True Todd. Still makes me wonder why a 1kw Gates or RCA (and similar) BC units will sell for 1/5 the cost of a KW-1 these days. Not that I want them too mind you ;) But they are certainly "brand names", and built a lot healthier (a new term for "big iron" I made up) than a KW-1 in my opinion. Of course you still have to mod them a bit to get on the ham bands, but paying 1/5 the price makes that little chore a no brainer.
Bottom line is that I would not pay any more for a KW-1 than I would for an equal condition BC transmitter and the same would apply to a "healthy", well built HB rig. But, I'm not a collector... 73, Brian On 7/6/06, Todd, KA1KAQ <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:
Don is spot on, his comments reflect my experiences as well. On 7/4/06, Brett gazdzinski <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: > I can see that people would not want a homebrew > rig, but I think fewer and fewer people are building, > yet people want a higher power radio. The problem with 'most' folks who don't homebrew or build is that they aren't interested in HB rigs either: only commercially built with name recognition. Which is why a clean KW-1 will routinely bring in the $22K-$27K range and an equally clean, well built/heavier designed HB transmitter does well to bring $500. It may sound better, even make more power and look better, but it's still homebrew. The KW-1 is an excellent transmitter, but think what you could build for even a quarter of their selling price. Especially with the broadcast iron floating around today. I have a few HB transmitters here from decades past. Incredible attention to detail, layout and construction that rivals commercial units. Truly beautiful rigs in open-frame, black wrinkle racks loaded with round meters and knobs. I picked up 3 for $100 and doubt I could get much more than that for most of the parts. In terms of functioning history, they are priceless to me. But then, I'm crazy. Just ask anyone who knows me. (o: de Todd, KA1KAQ ______________________________________________________________ AMRadio mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/amradio Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.html Post: mailto:[email protected] AMfone Website: http://www.amfone.net AM List Admin: Brian Sherrod/w5ami, Paul Courson/wa3vjb
-- "There is nothing more uncommon than common sense." -- Frank Lloyd Wright
