KXB3080 Done
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I finished my 80m board for the KX1 today. I did it over 3 or 4 days a
bit at a time. The first signal I heard on 80m was noted KX1 owner Bill K6ACJ, but I don't think he was on his KX1. He signed before I had a chance to call him. WA7OSQ Art in Pasco, WA (about 630 miles) was my first QSO, on 3719 with my 400' low-loop, and Art gave me a 569 QSB to my ~1.5W out. The loop has a resonance around there, so it didn't really give the KXAT1 a workout at all, and the ATU reported L=C=0. On the 40m CW band though, all I get is SSB tonight, hi hi... All in all, I'm impressed that such a thing was possible and pleased I got it. Time will tell if I can use the 80m with portable antennas, but it certainly works with a big resonant one. A few minor observations on building and installing follow. 73, Leigh / WA5ZNU -------------------------------------------- - The 30m alignment seems pickier about hand coupling than on the KXB30 but maybe it's my imagination. I had to use a plastic tuning tool. When I used a metal one with electrical tape, the 30A peak was way off and 30B of course had no peak. Signals came way up when I touched the metal tool to the trimmers, a sign that I needed to use a plastic one. - On the LPF board, I found the text about running the green wire on "top" of the relay confusing. The pictures confirmed that "top" didn't mean the part of the relay with lettering, but instead one of the sides. - Consulting the online PDF manual with color photos helped a lot with this and other confusions I had. - I shortened KB3080 PCB wire B, and later wire F, but the others were OK in length. - I didn't trim the relay pins, because I missed the instructions, and the Elecraft manuals almost always warn you not to, but it soon became obvious it was required, and I saw the instructions then. - Somehow I wound up with too much insulation burned off the magnet wire on L2 where it needs to run past the ATU jack, and was afraid it would contact the vias on the LPF board, so I ran it around clear. This seems to be the most important one to get the insulation right on. I suspect the instructions are correct, though. - I missed the instructions to solder C1 on the component side of the LPF1 board and had to redo it. - My current drain was always about 41ma, a little above what the book said. I took the opportunity to look for any solder bridges or cold joints, and touched up a few. Now it's 44ma and 64ma. - The advice to test the LPF1 board positioning with the KXAT1 is good. I can see that installing the KXB3080 would be problematic if don't have the KXAT1 but plan to get one, as it's hard to get it positioned exactly right without testing, though I suppose you could re-install the LPF1 if you purchase a KXAT1 later. - If Elecraft ever fixes the KXB3080 board to have the correct labeling for + and -, please consider not just swapping the symbols but using P and N, to reduce confusion when reading future manuals. - My cut trace is not as pretty as the one in the manual; the model one looks like it was done with a laser cutter! _______________________________________________ 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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Thanks Leigh!! Your comments will result in some clarifications in future
editions of the manual. Confession time: That "cut trace" in the manual photo was done by editing the photograph digitally. Mine looks like yours, I'll bet, because I did it exactly like the manual says. It wasn't clear on the photo so it justified a little digital "help" to make sure it showed up well. Your comments are all very helpful. I might be easier for builders to strip lead L2-1 after the toroid is mounted on the LPF1 board, so it is easy to see where to stop. I'm always dubious about calling for using soldering irons close to relays though <G>. Still, we might change the procedure to call for that. Congratulations on a successful build! I know that Wayne "sweated bullets" making the extra inductors required for 80 meters fit in the