K2 repair advice
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Hello all,
I have a question for the gurus regarding fixing my K2. Back in 2003 I built a K2 with KPA100, KDSP2, SSB, 160 mod and external ATU and used it to operate mobile in South America for a period of time. I then returned to the U.S. to begin med school and have been off the air since. I'd like to get back into radio now with my K2. Shortly before I went QRT three years ago I noticed that the front panel earphone jack broke. It provides audio to external headphones, but does not correspondingly cut audio out from the internal speaker. Very annoying. I have only a short holiday vacation and then it's back to the grind at work. I don't have the time to teach myself how to take apart the rig again, nor frankly would I trust myself to do a good job removing a part soldered onto the board at several points. In the meantime I've simply unplugged P5 from the control board. I'm worried that the front audio jack will completely break and then I'll be totally out of luck. The question is: What is the best option for getting assistance fixing my rig? Should I send it to Elecraft service? Can I send it to Elecraft service? Should I subcontract out a rig builder? I noticed that there are several hardware/firmware upgrades that have come out that are also applicable for my rig. It would be great to install these at the same time. Anyway, this is a plea for advice from someone who wants to get back into radio, desperately loves his K2 (that he built himself) and doesn't have the current ability to take the whole thing apart and put it back together again. Help! Thanks! Adam, N1KO _______________________________________________ Elecraft mailing list Post to: [hidden email] You must be a subscriber to post to the list. Subscriber Info (Addr. Change, sub, unsub etc.): http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/subscribers.htm Elecraft web page: http://www.elecraft.com |
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Adam,
It does not require any exotic de-soldering equipment to remove components, even those multi-legged critters. It is relatively easy to remove any component - PROVIDED you do not make any attempt to salvage the broken component. With whatever tools you have available (small saws, pliers, diagonal cutters, etc.), crush or otherwise dissect the component until you can remove one pin at a time. After the component pins are removed, while heating the solder pad, push a stainless steel needle through the hole to remove the old solder - a large sewing needle will do fine, but put a handle on it so you don't burn your fingers - you can clean up a bit with solder wick. Once you have the holes clean, install the new component. Remember that the board must be preserved - it is more valuable than the sum of the parts onstalled on it - the components are expendable. All de-soldering for the upgrades can be done easily by following the same procedure. Certainly, the exotic de-soldering stations make it quicker and easier, but that is not the only way. 73, Don W3FPR > -----Original Message----- > > I have a question for the gurus regarding fixing my K2. Back > in 2003 I built a K2 with KPA100, KDSP2, SSB, 160 mod and > external ATU and used it to operate mobile in South America > for a period of time. I then returned to the U.S. to begin > med school and have been off the air since. I'd like to get > back into radio now with my K2. > > Shortly before I went QRT three years ago I noticed that the > front panel earphone jack broke. It provides audio to > external headphones, but does not correspondingly cut audio > out from the internal speaker. Very annoying. > > I have only a short holiday vacation and then it's back to the > grind at work. I don't have the time to teach myself how to > take apart the rig again, nor frankly would I trust myself to > do a good job removing a part soldered onto the board at > several points. In the meantime I've simply unplugged P5 from > the control board. I'm worried that the front audio jack will > completely break and then I'll be totally out of luck. > > The question is: What is the best option for getting > assistance fixing my rig? Should I send it to Elecraft > service? Can I send it to Elecraft service? Should I > subcontract out a rig builder? > > I noticed that there are several hardware/firmware upgrades > that have come out that are also applicable for my rig. It > would be great to install these at the same time. > > No virus found in this outgoing message. Checked by AVG Free Edition. Version: 7.5.432 / Virus Database: 268.15.22/590 - Release Date: 12/16/2006 5:39 PM _______________________________________________ Elecraft mailing list Post to: [hidden email] You must be a subscriber to post to the list. Subscriber Info (Addr. Change, sub, unsub etc.): http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/subscribers.htm Elecraft web page: http://www.elecraft.com |
