. Never happier than when I have a soldering iron in my hand (by the handle of course......) Cheers Norm McLaren Vale South Australia Sent from my iPad ______________________________________________________________ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:[hidden email] This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html Message delivered to [hidden email]<mailto:[hidden email]> ________________________________ ______________________________________________________________ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:[hidden email] This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html Message delivered to [hidden email] |
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tl:dr I like to build things. Getting all the components
assembled in a kit is a wonderful step forward toward the fun part. I have built several kits with SMD components using just a temperature controlled soldering station. I think I could get by with a cheap Radio Shack soldering iron, but I certainly don't want to. (I like automatic spark advance in my car as well.) The basic approach is to tin the pads on the board with solder and clean things up so there are no bridges. Solder one end/corner of the device and adjust it so it lines up with all pads. Then go and solder the rest of the pads. This technique works well with 8 pin devices. I would be in unknown territory soldering a 400 pin grid array device. :-) I bought a hot air rework device from SparkFun <https://www.sparkfun.com/products/10706> for $115 which I use when I have to remove a SMD component. The video on the page is a good introduction to removing SMD components. I will note in passing that the mantle of electronic construction has moved from the ham community to the builder community. Their suppliers are now the best place to learn how to deal with modern electronic components. 73 Bill AE6JV On 2/13/17 at 9:57 AM, [hidden email] (George Thornton) wrote: >To work with miniaturized surface mount components you need >specialized equipment and specialized skills. ----------------------------------------------------------------------- Bill Frantz | Security is like Government | Periwinkle (408)356-8506 | services. The market doesn't | 16345 Englewood Ave www.pwpconsult.com | want to pay for them. | Los Gatos, CA 95032 ______________________________________________________________ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:[hidden email] This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html Message delivered to [hidden email] |
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I've found that surface mount is not that hard just different. Probably the same as when electronics switched from Tubes with point to point and big irons to PC boards with IC's and and smaller irons. In a lot of ways surface mount is easier, (no leads to bend, reshape and trim) I do have to agree It does seem that other hobbies are taking the lead in going to surface mount. From: Bill Frantz <[hidden email]> To: [hidden email] Sent: Monday, February 13, 2017 4:40 PM Subject: Re: [Elecraft] Full kits, tl:dr I like to build things. Getting all the components assembled in a kit is a wonderful step forward toward the fun part. I have built several kits with SMD components using just a temperature controlled soldering station. I think I could get by with a cheap Radio Shack soldering iron, but I certainly don't want to. (I like automatic spark advance in my car as well.) The basic approach is to tin the pads on the board with solder and clean things up so there are no bridges. Solder one end/corner of the device and adjust it so it lines up with all pads. Then go and solder the rest of the pads. This technique works well with 8 pin devices. I would be in unknown territory soldering a 400 pin grid array device. :-) I bought a hot air rework device from SparkFun <https://www.sparkfun.com/products/10706> for $115 which I use when I have to remove a SMD component. The video on the page is a good introduction to removing SMD components. I will note in passing that the mantle of electronic construction has moved from the ham community to the builder community. Their suppliers are now the best place to learn how to deal with modern electronic components. 73 Bill AE6JV On 2/13/17 at 9:57 AM, [hidden email] (George Thornton) wrote: >To work with miniaturized surface mount components you need >specialized equipment and specialized skills. ----------------------------------------------------------------------- Bill Frantz | Security is like Government | Periwinkle (408)356-8506 | services. The market doesn't | 16345 Englewood Ave www.pwpconsult.com | want to pay for them. | Los Gatos, CA 95032 ______________________________________________________________ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:[hidden email] This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html Message delivered to [hidden email] ______________________________________________________________ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:[hidden email] This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html Message delivered to [hidden email] |
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