space available. It's clear from the success stories that he did a great job of it! A four-band rig 80-20 meter CW rig with self-contained power, a superhet receiver and variable crystal filter, wide range receive for listening to everything from the "top end" of the standard broadcast band up through 20 meters and most of he SWL frequencies in between, super stable digital tuning, nice CW break in operation, the comfy little plug-in paddles and it all fits in my jacket pocket! It was just a few years ago I had an HP hand held calculator that as big as my whole KX1 station. Ron AC7AC -----Original Message----- From: elecraft-bounces+rondec=[hidden email] [mailto:elecraft-bounces+rondec=[hidden email]] On Behalf Of Leigh L. Klotz, Jr. Sent: Sunday, March 26, 2006 12:04 AM To: Elecraft Discussion List Subject: [Elecraft] KXB3080 Done I finished my 80m board for the KX1 today. I did it over 3 or 4 days a bit at a time. The first signal I heard on 80m was noted KX1 owner Bill K6ACJ, but I don't think he was on his KX1. He signed before I had a chance to call him. WA7OSQ Art in Pasco, WA (about 630 miles) was my first QSO, on 3719 with my 400' low-loop, and Art gave me a 569 QSB to my ~1.5W out. The loop has a resonance around there, so it didn't really give the KXAT1 a workout at all, and the ATU reported L=C=0. On the 40m CW band though, all I get is SSB tonight, hi hi... All in all, I'm impressed that such a thing was possible and pleased I got it. Time will tell if I can use the 80m with portable antennas, but it certainly works with a big resonant one. A few minor observations on building and installing follow. 73, Leigh / WA5ZNU -------------------------------------------- - The 30m alignment seems pickier about hand coupling than on the KXB30 but maybe it's my imagination. I had to use a plastic tuning tool. When I used a metal one with electrical tape, the 30A peak was way off and 30B of course had no peak. Signals came way up when I touched the metal tool to the trimmers, a sign that I needed to use a plastic one. - On the LPF board, I found the text about running the green wire on "top" of the relay confusing. The pictures confirmed that "top" didn't mean the part of the relay with lettering, but instead one of the sides. - Consulting the online PDF manual with color photos helped a lot with this and other confusions I had. - I shortened KB3080 PCB wire B, and later wire F, but the others were OK in length. - I didn't trim the relay pins, because I missed the instructions, and the Elecraft manuals almost always warn you not to, but it soon became obvious it was required, and I saw the instructions then. - Somehow I wound up with too much insulation burned off the magnet wire on L2 where it needs to run past the ATU jack, and was afraid it would contact the vias on the LPF board, so I ran it around clear. This seems to be the most important one to get the insulation right on. I suspect the instructions are correct, though. - I missed the instructions to solder C1 on the component side of the LPF1 board and had to redo it. - My current drain was always about 41ma, a little above what the book said. I took the opportunity to look for any solder bridges or cold joints, and touched up a few. Now it's 44ma and 64ma. - The advice to test the LPF1 board positioning with the KXAT1 is good. I can see that installing the KXB3080 would be problematic if don't have the KXAT1 but plan to get one, as it's hard to get it positioned exactly right without testing, though I suppose you could re-install the LPF1 if you purchase a KXAT1 later. - If Elecraft ever fixes the KXB3080 board to have the correct labeling for + and -, please consider not just swapping the symbols but using P and N, to reduce confusion when reading future manuals. - My cut trace is not as pretty as the one in the manual; the model one looks like it was done with a laser cutter! _______________________________________________ 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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Thanks Ron...I had my suspicions about that trace.