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In reply to this post by adamkern
Elecraft, best we can figure, does not have a
"Service Department", or at least discourages builders from using it. It's sort of a do-it-yourself repair process. I've read hints, on the list, of those who had sent in their K2's for service and alignments. But when I asked Elecraft that question - the answer was no. A recent post indicated perhaps 1/2 of the K2's out there, could be mis or poorly aligned, an important process. There may be rentable builders out there who will do such work, not sure. For straight out repairs .... don't know. As Don says, they are fairly easy to re-repair, especially if one is the original successful builder. Fred, FL N3CSY __________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Tired of spam? Yahoo! Mail has the best spam protection around http://mail.yahoo.com _______________________________________________ Elecraft mailing list Post to: [hidden email] You must be a subscriber to post to the list. Subscriber Info (Addr. Change, sub, unsub etc.): http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/subscribers.htm Elecraft web page: http://www.elecraft.com |
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Fred,
Elecraft does maintain a Customer Support organization that can best be accessed by email to mailto:[hidden email] and when email (and possibly telephone) support is not adequate to resolve th eproblem, it can be sent in to Elecraft for repair (that does require a Repair Service Authorization number to keep everything better organized). There is an hourly fee (with a 1 hour minimum) for physical service/repair work. Phone and email support are available at no cost. 73, Don W3FPR > -----Original Message----- > > Elecraft, best we can figure, does not have a > "Service Department", or at least discourages > builders from using it. It's sort of a do-it-yourself > repair process. I've read hints, on > the list, of those who had sent in their K2's > for service and alignments. But when I asked > Elecraft that question - the answer was no. A > recent post indicated perhaps 1/2 of the K2's out > there, could be mis or poorly aligned, an > important process. There may be rentable builders > out there who will do such work, not sure. For > straight out repairs .... don't know. As Don says, > they are fairly easy to re-repair, especially if > one is the original successful builder. > > Fred, FL N3CSY > No virus found in this outgoing message. Checked by AVG Free Edition. Version: 7.5.432 / Virus Database: 268.15.24/592 - Release Date: 12/18/2006 1:45 PM _______________________________________________ Elecraft mailing list Post to: [hidden email] You must be a subscriber to post to the list. Subscriber Info (Addr. Change, sub, unsub etc.): http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/subscribers.htm Elecraft web page: http://www.elecraft.com |
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In reply to this post by Fred (FL)
There is a "service department" in the form of Gary Surrency
([hidden email]). He will do whatever is necessary to get your Elecraft rig working to factory spex, even to the extent of dragging in the design engineers (usually Wayne or Eric) if needed to look at an issue. Most issues are simple building mistakes that can be located with a little troubleshooting help such as that found right here on the reflector. Once in a while an issue shows up as builders do things a little differently while building the kit or manufacturer's parts tolerances all add up in one direction that might produce an unexpected result. It might be something that shows up only once in a hundred or more kits. In that case the engineers jump in to study the problem, why it happened, and decide what can be changed in the design of the rig, the specifications for the parts or in the documentation to prevent its happening again. That process is how some of the modifications to the Elecraft kits have come about such as the recent change to the KPA100 and, some years ago, the change to the I.F. filter crystals and the addition of the PLL stabilization circuit in the K2. In most cases, Elecraft then offers an "upgrade" kit for anyone who might want to incorporate the changes into their rig, even if it's currently working FB, so no one's rig ever need be "out of date" no matter how old the serial number. Gary gets rigs to "fix", but as far as possible the idea is for the builder to fix it so he/she knows what happened and how to fix similar issues in the future. Elecraft has demonstrated its commitment to ensuring that every builder who seeks help gets it to get their rigs working correctly. I've had the privilege of watching that process up close and it's impressive to see the attention and effort given to get a builder's issues fixed quickly. For those who