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Status of the K2 world

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Tim Logan

Status of the K2 world

Hello -
I've been away from radio for about 3 years. Am thinking of building
another K2, but am wondering if the K2 will be discontinued due to the
popularity of the K3. Can someone tell me if the K2 users, support, and
production are all still going strong? Are attempts still being made to
improve K2 if, or when the opportunity arises?
Thanks for your input.

73,
Tim NZ7C
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Stephen W. Kercel

Re: Status of the K2 world

Tim and Group:

As a very happy K2 user, I can say that I'd never part with mine.

73,

Steve
AA4AK

Tim wrote:

> Hello -
> I've been away from radio for about 3 years. Am thinking of building
> another K2, but am wondering if the K2 will be discontinued due to the
> popularity of the K3. Can someone tell me if the K2 users, support, and
> production are all still going strong? Are attempts still being made to
> improve K2 if, or when the opportunity arises?
> Thanks for your input.
>
> 73,
> Tim NZ7C
> ______________________________________________________________
> Elecraft mailing list
> Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft
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> Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html
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>

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Peter Wollan-2

Re: Status of the K2 world

In reply to this post by Tim Logan

K2 users, support, and production are still going strong. But -- a
few months ago (I don't remember when), Wayne or Eric (I don't
remember which) described the K2 as "a mature product". This means, I
think, that they would revise it if somebody found a problem
justifying a revision, but they don't expect that to happen, and they
aren't thinking of any other modules to introduce.

I think that's reasonable. The K2 is wonderful, but not perfect, and
some features aren't as elegant as they could be. I'd like to see a
new Elecraft product that aims to replace the K2 as the best QRP field
radio, but I think doing it better would require a new design,
probably based on digital technology like the K3.

Considering how busy they are with the K3 etc, a new design won't
happen soon, so I think it's safe to build another K2 now. They
aren't selling at the rate they did before the K3, but they're still
selling.

Peter W0LLN

On Sat, Jul 31, 2010 at 12:40 PM, Tim <[hidden email]> wrote:

Don Wilhelm-4

Re: Status of the K2 world

In reply to this post by Tim Logan

Tim,

I believe the K2 will be fully supported for some long time to come. It
is a mature product, and that means no new development work is likely.
I have heard nothing about any plans to discontinue any of the Elecraft
kits. I don't know how many are selling currently, but the serial
numbers I am aware of are nearing 7000.

73,
Don W3FPR

Tim wrote:

Kevin Cozens-2

Re: Status of the K2 world

In reply to this post by Tim Logan

Tim wrote:
> I've been away from radio for about 3 years. Am thinking of building
> another K2, but am wondering if the K2 will be discontinued due to the
> popularity of the K3.

As long as the K2 continues to sell, and the parts for it are available,
Elecraft won't have any reason to discontinue it (unless they create
something like a K2 Mark II to replace it).

I haven't priced the K2 and K3 recently but based on the last time I
checked it out, a K2 with 100 watt output is about half the price of what
it would cost (about $4000) to get a K3 with the features I would want. If
I wanted all the K3 options the price goes up even more. I'm not active
enough, or have enough disposable cash, to justify spending that kind of
money on a K3 so I'm perfectly happy to keep my K2.
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WD6DBM

Re: Status of the K2 World

In reply to this post by Tim Logan

My watching of serial numbers indicates very roughly 100 each of K1s and K2s are being sold per year, and roughly 1000 K3s.

There are still many fans of the HW-8, and the K2 is 100 times better (while the same size--coincidence?) I've seen unbuilt HW-8s go for $1000 on Ebay. I'll bet the K2 is around for a very, very long time. It is unbeatable as a portable rig imho and a blast to build.

You can have mine when you pry my cold, rosin-stained, Kool-Aid splashed hands from it!

73

Eric WD6DBM

K3, K2, K1, KX1...and just about everything else

Sent from my iPhone
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Doug Person

Re: Status of the K2 world

In reply to this post by Kevin Cozens-2

I'm on my third K2. On the previous two I felt I had drifted away
from radio and I sold them to reinvest the money into other things. On
my third, last year, I realized that if I do radio at all the only ones
to use were the K3 and the K2. I'll let everything else radio related
go, but these two are just keepers. Right now the K2 is sitting in the
living room connected to a Buddipole on the deck. Running 15 watts on 20.

To me, the K2 will be both historic and a classic. 20 years from now,
people will be looking back at the end of the last century at the K2
about the same way many of us who are older and licensed in the early
60's look upon the Drake TR-4c. I can't think of any transceiver that
was more popular or more desired by my ham radio peers than the TR-4c.
I can only hope that it is still in production. Or possibly and
hopefully moved on to the K2-A or K2-B. The concept of the radio is
unmatched anywhere else - a tiny, lightweight radio with performance
comparable to vastly more expensive products - and you build it yourself
from a kit. How cool is that?

Doug KØDXV

On 8/1/2010 9:53 AM, Kevin Cozens wrote:

> Tim wrote:
>> I've been away from radio for about 3 years. Am thinking of building
>> another K2, but am wondering if the K2 will be discontinued due to the
>> popularity of the K3.
> As long as the K2 continues to sell, and the parts for it are available,
> Elecraft won't have any reason to discontinue it (unless they create
> something like a K2 Mark II to replace it).
>
> I haven't priced the K2 and K3 recently but based on the last time I
> checked it out, a K2 with 100 watt output is about half the price of what
> it would cost (about $4000) to get a K3 with the features I would want. If
> I wanted all the K3 options the price goes up even more. I'm not active
> enough, or have enough disposable cash, to justify spending that kind of
> money on a K3 so I'm perfectly happy to keep my K2.
> ______________________________________________________________
> 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
>