[Elecraft] K1 Question

Tony K2MO asked: I noticed that the VFO on my 4-band K1 doesn't tune above 14062 and 21061.0 yet it tunes to 7068.6 on 40 meters. The tuning range on 30 meters is 85 kHz (10077 to 10162) so I'm assuming the rig had the smaller tuning range crystal installed. Tuning range on 40 meters is:

[Elecraft] K1 Question

All: I noticed that the VFO on my 4-band K1 doesn't tune above 14062 and 21061.0 yet it tunes to 7068.6 on 40 meters. The tuning range on 30 meters is 85 kHz (10077 to 10162) so I'm assuming the rig had the smaller tuning range crystal installed. Tuning range on 40 meters is: 6986 to 7068.6.

Re: [Elecraft] K1 Question

Thom, The 80 kHz or 150 kHz is the range for all bands. For most bands, the active CW portion is within the first 80 kHz of the lower band edge, so there is no need to be concerned about which crystal will be used. However, on 30 meters, if you choose to use the 18.000 MHz crystal so you

[Elecraft] K1 Question

Howdy All, Started building my Elecraft K1 this evening. All is going well, so far, with the KFL1-2 board. Just finished installing all components up to the toroids on the 40 meter band. I am confused about the 80 Khz or 150 Khz tuning range setting. Is this for 30 meters only or for

Re: [Elecraft] [K1] Question about antenna tuners that I should not have to ask but do.

Looking at the KAT-1 manual, it appears that NT 2 has the capacitor on the antenna side of the tuner. I'm guessing that X10 means just that; whatever value displayed x10. If you can do the parallel/series math to derived the Z looking back into the tuner then go here:

[Elecraft] [K1] Question about antenna tuners that I should not have to ask but do.

Does anybody have a “worked example” of how to use the L and C values reported by the K1 internal antenna tuner to analyze an antenna? I feel pretty guilty asking this, because it’s sort of a “please help me do my homework” question. And I am supposed to know how to do this homework. :-) I

Re: [Elecraft] [K1] Question about antenna tuners that I should not have to ask but do.

​Doug, You might consider using a remote antenna tuner, like the SGC-230. I 've used them for several all band antenna's, horizontal and vertical, and they have worked quite well for me. Here is a link to some interesting and thorough explanations and suggestions from SGC about various types

Re: [Elecraft] [K1] Question about antenna tuners that I should not have to ask but do.

I would agree that a 1:1 balun is preferable in as much as a center fed dipole appears to have a balanced feed point while a coax feed line is unbalanced. In addition, a common mode choke at the feed point is suggested.For 100 ft of RG-8x at 14 MHz the loss is ~ 1.25 dB when matched.

Re: [Elecraft] [K1] Question about antenna tuners that I should not have to ask but do.

Oops, thanks for the clarification. I should have added “at the antenna”. After reading K9YC’s encyclopedic work (http://audiosystemsgroup.com/RFI-Ham.pdf ) four times, it has seeped into the lower neurons. Maybe I should read it again. wunder K6WRU

Re: [Elecraft] [K1] Question about antenna tuners that I should not have to ask but do.

On Mon, Sep 28, 2015 at 4:37 PM, Douglas Hagerman wrote: > > I have a space-limited dipole for 20 meters with drooping ends. The KAT-1 > tuner > will tune it. What I want to know is whether to use a 4:1 or 1:1 balun, or no > balun, > at the antenna. > Are you feeding

Re: [Elecraft] [K1] Question about antenna tuners that I should not have to ask but do.

Unfortunately, the other part of my compromised situation is the shack location, which is at the other end of the apartment from the balcony. So I’m going to need 100 feet of coax to get to the radio. (Wife does not approve of radios in the living room!) That’s why I want to try to get the

Re: [Elecraft] [K1] Question about antenna tuners that I should not have to ask but do.

On 9/28/2015 8:02 PM, Byron Servies wrote: On Mon, Sep 28, 2015 at 4:37 PM, Douglas Hagerman wrote: With 450 or 300 ohm ladder line, a 4:1 would be more appropriate to match the feedline to the expected impedance of the K1 input.

Re: [Elecraft] [K1] Question about antenna tuners that I should not have to ask but do.

Sounds like a great use for a remote tuner. (sure wish Elecraft would develop one). I have an LDG Remote Tuner for tuning a 44' doublet in the attic of my town home. Works great. 40 through 10 with acceptable SWR. (unfortunately for me the noise floor isn't a floor - it's a skyscraper).

