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K2: The green glow returns!

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wayne burdick

K2: The green glow returns!

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A few years ago, in a distant land known for its modular seafood delicacies, one of our vendors decided--without informing us--to stop producing a critical item used in the Elecraft K2: the LCD backlight. We got the news when we attempted to re-order early this year.

Worse, they could never make them again. Both the dusty scrolls upon which the details were scribed and the monks who toiled in the secret factory had vanished. We would have to reinvent this particular wheel.

That task has now been completed; we home-rolled our own backlight from modern materials. We’re pleased to announce that the new green glow is the equal of the old. Thus the K2 is reborn, on approximately the 20th anniversary of its first beta shipments. It’s in stock and ready to exercise kit-building muscles of all ages.

Why build a K2? To summarize what our thousands of builders have told us:

- it’s fun, and the fun can be shared (with one’s progeny, for example)

- educational (you’ll learn a *lot* about how a radio works)

- rewarding (it’s still the only high-performance, all-band HF kit radio)

Regarding the K2’s performance, you may have read recent enthusiastic Field Day reports from its owners. This is no coincidence. The K2 was bred for success at battery-powered field outings, with both ultra-low current drain (~150 to 200 mA) and high blocking dynamic range (it’s one of very few low-cost transceivers to hit the magical 135 dB level, allowing co-located rigs to play fair). The K2 is also an analog superhet design, with crisp audio and very fast QSK.

This is a great time to embark on a K2 adventure, given various specials in honor of summertime and the K2’s reemergence. You can find these specials on our order page (www.elecraft.com/elecraft_prod_list.htm). Or give us a call to talk about which K2 package would best suit your needs.

A K2 can be upgraded at any time by installing your choice of several option modules. No particular order is required. The most popular options are the wide-range ATU (KAT2) and SSB module (KSB2).

If I’ve left any of the K2’s technical or philosophical mysteries to your imagination, feel free to email me directly.

73,
Wayne
N6KR

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ab2tc

Re: K2: The green glow returns!

Hi,

Good job, Wayne. Keep up the good work. The K2 is a very interesting
transceiver. I might order one just to have something interesting to do in
retirement. I would have to invest in a magnifying lamp and a card holder,
though (not a problem). Now if I could just find a way to make my hands
steadier.

AB2TC - Knut

wayne burdick wrote

> A few years ago, in a distant land known for its modular seafood
> delicacies, one of our vendors decided--without informing us--to stop
> producing a critical item used in the Elecraft K2: the LCD backlight. We
> got the news when we attempted to re-order early this year.
>
> Worse, they could never make them again. Both the dusty scrolls upon which
> the details were scribed and the monks who toiled in the secret factory
> had vanished. We would have to reinvent this particular wheel.
>
> That task has now been completed; we home-rolled our own backlight from
> modern materials. We’re pleased to announce that the new green glow is the
> equal of the old. Thus the K2 is reborn, on approximately the 20th
> anniversary of its first beta shipments. It’s in stock and ready to
> exercise kit-building muscles of all ages.
>
> Why build a K2? To summarize what our thousands of builders have told us:
>
> - it’s fun, and the fun can be shared (with one’s progeny, for example)
>
> - educational (you’ll learn a *lot* about how a radio works)
>
> - rewarding (it’s still the only high-performance, all-band HF kit
> radio)
>
> Regarding the K2’s performance, you may have read recent enthusiastic
> Field Day reports from its owners. This is no coincidence. The K2 was bred
> for success at battery-powered field outings, with both ultra-low current
> drain (~150 to 200 mA) and high blocking dynamic range (it’s one of very
> few low-cost transceivers to hit the magical 135 dB level, allowing
> co-located rigs to play fair). The K2 is also an analog superhet design,
> with crisp audio and very fast QSK.
>
> This is a great time to embark on a K2 adventure, given various specials
> in honor of summertime and the K2’s reemergence. You can find these
> specials on our order page (www.elecraft.com/elecraft_prod_list.htm). Or
> give us a call to talk about which K2 package would best suit your needs.
>
> A K2 can be upgraded at any time by installing your choice of several
> option modules. No particular order is required. The most popular options
> are the wide-range ATU (KAT2) and SSB module (KSB2).
>
> If I’ve left any of the K2’s technical or philosophical mysteries to your
> imagination, feel free to email me directly.
>
> 73,
> Wayne
> N6KR
> <snip>

--
Sent from: http://elecraft.365791.n2.nabble.com/
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Neil Zampella

Re: K2: The green glow returns!

