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Soon there will be a new KX3 coming to town…
3 August 2012 | by  |
| Elecraft KX3 |
To help raise the funds for the new Elecraft KX3 some items here at the shack have to go up for sale....including my beloved KX1!! I have a new page with all the "for sale" items on it have a look and see if anything there can find a home in your shack. Yes Yes there was a post on my blog regarding my Elecraft K2 and how it was just fine (and it still is) and I did not need a KX3........BUT the bug has bitten.........and it has gone from a need to a want!!!
Other goings on at VE3WDM
When I ordered my Elecraft K3 some years ago I had it outfitted with the 100 watt module....as most you know I am not a QRO op....not that there is any at all wrong with QRO but for me QRP and QRPp is the best option considering my stealth operation. So the 100 watt module (KPA3) was put up for sale and sold in 1 day to help fund my KX3. Now my Elecraft radio is what is called a K3/10 (10 for 10 watts max output). Removing the KPA3 meant taking out my Sub receiver from the rig, the NB board along with some jumper cables. When events like this come I just hate opening up a 5K rig and playing around with the "stuff" inside. All went well and it's back together and working just fine.
I tried and I tried and tried to contact CY9M but it just did not work out that DXpedition is not shut down and it just was not meant to be. This weekend is the NAQP CW contest it starts at 2pm local time and runs til late evening. I am going to give this popular contest a go considering the not so good propagation lately this local contest will be fun even with max 5 watts.
I have an Elecraft K2 with the internal battery pack and up to this point I really have not been charging the internal battery to optimize its life. Some time ago I came across A&A Engineering They offer a great charger for the Elecraft K2 internal battery. I ordered it and it arrived in no time it's waiting to be assembled because....surprise surprise.... I ordered the kit!!
As for my kit from DIY electronic kits the USB 0-500mhz USB power meter kit has been soldered and is all together BUT is seems it has to be calibrated as the output of the rig is not even close to the readings I am getting with the kit. I have emailed the DIY electronics company over and over again but nothing.......seems that was 90.00 down the drain. I am going to keep it up and if I can I want to find a phone number I will then call them and demanding a refund!!! On an up beat note I posted a short time ago about a kit that I ordered and put together call the QRPometer. This kit is a great QRP watt meter and SWR meter but it only goes done to 500mW's..........now for most of you that is just fine but not here at VE3WDM!!! I like to operate now and then at QRPp levels. This means I need a meter that will give me good and reliable wattage readings from about 10mWs up to 100mWs. This was the reason for me ordering the USB 0-500mhz USB power meter it brags of getting down to the low mW levels..........IF YOU CAN GET IT TO WORK AND GET THE DAM TECH SUPPORT TO EMAIL YOU.........take a deep breath......ahhhmmmm.........ok Im back. Talking with the 4 state qrp group (those who produce the QRPometer) I am told the meter can have it's decimal place changed!!! This would give me the QRPp readings I need. This is a project that is now in the works and I will keep the blog readers posted as to it's progress.
As for my kit from DIY electronic kits the USB 0-500mhz USB power meter kit has been soldered and is all together BUT is seems it has to be calibrated as the output of the rig is not even close to the readings I am getting with the kit. I have emailed the DIY electronics company over and over again but nothing.......seems that was 90.00 down the drain. I am going to keep it up and if I can I want to find a phone number I will then call them and demanding a refund!!! On an up beat note I posted a short time ago about a kit that I ordered and put together call the QRPometer. This kit is a great QRP watt meter and SWR meter but it only goes done to 500mW's..........now for most of you that is just fine but not here at VE3WDM!!! I like to operate now and then at QRPp levels. This means I need a meter that will give me good and reliable wattage readings from about 10mWs up to 100mWs. This was the reason for me ordering the USB 0-500mhz USB power meter it brags of getting down to the low mW levels..........IF YOU CAN GET IT TO WORK AND GET THE DAM TECH SUPPORT TO EMAIL YOU.........take a deep breath......ahhhmmmm.........ok Im back. Talking with the 4 state qrp group (those who produce the QRPometer) I am told the meter can have it's decimal place changed!!! This would give me the QRPp readings I need. This is a project that is now in the works and I will keep the blog readers posted as to it's progress.
In conclusion I always like to preview my blog post before it has goes "live" and for some reason the post is DOUBLED SPACED I have looked into this but am unable to find the answer..........keep you all posted on this one!!
4 Responses to “Soon there will be a new KX3 coming to town…”
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Take a look at this Mike,
https://picasaweb.google.com/ernestaa1ik/Kx3CarryingCase
I just got mine a few days ago. I couldn’t help playing with it before I packed it in its own case for going portable.
72
De AA1IK
Ernest Gregoire
Good afternoon Ernest, thanks for stopping by and taking time to comment. I am very much looking forward to the KX3. I talked to Madelyn at Elecraft the other week and she said it is about a 3 month wait!!! Most if not all my items have sold that I put up and the funds are almost there!!
Three months is a short time Mike, I waited from Feb 16 to Aug 2, 5 1/2 months.
It will be worth the wait, I must say. Playing with the CW functions only, I am overwhelmed by how well this rig is thought out and how well it works. I’m not done getting used to it either. The filters and NR and Notch functions need certain band conditions to really show off how great they work. What I tried exceeded my expectations.
72
At this point I am still having lot of fun with my K3 and I am told the KX3 has a similar setup. right now I am giving the NAQP CW contest a go.