Re: [Elecraft] [K1] Question about antenna tuners that I should not have to ask but do.

A 1:1 current balun could be very useful at rejecting nearby common-mode interference. At my house, that dropped the noise floor by about 6dB. This is a good quality balun at a fair price. It says “QRP”, but it will handle 300W at HF, 200W above 35MHz.

Re: [Elecraft] [K1] Question about antenna tuners that I should not have to ask but do.

Doug, I think you are "doing it the hard way", but what you have proposed along with some math will result in the correct information to give you the impedance at the shack end of your feedline. That is if and only if the KAT1 tuner has tuned to an SWR=1. To figure the impedance at your

Re: [Elecraft] [K1] Question about antenna tuners that I should not have to ask but do.

Sorry, I should have said "none" instead of "1:1". You don't appear to need it. I also have a very compromised installation, but better now than a dipole. And, yes, a tidy installation does us a shocking amount of coax! Good luck, 73, Byron N6NUL On Mon, Sep 28, 2015 at 5:02 PM, Byron Servies

Re: [Elecraft] [K1] Question about antenna tuners that I should not have to ask but do.

Sorry for the blank response. Blame it on late night 'fumble fingers'. While 'common logic' will say to match the antenna to the line impedance, that 'common logic' is flawed. It certainly will be that a good common mode choke is all that is needed at the antenna feedpoint, and that is a

Re: [Elecraft] [K1] Question about antenna tuners that I should not have to ask but do.

Another way to approach this problem is from the other end. I've had pretty good success using antenna simulation software, EZNEC, to estimate the feed point impedance of an antenna and then use TLW to simulate the rest of the chain to see what's going on. The key is to do as faithful

Re: [Elecraft] [K1] Question about antenna tuners that I should not have to ask but do.

Hi Don. Thanks for the comments! There is a good article about all this in the June 2015 issue of QST. My problem is that I can’t use open line because I have to go 100 feet, threaded through apartment rooms, to get from the antenna to the radio. So it has to be coax, and as you say, the

[Elecraft] K1 question RFI?

I am on vacation and using my K1. I don't have much in the way of tools and no test equipment. My model ( serial 02676 ) has a 4 band module. On 40 30 and 20M bands I get a spike interference of about 4/sec in the first 15 KHz of the bands. This does not occur on 15M. It could be an

Re: [Elecraft] K1 question RFI?

John, I cannot understand (with the data you have provided) how the K1 could be causing something like that. Can you hear it with the antenna disconnected? If so it is a source outside the K1. If it persists with no antenna, the next step is to check the power source - power it from a battery

[Elecraft] K1 question on output pwr setting

I have a K1 that I built about one year ago. I am very happy with it and it works FB. However, I have this quirky thing when trying to set the power output. I feel the problem is all mine ... but, I can't figure out how to correct it. When I press the wpm + and wpm - buttons together I can set my

Re: [Elecraft] K1 question on output pwr setting

Bud, How are you reducing the power? With the WPM- button is my guess. Set the menu OUT parameter to the power you want and it should stay. 73, Don W3FPR On 2/4/2011 12:16 PM, bu...@comcast.net wrote: I have a K1 that I built about one year ago. I am very happy with it and it works FB.

Re: [Elecraft] K1 Question Please?

I finally got a chance to search for the list posting by Eric that stated Elecraft's warranty repair policy if IC sockets are added by a customer. It was posted more than seven years ago. Below Eric's concise posting is my longer-winded comment made at that time. - Original Message -

Re: [Elecraft] K1 Question Please?

I wholeheartedly agree that I did not consider this topic from the perspective of warranty repairs (never needed it in the past since I do always do it myself). But I had been in a situation in a different country where the cost of a single IC (even though it is very cheap here in US) was close

Re: [Elecraft] K1 Question Please?

Alexey, Yes, you didn't mention the type of IC socket :-) Turned Pin sockets aka Machined Pin sockets provide very reliable connections, but are more expensive than the flat contact type of socket supplied in many amateur kits which can cause problems. Turned Pin sockets were used in some

Re: [Elecraft] K1 Question Please?

Eric, There may be space in that particular location, but there are reliability problems. Sockets provide an added chance of a poor connection at each IC pin. The use of sockets in places where not specified is NOT recommended. I repair a LOT of Elecraft gear, and the instances where an IC is

Re: [Elecraft] K1 Question Please?