In reply to this post by wayne burdick

Wayne,

you've almost made me want to order another K2 kit, even though I just
finished one. That said, if anyone has one they want someone else to
build .. hi hi.

Neil, KN3ILZ

On 6/29/2018 5:21 PM, Wayne Burdick wrote:

> A few years ago, in a distant land known for its modular seafood delicacies, one of our vendors decided--without informing us--to stop producing a critical item used in the Elecraft K2: the LCD backlight. We got the news when we attempted to re-order early this year.
>
> Worse, they could never make them again. Both the dusty scrolls upon which the details were scribed and the monks who toiled in the secret factory had vanished. We would have to reinvent this particular wheel.
>
> That task has now been completed; we home-rolled our own backlight from modern materials. We’re pleased to announce that the new green glow is the equal of the old. Thus the K2 is reborn, on approximately the 20th anniversary of its first beta shipments. It’s in stock and ready to exercise kit-building muscles of all ages.
>
> Why build a K2? To summarize what our thousands of builders have told us:
>
> - it’s fun, and the fun can be shared (with one’s progeny, for example)
>
> - educational (you’ll learn a *lot* about how a radio works)
>
> - rewarding (it’s still the only high-performance, all-band HF kit radio)
>
> Regarding the K2’s performance, you may have read recent enthusiastic Field Day reports from its owners. This is no coincidence. The K2 was bred for success at battery-powered field outings, with both ultra-low current drain (~150 to 200 mA) and high blocking dynamic range (it’s one of very few low-cost transceivers to hit the magical 135 dB level, allowing co-located rigs to play fair). The K2 is also an analog superhet design, with crisp audio and very fast QSK.
>
> This is a great time to embark on a K2 adventure, given various specials in honor of summertime and the K2’s reemergence. You can find these specials on our order page (www.elecraft.com/elecraft_prod_list.htm). Or give us a call to talk about which K2 package would best suit your needs.
>
> A K2 can be upgraded at any time by installing your choice of several option modules. No particular order is required. The most popular options are the wide-range ATU (KAT2) and SSB module (KSB2).
>
> If I’ve left any of the K2’s technical or philosophical mysteries to your imagination, feel free to email me directly.
>
> 73,
> Wayne
> N6KR
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>

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Drew AF2Z

Re: K2: The green glow returns!

In reply to this post by wayne burdick

Always liked that green display! Glad it is back.

73,
Drew
AF2Z

On 06/29/18 17:21, Wayne Burdick wrote:

Gary Watson

Re: K2: The green glow returns!

Great news for the K2 Wayne,

I finished my K2/100 Twins about 1 1/2 yrs ago. It's the first rig I turn
on in the morning and the last I turn off at night even though I have a
K-Line. I can't believe how much pleasure that piece of equipment has
given me. This morning I'll be disconnecting the K2 this morning and
heading out to coffee with our little klub in Bigfork, MT. BARK/K7CMT

We set up a little ham stick dipole up at 12 feet or so outside the coffee
shop and operate CW. Curious customers always are amazed the radio was a
kit. The CW ringing out from the speaker sounds so nice it draws people
over. We worked ON4UN with 10 watts about 6 months ago from there. It
shows how good his antenna's work!

I hope every ham on the reflector orders one from you. Long live the K2.

Gary/W7EE

On Fri, Jun 29, 2018 at 9:21 PM, Wayne Burdick <[hidden email]> wrote:

> A few years ago, in a distant land known for its modular seafood
> delicacies, one of our vendors decided--without informing us--to stop
> producing a critical item used in the Elecraft K2: the LCD backlight. We
> got the news when we attempted to re-order early this year.
>
> Worse, they could never make them again. Both the dusty scrolls upon which
> the details were scribed and the monks who toiled in the secret factory had
> vanished. We would have to reinvent this particular wheel.
>
> That task has now been completed; we home-rolled our own backlight from
> modern materials. We’re pleased to announce that the new green glow is the
> equal of the old. Thus the K2 is reborn, on approximately the 20th
> anniversary of its first beta shipments. It’s in stock and ready to
> exercise kit-building muscles of all ages.
>
> Why build a K2? To summarize what our thousands of builders have told us:
>
> - it’s fun, and the fun can be shared (with one’s progeny, for example)
>
> - educational (you’ll learn a *lot* about how a radio works)
>
> - rewarding (it’s still the only high-performance, all-band HF kit radio)
>
> Regarding the K2’s performance, you may have read recent enthusiastic
> Field Day reports from its owners. This is no coincidence. The K2 was bred
> for success at battery-powered field outings, with both ultra-low current
> drain (~150 to 200 mA) and high blocking dynamic range (it’s one of very
> few low-cost transceivers to hit the magical 135 dB level, allowing
> co-located rigs to play fair). The K2 is also an analog superhet design,
> with crisp audio and very fast QSK.
>
> This is a great time to embark on a K2 adventure, given various specials
> in honor of summertime and the K2’s reemergence. You can find these
> specials on our order page (www.elecraft.com/elecraft_prod_list.htm). Or
> give us a call to talk about which K2 package would best suit your needs.
>
> A K2 can be upgraded at any time by installing your choice of several
> option modules. No particular order is required. The most popular options
> are the wide-range ATU (KAT2) and SSB module (KSB2).
>
> If I’ve left any of the K2’s technical or philosophical mysteries to your
> imagination, feel free to email me directly.
>
> 73,
> Wayne
> N6KR
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
> ______________________________________________________________
> 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

