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New K1 Kit

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Dan Baker

New K1 Kit

With the K1 talk I would like to propose, a thousand of us give a 50%
deposit on a new run. I’m not asking for a redesign, just one with updated
parts so they can resume manufacturing. I don’t see a need for the KX1, we
have a KX2.
A K1 would provide us with a through hole kit. I would not have to invest
the time or expense in building a K2. I could leave it stashed in my
pickup. It’s a fun little radio.

73, Dan KM6CQ
--
Sent from my iPhone X
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Randall Wood

Re: New K1 Kit

That would be so great! I’m in! Only 998 to go.

Randy KE8JWB

> On Jun 6, 2019, at 1:28 PM, Dan Baker <[hidden email]> wrote:
>
> With the K1 talk I would like to propose, a thousand of us give a 50%
> deposit on a new run. I’m not asking for a redesign, just one with updated
> parts so they can resume manufacturing. I don’t see a need for the KX1, we
> have a KX2.
> A K1 would provide us with a through hole kit. I would not have to invest
> the time or expense in building a K2. I could leave it stashed in my
> pickup. It’s a fun little radio.
>
> 73, Dan KM6CQ
> --
> Sent from my iPhone X
> ______________________________________________________________
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Lynn W. Taylor, WB6UUT-3

Re: New K1 Kit

In reply to this post by Dan Baker

Maybe it's just me, but seems the issue is the end of through-hole
components?

In other words, it might be possible to revive the K1, but it'd be all
surface mount.

73 -- Lynn

On 6/6/2019 10:28 AM, Dan Baker wrote:
> A K1 would provide us with a through hole kit.
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rich hurd WC3T

Re: New K1 Kit

In reply to this post by Dan Baker

I thought the retirement of the K1 was due to parts being rendered as
unobtanium, which would more or less demand a redesign; would it not?

On Thu, Jun 6, 2019 at 1:28 PM Dan Baker <[hidden email]> wrote:

> With the K1 talk I would like to propose, a thousand of us give a 50%
> deposit on a new run. I’m not asking for a redesign, just one with updated
> parts so they can resume manufacturing. I don’t see a need for the KX1, we
> have a KX2.
> A K1 would provide us with a through hole kit. I would not have to invest
> the time or expense in building a K2. I could leave it stashed in my
> pickup. It’s a fun little radio.
>
> 73, Dan KM6CQ
> --
> Sent from my iPhone X
> ______________________________________________________________
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--
72,
Rich Hurd / WC3T / DMR: 3142737
Northampton County RACES, EPA-ARRL Public Information Officer for Scouting
Latitude: 40.761621 Longitude: -75.288988 (40°45.68' N 75°17.33' W) Grid:
*FN20is*
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James Doty

Re: New K1 Kit

In reply to this post by Lynn W. Taylor, WB6UUT-3

SMD soldering is actually pretty easy. It does take a good quality
soldering station to do it though.

Yes, I need magnification when soldering surface mount components. :)

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wayne burdick

Re: New K1 Kit

Administrator

In reply to this post by rich hurd WC3T

Correct on both counts.

Trust me, as the designer of both the K1 and KX1 I have a soft spot for them and would love to bring them back. But several of the critical parts became impossible to source, and a substantial redesign would be required to work around them.

The good news: the KX2 is soooo much more radio, in a smaller package. We had to go through the K1 and KX1 to get to the KX2, and we're not looking back :)