The instructions are clear about the enamel lengths; it's just that one of them really matters if you get it too long; the others don't seem to (but I may be wrong). I think calling out that L2-1 insulation is important would do the trick. Another thing I noticed is that I used to get 3.5W out on 30m and 3W on 40 and 2.5 on 20 and now I get 2.5W out on 30 and 1.82W on the other bands, measured with the DL1. Either my LPF wasn't up to snuff in the past, or I have some other problem. Leigh/WA5ZNU > Thanks Leigh!! Your comments will result in some clarifications in future > editions of the manual. > > Confession time: That "cut trace" in the manual photo was done by editing > the photograph digitally. Mine looks like yours, I'll bet, because I did it > exactly like the manual says. It wasn't clear on the photo so it justified a > little digital "help" to make sure it showed up well. > > Your comments are all very helpful. I might be easier for builders to strip > lead L2-1 after the toroid is mounted on the LPF1 board, so it is easy to > see where to stop. I'm always dubious about calling for using soldering > irons close to relays though <G>. Still, we might change the procedure to > call for that. > > Congratulations on a successful build! I know that Wayne "sweated bullets" > making the extra inductors required for 80 meters fit in the space > available. It's clear from the success stories that he did a great job of > it! > > A four-band rig 80-20 meter CW rig with self-contained power, a superhet > receiver and variable crystal filter, wide range receive for listening to > everything from the "top end" of the standard broadcast band up through 20 > meters and most of he SWL frequencies in between, super stable digital > tuning, nice CW break in operation, the comfy little plug-in paddles and it > all fits in my jacket pocket! It was just a few years ago I had an HP hand > held calculator that as big as my whole KX1 station. > > Ron AC7AC > > > > -----Original Message----- > From: elecraft-bounces+rondec=[hidden email] > [mailto:elecraft-bounces+rondec=[hidden email]] On Behalf Of > Leigh L. Klotz, Jr. > Sent: Sunday, March 26, 2006 12:04 AM > To: Elecraft Discussion List > Subject: [Elecraft] KXB3080 Done > > > I finished my 80m board for the KX1 today. I did it over 3 or 4 days a > bit at a time. > > The first signal I heard on 80m was noted KX1 owner Bill K6ACJ, but I > don't think he was on his KX1. He signed before I had a chance to call him. > WA7OSQ Art in Pasco, WA (about 630 miles) was my first QSO, on 3719 with > my 400' low-loop, and Art gave me a 569 QSB to my ~1.5W out. The loop has a > resonance around there, so it didn't really give the > KXAT1 a workout at all, and the ATU reported L=C=0. > > On the 40m CW band though, all I get is SSB tonight, hi hi... > > All in all, I'm impressed that such a thing was possible and pleased I > got it. Time will tell if I can use the 80m with portable antennas, but > it certainly works with a big resonant one. > > A few minor observations on building and installing follow. > 73, > Leigh / WA5ZNU > -------------------------------------------- > - The 30m alignment seems pickier about hand coupling than on the KXB30 > but maybe it's my imagination. I had to use a plastic tuning tool. > When I used a metal one with electrical tape, the 30A peak was way off > and 30B of course had no peak. Signals came way up when I touched the > metal tool to the trimmers, a sign that I needed to use a plastic one. > > - On the LPF board, I found the text about running the green wire on > "top" of the relay confusing. The pictures confirmed that "top" didn't > mean the part of the relay with lettering, but instead one of the sides. > > - Consulting the online PDF manual with color photos helped a lot with > this and other confusions I had. > > - I shortened KB3080 PCB wire B, and later wire F, but the others were > OK in length. > > - I didn't trim the relay pins, because I missed the instructions, and > the Elecraft manuals almost always warn you not to, but it soon became > obvious it was required, and I saw the instructions then. > > - Somehow I wound up with too much insulation burned off the magnet wire > on L2 where it needs to run past the ATU jack, and was afraid it would > contact the vias on the LPF board, so I ran it around clear. This seems > to be the most important one to get the insulation right on. I suspect > the instructions are correct, though. > > - I missed the instructions to solder C1 on the component side of the > LPF1 board and had to redo it. > > - My current drain was always about 41ma, a little above what the book > said. I took the opportunity to look for any solder bridges or cold > joints, and touched up a few. > Now it's 44ma and 64ma. > > - The advice to test the LPF1 board positioning with the KXAT1 is good. > I can see that installing the KXB3080 would be problematic if don't have > the KXAT1 but plan to get one, as it's hard to get it positioned exactly > right without testing, though I suppose you could re-install the LPF1 if > you purchase a KXAT1 later. > > - If Elecraft ever fixes the KXB3080 board to have the correct labeling > for + and -, please consider not just swapping the symbols but using P > and N, to reduce confusion when reading future manuals. > > - My cut trace is not as pretty as the one in the manual; the model one > looks like it was done with a laser cutter! > > _______________________________________________ > 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 > _______________________________________________ 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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