are on the Internet (remember, some Hams don't mess with computers) this reflector has always been the first place to go and most of the problems are solved right here by the members of the list. When a member does offer an idea, posting the message to the list instead of sending it direct is important so everyone can see it. That's how others can learn. It also saves the bandwidth of the same question being asked again and again. Of course, Don, W3FPR, is almost always right there with an answer and suggestion based on his huge experience and knowledge of the Elecraft products. Frankly, I get a kick out of noticing a question on a subject I know about but which Don hasn't responded to yet and answering it, then I check back later to see if Don had anything to add to my answer. Don's sort of the pinnacle of Elecraft kit knowledge we all can strive to reach, and probably won't, Hi! But anyone who has an answer or a question is encouraged to post it. There's an old saying that I've always found to be true: we teach what we most need to learn. Ron AC7AC -----Original Message----- Elecraft, best we can figure, does not have a "Service Department", or at least discourages builders from using it. It's sort of a do-it-yourself repair process. I've read hints, on the list, of those who had sent in their K2's for service and alignments. But when I asked Elecraft that question - the answer was no. A recent post indicated perhaps 1/2 of the K2's out there, could be mis or poorly aligned, an important process. There may be rentable builders out there who will do such work, not sure. For straight out repairs .... don't know. As Don says, they are fairly easy to re-repair, especially if one is the original successful builder. Fred, FL N3CSY _______________________________________________ Elecraft mailing list Post to: [hidden email] You must be a subscriber to post to the list. Subscriber Info (Addr. Change, sub, unsub etc.): http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/subscribers.htm Elecraft web page: http://www.elecraft.com |
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In reply to this post by adamkern
Wow -
I learned a thing or 2 today. I'm feeling much better about Elecraft's service policies and remedies! Sounds great to me. I'm sure the lion's share of builders, hope to be able to "fix" and service their Elecraft kits themselves. My concern, was for the guy or gal, who for whatever reason - could not get to do that. I'm one who never had a bench or room full of service gear. Thus when I finished my K2 # 54xx, I had hoped to send it into Elecraft for the ultimate "alignment"! It turned out - with Spectrograph's and Don Wilhelm's help - the alignment, by me, went quite well. And I didn't need Elecraft's help afterall. And my K2 ended up being pretty well aligned to spec! :) Fred, FL, N3CSY __________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Tired of spam? Yahoo! Mail has the best spam protection around http://mail.yahoo.com _______________________________________________ Elecraft mailing list Post to: [hidden email] You must be a subscriber to post to the list. Subscriber Info (Addr. Change, sub, unsub etc.): http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/subscribers.htm Elecraft web page: http://www.elecraft.com |
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The beauty of K2 is that it does not require expensive equipment to align. It has built in equipment. If you have a DMMM, frequency counter and swr/power meter, they are only additional bonus to align your K2. 73 Johnny Sui VR2XMC From: "Fred (FL)" <[hidden email]> To: [hidden email] Subject: RE: [Elecraft] K2 repair advice Date: Mon, 18 Dec 2006 17:37:47 -0800 (PST) Wow - I learned a thing or 2 today. I'm feeling much better about Elecraft's service policies and remedies! Sounds great to me. I'm sure the lion's share of builders, hope to be able to "fix" and service their Elecraft kits themselves. My concern, was for the guy or gal, who for whatever reason - could not get to do that. I'm one who never had a bench or room full of service gear. Thus when I finished my K2 # 54xx, I had hoped to send it into Elecraft for the ultimate "alignment"! It turned out - with Spectrograph's and Don Wilhelm's help - the alignment, by me, went quite well. And I didn't need Elecraft's help afterall. And my K2 ended up being pretty well aligned to spec! :) Fred, FL, N3CSY _________________________________________________________________ 与世界各地的朋友进行交流，免费下载 Live Messenger; http://get.live.com/messenger/overview _______________________________________________ Elecraft mailing list Post to: [hidden email] You must be a subscriber to post to the list. Subscriber Info (Addr. Change, sub, unsub etc.): http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/subscribers.htm Elecraft web page: http://www.elecraft.com |
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