73,
Wayne
N6KR

> On Jun 6, 2019, at 10:49 AM, rich hurd WC3T <[hidden email]> wrote:
>
> I thought the retirement of the K1 was due to parts being rendered as
> unobtanium, which would more or less demand a redesign; would it not?
>
> On Thu, Jun 6, 2019 at 1:28 PM Dan Baker <[hidden email]> wrote:
>
>> With the K1 talk I would like to propose, a thousand of us give a 50%
>> deposit on a new run. I’m not asking for a redesign, just one with updated
>> parts so they can resume manufacturing. I don’t see a need for the KX1, we
>> have a KX2.
>> A K1 would provide us with a through hole kit. I would not have to invest
>> the time or expense in building a K2. I could leave it stashed in my
>> pickup. It’s a fun little radio.
>>
>> 73, Dan KM6CQ
>> --
>> Sent from my iPhone X
>> ______________________________________________________________
>> Elecraft mailing list
>> Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft
>> Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm
>> Post: mailto:[hidden email]
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>> 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]
>
>
>
> --
> 72,
> Rich Hurd / WC3T / DMR: 3142737
> Northampton County RACES, EPA-ARRL Public Information Officer for Scouting
> Latitude: 40.761621 Longitude: -75.288988 (40°45.68' N 75°17.33' W) Grid:
> *FN20is*
> ______________________________________________________________
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k6dgw

Re: New K1 Kit

In reply to this post by James Doty

Not for me! The soldering station is a WMD in my hands at this age.

73,
Fred ["Skip"] K6DGW
Sparks NV DM09dn
Washoe County

On 6/6/2019 10:50 AM, James Doty wrote:
> SMD soldering is actually pretty easy.

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AD1AD

Re: New K1 Kit

In reply to this post by James Doty

I agree. SMD soldering is actually much faster than through holes because
you don't have to trim leads. It is just a matter of getting used to small
parts. Magnifying glasses will definitely be necessary for most of us.
Reviving K1 with SMD parts will make a very trail-friendly radio.

On Thu, Jun 6, 2019 at 1:53 PM James Doty <[hidden email]> wrote:

> SMD soldering is actually pretty easy. It does take a good quality
> soldering station to do it though.
>
> Yes, I need magnification when soldering surface mount components. :)
>
> ______________________________________________________________
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wayne burdick

Re: New K1 Kit

Administrator

In reply to this post by James Doty

I miss the good ol' days, e.g. high school, when my quick 'n' dirty transceiver projects were built by twisting component leads together. No PCB, no chassis, nothing but raw parts. Hook up a 9 V battery and a shamelessly untuned wire antenna. Work DX. Repeat.

Wayne
N6KR

> On Jun 6, 2019, at 10:50 AM, James Doty <[hidden email]> wrote:
>
> SMD soldering is actually pretty easy. It does take a good quality
> soldering station to do it though.
>
> Yes, I need magnification when soldering surface mount components. :)
>
> ______________________________________________________________
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EricJ

Re: New K1 Kit

In reply to this post by James Doty

Yes, pretty easy, but not true that it takes any special or expensive
soldering station to do quality SMD work.

In the winter months I do a lot of SMD work. I don't have a quality
soldering station at all. I use solder paste from a small syringe, cheap
tweezers, a $2 coffee cup warmer (WalMart), a small $25 heat gun used by
scrapbook crafters (Michael's), and a regular desk magnifier lamp. For a
few parts, I use tweezers and my regular Hakko soldering iron with a
pencil point. Here's a video of the technique I've been using for nearly
10 years of the 62 years I've been a ham.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F0OKuxPiGKs

If the link doesn't appear, google SMT Soldering Movie on youtube.

A K1-level SMD kit would be no problem for anyone capable of attacking a
thru-hole K1 or K2, but Wayne clearly addressed that possibility, and
rightly so. The K1 may be dead, but not soon forgotten.

Eric KE6US

K1 s/n 1976

K2 s/n 567

On 6/6/2019 10:50 AM, James Doty wrote:

rich hurd WC3T

Re: New K1 Kit

In reply to this post by wayne burdick

Dead bug construction ROCKS.