Re: K2: The green glow returns!

I bought my K2/100 already built and use it as my Expedition radio and love it. Though I’ve built a KX1 in the past I haven’t had the pleasure of building a K2. I think I would enjoy building a bare bones QRP K2 just to have the experience. I built many Heathkits back in the day, and still use some of the test equipment I built.

Hmmm. So many projects, so short a lifetime!

73 Marty / W4MY

> On Jun 30, 2018, at 08:57, Gary Watson <[hidden email]> wrote:
>
> Great news for the K2 Wayne,
>
> I finished my K2/100 Twins about 1 1/2 yrs ago. It's the first rig I turn
> on in the morning and the last I turn off at night even though I have a
> K-Line. I can't believe how much pleasure that piece of equipment has
> given me. This morning I'll be disconnecting the K2 this morning and
> heading out to coffee with our little klub in Bigfork, MT. BARK/K7CMT
>
> We set up a little ham stick dipole up at 12 feet or so outside the coffee
> shop and operate CW. Curious customers always are amazed the radio was a
> kit. The CW ringing out from the speaker sounds so nice it draws people
> over. We worked ON4UN with 10 watts about 6 months ago from there. It
> shows how good his antenna's work!
>
> I hope every ham on the reflector orders one from you. Long live the K2.
>
> Gary/W7EE
>
>
>
>> On Fri, Jun 29, 2018 at 9:21 PM, Wayne Burdick <[hidden email]> wrote:
>>
>> A few years ago, in a distant land known for its modular seafood
>> delicacies, one of our vendors decided--without informing us--to stop
>> producing a critical item used in the Elecraft K2: the LCD backlight. We
>> got the news when we attempted to re-order early this year.
>>
>> Worse, they could never make them again. Both the dusty scrolls upon which
>> the details were scribed and the monks who toiled in the secret factory had
>> vanished. We would have to reinvent this particular wheel.
>>
>> That task has now been completed; we home-rolled our own backlight from
>> modern materials. We’re pleased to announce that the new green glow is the
>> equal of the old. Thus the K2 is reborn, on approximately the 20th
>> anniversary of its first beta shipments. It’s in stock and ready to
>> exercise kit-building muscles of all ages.
>>
>> Why build a K2? To summarize what our thousands of builders have told us:
>>
>> - it’s fun, and the fun can be shared (with one’s progeny, for example)
>>
>> - educational (you’ll learn a *lot* about how a radio works)
>>
>> - rewarding (it’s still the only high-performance, all-band HF kit radio)
>>
>> Regarding the K2’s performance, you may have read recent enthusiastic
>> Field Day reports from its owners. This is no coincidence. The K2 was bred
>> for success at battery-powered field outings, with both ultra-low current
>> drain (~150 to 200 mA) and high blocking dynamic range (it’s one of very
>> few low-cost transceivers to hit the magical 135 dB level, allowing
>> co-located rigs to play fair). The K2 is also an analog superhet design,
>> with crisp audio and very fast QSK.
>>
>> This is a great time to embark on a K2 adventure, given various specials
>> in honor of summertime and the K2’s reemergence. You can find these
>> specials on our order page (www.elecraft.com/elecraft_prod_list.htm). Or
>> give us a call to talk about which K2 package would best suit your needs.
>>
>> A K2 can be upgraded at any time by installing your choice of several
>> option modules. No particular order is required. The most popular options
>> are the wide-range ATU (KAT2) and SSB module (KSB2).
>>
>> If I’ve left any of the K2’s technical or philosophical mysteries to your
>> imagination, feel free to email me directly.
>>
>> 73,
>> Wayne
>> N6KR
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>> ______________________________________________________________
>> 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]