Agreed. I'd trust something like this: http://ly.rsdelivers.com/product/winslow/w30514trc/14-way-turned-pin-dil-socket-03in-pitch/0813121.aspx On Mon, Aug 23, 2010 at 3:27 AM, Geoffrey Mackenzie-Kennedy gm4...@btinternet.com wrote: Alexey, Yes, you didn't mention the type of IC socket :-)

Re: [Elecraft] K1 Question Please?

The job of replacing a bad soldered-in chip is easy, does not require any special equipment, and does not threaten the board it's mounted on. Even a klutz like me has done it many times successfully. All you need is a small pair of cutters. Cut all the legs of the bad chip near the body and

[Elecraft] K1 Question Please?

Hi all. I am at the point on the K1's front panel where I am supposed to solder in the 3 8 pin IC's to the front panel. The main chip has a IC Socket installed. I have extra 8 pin IC sockets in my junk box. Is it OK to install the IC sockets or is there a problem with space? Thanks if anyone can

Re: [Elecraft] K1 Question Please?

Eric, I don't think there will be any problem as long as the sockets you have do not interfere with the components around those ICs. The only piece which gets even close to those three ICs on the front panel would be battery compartment, but since ICs in sockets won't be any higher than the main

[Elecraft] K1 Question Please?

Eric wrote of adding IC sockets on his K1: Is it OK to install the IC sockets... No. It is *never* permissible to install IC sockets in an Elecraft rig where the designers and the manual did not specify a socket. Elecraft has stated that warranty repair of problems caused by that will not be

[Elecraft] K1 Question Please?

Alexey wrote of IC socket use where Elecraft did not specify it: I don't think there will be any problem... That statement is definitely NOT correct. IC socket use where not absolutely required is very bad, amateur, sophmoric engineering. Do so and Elecraft will not repair the problems that

[Elecraft] K1 question...

Hi y'all! I have noted that most of the posts in the elecraft reflector are about the K3. I hope this isn't out of line. I bought a K1 awhile back because it was billed as a great first-time builder's kit. As one of those first-time builders, I suppose I'd agree, but I've run into a few rather

Re: [Elecraft] K1 question...

Hi Tom, Both varieties will produce the DC voltages you need (as would a few batteries). For your purposes, the differences between the two types may not matter. Linear power supplies use a conventional transformer to convert line voltage (117vac) to a lower voltage (typically 15-18vac),

Re: [Elecraft] K1 question...

Tom, Yes, K1 questions are welcome here - after all, it is an Elecraft reflector, not a K3 reflector. The relative newness and the popularity of the K3 does make the bulk of the traffic K3 related. For that reason, many on the reflector want us to remember to put K1, K2, K3, etc. in the

Re: [Elecraft] K1 Question

If I recall, you have to tell the K1 which band is which in one of the menus. I don't have the manual in front of me right now, but it does detail how to do this ... probably during the test where power is first applied with the filter board is installed. I had the same question when I was first

[Elecraft] K1 Question

I have just finished building the 4 band filter board ( KFL1-4) for the K1. I have 3 incorrect resistance checks that I cannot resolve. I'll do these one at a time for clarity's sake. The first is P1, pin 3 to pin 4. Desired reading is greater than 100k. I'm getting zero. Any suggestions ?

RE: [Elecraft] K1 Question

Certainly, a zero ohm reading is an indication that pin 4 or the circuit trace or relay K1 pins 3 or 6 are shorted to ground somewhere. It could also be on relay K2 depending on the state of the relays or could be caused by a shorted crystal, or excess solder that wiched up onto the crystal lead

Re: [Elecraft] K1 Question

useful information at the two lower bands. 73, Sandy W5TVW - Original Message - From: Ron Polityka [EMAIL PROTECTED] To: .Elecraft elecraft@mailman.qth.net Sent: Wednesday, March 23, 2005 8:22 PM Subject: [Elecraft] K1 Question | Hello, | | I was wondering if anyone on the list has tried

Re: [Elecraft] K1 Question

Ron Polityka asked: Have the 2 band board made for 80 17 meters and the 4 band board made for 40, 30, 20 15 meters. Then swap them out in the field. Hi Ron, I have exactly the two filter board combinations that you mention. It's no real trouble to swap out filter boards, even with the

[Elecraft] K1 Question

the sack, Ron. 20 will be open tomorrow. Eric KE6US K1 - SN 01976 K2 - SN 00567 -Original Message- From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] On Behalf Of Ron Polityka Sent: Wednesday, March 23, 2005 6:22 PM To: .Elecraft Subject: [Elecraft] K1 Question Hello, I was wondering