On Thu, Jun 6, 2019 at 2:02 PM Wayne Burdick <[hidden email]> wrote:

> I miss the good ol' days, e.g. high school, when my quick 'n' dirty
> transceiver projects were built by twisting component leads together. No
> PCB, no chassis, nothing but raw parts. Hook up a 9 V battery and a
> shamelessly untuned wire antenna. Work DX. Repeat.
>
> Wayne
> N6KR
>
>
> > On Jun 6, 2019, at 10:50 AM, James Doty <[hidden email]> wrote:
> >
> > SMD soldering is actually pretty easy. It does take a good quality
> > soldering station to do it though.
> >
> > Yes, I need magnification when soldering surface mount components. :)
> >
> > ______________________________________________________________
> > 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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Gwen Patton

Re: New K1 Kit

I have a decent soldering station, but for SMD beyond a few parts I don't
use a soldering iron. I use an i-Extruder pencil (a stepper-motor powered
syringe dispenser) to apply dots of solder paste to the pads, then tweezers
to pick-and-place the components. If it's a small area, I use my hot air
station to melt the paste and solder the parts. If it's a larger board, I
use a microcontroller-driven heating plate called a ReflowR to precisely
ramp up the heat, melt the paste, and cool it off so as to cause the least
thermal shock to the board or the components.

I'm not nearly as good at the latter as I am with simple thru-hole
components, or a few larger SMD components. 0603 and above, I do by hand if
there's just a few. Most people suggest a "tack one end then get the other"
approach, and while it works, I don't find it as efficient as I'd like. So
I use the same i-Extruder to apply dots of Amtech "tacky flux". I place the
components on the pads, held down by the tacky flux, then tack-solder one
end, then the other. If it needs it, I go back and flow enough solder to
make a good fillet, but frequently the tack makes a decent fillet with that
good flux. That's how I built a Zachtek WSPR beacon a few weeks back. It
had four low-pass filter stages, each with several surface mount
components. It was few enough that I didn't think it warranted the reflow
plate, though I did use the hot air pencil to clean up the fillets I did
with my soldering iron. Came out looking really good, and working well.

73,
Gwen, NG3P

On Thu, Jun 6, 2019 at 2:33 PM rich hurd WC3T <[hidden email]> wrote:

> Dead bug construction ROCKS.
>
> On Thu, Jun 6, 2019 at 2:02 PM Wayne Burdick <[hidden email]> wrote:
>
> > I miss the good ol' days, e.g. high school, when my quick 'n' dirty
> > transceiver projects were built by twisting component leads together. No
> > PCB, no chassis, nothing but raw parts. Hook up a 9 V battery and a
> > shamelessly untuned wire antenna. Work DX. Repeat.
> >
> > Wayne
> > N6KR
> >
> >
> > > On Jun 6, 2019, at 10:50 AM, James Doty <[hidden email]> wrote:
> > >
> > > SMD soldering is actually pretty easy. It does take a good quality
> > > soldering station to do it though.
> > >
> > > Yes, I need magnification when soldering surface mount components. :)
> > >
> > > ______________________________________________________________
> > > 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
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> > Post: mailto:[hidden email]
> >
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> > Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html
> > Message delivered to [hidden email]
> >
>
>
> --
> 72,
> Rich Hurd / WC3T / DMR: 3142737
> Northampton County RACES, EPA-ARRL Public Information Officer for Scouting
> Latitude: 40.761621 Longitude: -75.288988 (40°45.68' N 75°17.33' W) Grid:
> *FN20is*
> ______________________________________________________________
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--

-+-+-+-+-
Jenny Everywhere's Infinite: Quark Time
http://quarktime.net
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Grant Youngman-2

Re: New K1 Kit

There probably aren’t more than a handful of folks who could actually build an SMD kit of any size without having to send it back to Elecraft to be built or to fix the mess.

Grant NQ5T
K3 #2091 KX3 #8342

> On Jun 6, 2019, at 3:13 PM, Gwen Patton <[hidden email]> wrote:
>
> I have a decent soldering station, but for SMD beyond a few parts I don't
> use a soldering iron. I use an i-Extruder pencil (a stepper-motor powered
> syringe dispenser) to apply dots of solder paste to the pads, then tweezers
> to pick-and-place the components. If it's a small area, I use my hot air
> station to melt the paste and solder the parts. If it's a larger board, I
> use a microcontroller-driven heating plate called a ReflowR to precisely
> ramp up the heat, melt the paste, and cool it off so as to cause the least
> thermal shock to the board or the components.
>

Paul Maciel-2

Re: New K1 Kit

Hi Grant,

There certainly were a lot more than a handful that build the NorCal
2030 that had a surface parts count close if not more that the K1.

With the right tools building surface mount can be easier than thu hole.

---Paul AK1P

On 6/6/2019 3:18 PM, Grant Youngman wrote:

> There probably aren’t more than a handful of folks who could actually build an SMD kit of any size without having to send it back to Elecraft to be built or to fix the mess.
>
> Grant NQ5T
> K3 #2091 KX3 #8342
>
>> On Jun 6, 2019, at 3:13 PM, Gwen Patton <[hidden email]> wrote:
>>
>> I have a decent soldering station, but for SMD beyond a few parts I don't
>> use a soldering iron. I use an i-Extruder pencil (a stepper-motor powered
>> syringe dispenser) to apply dots of solder paste to the pads, then tweezers
>> to pick-and-place the components. If it's a small area, I use my hot air
>> station to melt the paste and solder the parts. If it's a larger board, I
>> use a microcontroller-driven heating plate called a ReflowR to precisely
>> ramp up the heat, melt the paste, and cool it off so as to cause the least
>> thermal shock to the board or the components.
>>
> ______________________________________________________________
> Elecraft mailing list
> Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft
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>
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> Message delivered to [hidden email]

---
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Grant Youngman-2

Re: New K1 Kit

That’s the key, of course. Most don’t have the right tools ... regardless, I think it would be a losing proposition since it would require basically re-engineering the radio ..

Grant NQ5T

Sent from my iPhone

>
> With the right tools building surface mount can be easier than thu hole.
>
> ---Paul AK1P
>
>> On 6/6/2019 3:18 PM, Grant Youngman wrote:
>> There probably aren’t more than a handful of folks who could actually build an SMD kit of any size without having to send it back to Elecraft to be built or to fix the mess.
>>
>> Grant NQ5T
>> K3 #2091 KX3 #8342
>>
>>> On Jun 6, 2019, at 3:13 PM, Gwen Patton <[hidden email]> wrote:
>>>
>>> I have a decent soldering station, but for SMD beyond a few parts I don't
>>> use a soldering iron. I use an i-Extruder pencil (a stepper-motor powered
>>> syringe dispenser) to apply dots of solder paste to the pads, then tweezers
>>> to pick-and-place the components. If it's a small area, I use my hot air
>>> station to melt the paste and solder the parts. If it's a larger board, I
>>> use a microcontroller-driven heating plate called a ReflowR to precisely
>>> ramp up the heat, melt the paste, and cool it off so as to cause the least
>>> thermal shock to the board or the components.
>>>
>> ______________________________________________________________
>> Elecraft mailing list
>> Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft
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>>
>> 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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Alexey Kats

Re: New K1 Kit

So true...

Eyesight and finger dexterity are the right tools as well. And, as it
was so astutely stated - not everyone has the right tools. Let me add
one thing - not everyone has the right tools in their peak condition.

I used to dismiss this argument myself. Now I am ashamed that I did.

(My apologies, the first time I sent it out I forgot to add the
mail-list address.)

On Thu, Jun 6, 2019 at 12:58 PM demindor <[hidden email]> wrote:

>
> So true...
>
> Eyesight and finger dexterity are the right tools as well. And, as it
> was so astutely stated - not everyone has the right tools. Let me add
> one thing - not everyone has the right tools in their peak condition.
>
> I used to dismiss this argument myself. Now I am ashamed that I did.
>
>
>
> On Thu, Jun 6, 2019 at 12:43 PM Grant Youngman <[hidden email]> wrote:
> >
> > That’s the key, of course. Most don’t have the right tools ... regardless, I think it would be a losing proposition since it would require basically re-engineering the radio ..
> >
> > Grant NQ5T
> >
> > Sent from my iPhone
> >
> > >
> > > With the right tools building surface mount can be easier than thu hole.
> > >
> > > ---Paul AK1P
> > >
> > >> On 6/6/2019 3:18 PM, Grant Youngman wrote:
> > >> There probably aren’t more than a handful of folks who could actually build an SMD kit of any size without having to send it back to Elecraft to be built or to fix the mess.
> > >>
> > >> Grant NQ5T
> > >> K3 #2091 KX3 #8342
> > >>
> > >>> On Jun 6, 2019, at 3:13 PM, Gwen Patton <[hidden email]> wrote:
> > >>>
> > >>> I have a decent soldering station, but for SMD beyond a few parts I don't
> > >>> use a soldering iron. I use an i-Extruder pencil (a stepper-motor powered
> > >>> syringe dispenser) to apply dots of solder paste to the pads, then tweezers
> > >>> to pick-and-place the components. If it's a small area, I use my hot air
> > >>> station to melt the paste and solder the parts. If it's a larger board, I
> > >>> use a microcontroller-driven heating plate called a ReflowR to precisely
> > >>> ramp up the heat, melt the paste, and cool it off so as to cause the least
> > >>> thermal shock to the board or the components.
> > >>>
> > >> ______________________________________________________________
> > >> 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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> > ______________________________________________________________
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>
>
>
> --
> Alexey Kats (neko)

--
Alexey Kats (neko)
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alorona

Re: New K1 Kit

In reply to this post by EricJ

1/ It always seemed to me that this method heats up the components much more than using a simple soldering iron, where you can pause between soldering each pad to allow heat to dissipate.

2/ Is that a capacitor standing up at about the 1:12 mark? Not good.

Al W6LX

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Gwen Patton

Re: New K1 Kit

In reply to this post by Alexey Kats

I have serious issues with dexterity as a complication from a broken neck
in 2006. I've used sport lock picking as a form of occupational therapy. It
has really helped me keep and improve my hand and finger coordination. That
translates well to soldering capability. It's not perfect, but it's better
than it would be otherwise.

73,
Gwen, NG3P

On Thu, Jun 6, 2019, 4:07 PM demindor <[hidden email]> wrote:

> So true...
>
> Eyesight and finger dexterity are the right tools as well. And, as it
> was so astutely stated - not everyone has the right tools. Let me add
> one thing - not everyone has the right tools in their peak condition.
>
> I used to dismiss this argument myself. Now I am ashamed that I did.
>
> (My apologies, the first time I sent it out I forgot to add the
> mail-list address.)
>
>
> On Thu, Jun 6, 2019 at 12:58 PM demindor <[hidden email]> wrote:
> >
> > So true...
> >
> > Eyesight and finger dexterity are the right tools as well. And, as it
> > was so astutely stated - not everyone has the right tools. Let me add
> > one thing - not everyone has the right tools in their peak condition.
> >
> > I used to dismiss this argument myself. Now I am ashamed that I did.
> >
> >
> >
> > On Thu, Jun 6, 2019 at 12:43 PM Grant Youngman <[hidden email]>
> wrote:
> > >
> > > That’s the key, of course. Most don’t have the right tools ...
> regardless, I think it would be a losing proposition since it would require
> basically re-engineering the radio ..
> > >
> > > Grant NQ5T
> > >
> > > Sent from my iPhone
> > >
> > > >
> > > > With the right tools building surface mount can be easier than thu
> hole.
> > > >
> > > > ---Paul AK1P
> > > >
> > > >> On 6/6/2019 3:18 PM, Grant Youngman wrote:
> > > >> There probably aren’t more than a handful of folks who could
> actually build an SMD kit of any size without having to send it back to
> Elecraft to be built or to fix the mess.
> > > >>
> > > >> Grant NQ5T
> > > >> K3 #2091 KX3 #8342
> > > >>
> > > >>> On Jun 6, 2019, at 3:13 PM, Gwen Patton <[hidden email]> wrote:
> > > >>>
> > > >>> I have a decent soldering station, but for SMD beyond a few parts
> I don't
> > > >>> use a soldering iron. I use an i-Extruder pencil (a stepper-motor
> powered
> > > >>> syringe dispenser) to apply dots of solder paste to the pads, then
> tweezers
> > > >>> to pick-and-place the components. If it's a small area, I use my
> hot air
> > > >>> station to melt the paste and solder the parts. If it's a larger
> board, I
> > > >>> use a microcontroller-driven heating plate called a ReflowR to
> precisely
> > > >>> ramp up the heat, melt the paste, and cool it off so as to cause
> the least
> > > >>> thermal shock to the board or the components.
> > > >>>
> > > >> ______________________________________________________________
> > > >> 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
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> > > >> Message delivered to [hidden email]
> > > >
> > > >
> > > > ---
> > > > This email has been checked for viruses by AVG.
> > > > https://www.avg.com
> > > >
> > > ______________________________________________________________
> > > Elecraft mailing list
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> >
> >
> >
> > --
> > Alexey Kats (neko)
>
>
>
> --
> Alexey Kats (neko)
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EricJ

Re: New K1 Kit

In reply to this post by alorona

#1 would be true for thru-hole components. SMD components on a board in,
say, a K3 were ramped up to about 225 deg C (435 deg F) over SEVERAL
minutes. They're designed to withstand those temps. I don't know what
the little heat gun I use puts out, but it doesn't burn paper which
famously burns at Fahrenheit 451.

#2 It happens. When the solder goes molten, the surface tension moves
parts around a little. Usually, it tends to position the part on the
pads better than you can with tweezers on clean pads. Sometimes parts
stand on end. Not a problem reheat it and push it down. Things don't
always go perfectly on thru-hole either. Don Wilhelm helps people nearly
every day with problems that turn out to be soldering related on K2's.
They happen to everyone. Not a big problem.

BTW, notice that the solder paste on the IC is not carefully applied to
each pad. Instead, the solder is applied ACROSS the pins in two lines.
When it goes molten, the surface tension positions the parts and draws
up any solder bridges onto the pads. Doesn't always work, but I've done
some large ICs that way without solder bridges. When it happens, dab the
connection with an iron and the bridge disappears. Safe and easy.

I understand not everyone has the eyesight or dexterity for it, and not
for all sizes of SMDs. I avoid the very small stuff as do most hams who
use SMD. Amateur radio is about new technical challenges whether
building or operating. This is a very accessible and useful skill that
can be acquired with inexpensive tools and a little practice.

Eric KE6US

On 6/6/2019 1:31 PM, Al Lorona wrote:

> 1/ It always seemed to me that this method heats up the components much more than using a simple soldering iron, where you can pause between soldering each pad to allow heat to dissipate.
>
> 2/ Is that a capacitor standing up at about the 1:12 mark? Not good.
>
> Al W6LX
>
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Edward R Cole

Re: New K1 Kit

In reply to this post by Dan Baker

Its a skill that one needs time and practise to master. I used to
run a home business building smd kits for others after a career as a
component level technician where I did smd repairs. But the last
generation of MOT intrinsically safe radios required a $10,000 school
and a dedicated repair station to be qualified by MOT to do repair
work. MOT instituted a flat-rate repair service for about $150 per
radio which turned me into a troubleshooter and shipping dept. I
retired a few years after that.

I bought a Haako FX-951 repair station for that business and used a
lighted magnifier.

SMD assembly is much faster/cheaper and can be automated on a
production line with better reliability than human-built. That's why
todays tech does system troubleshooting to the board level and then
board replacement. New boards are cheaper than paying the tech to
repair them. Most commercial radio shops charge $100-$125/hour for
servicing. Another ten years and there will no longer be component
level techs.

Very hard for a small business to compete using a human production
line of solderers. Probably only find a small line to build
pre-production units for testing/re-engineering.
---------------------------------

There probably aren?t more than a handful of folks who could
actually build an SMD kit of any size without having to send it back
to Elecraft to be built or to fix the mess.

Grant NQ5T
K3 #2091 KX3 #8342

73, Ed - KL7UW
http://www.kl7uw.com
Dubus-NA Business mail:
[hidden email]

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