KB5JO's comments about his K1 are certainly relevant in my view. This little gem of a rig doesn't get all that much attention these days, but it is still deserving of such.
I still have my K1, a fairly early one, and I must admit that, at first, I wasn't as happy with it as I thought I would be. That was mainly because I had to switch boards in order to gain access to more than just two bands. Later, though, Elecraft solved this by adding a 4 band board--I just wish they had offered it that way from the start. The K1 is a very competent little radio, and a lot of fun to operate. It's small enough to be very portable, but not necessarily a prime favorite of the backpacking crowd. Mine has the built in ATU, and combined with the BL-2, it will work with just about anything you might want to use for an antenna. You get a solid 5 watts, and then some, and minimal battery consumption. For several years, before I retired, I spent a lot of "lunch hours" operating from nearby parks. I also used it on several Field Day events. Everything I needed fit easily into a relatively small briefcase--the K1, an MP-1 antenna system, some feedline, paddle, and power. I usually managed a QSO or two, even on 40 meters at mid-day, and was rarely "skunked". The new KX3 may be viewed as a replacement for the K1, if not the K2 and KX1, but I think there are plenty of good reasons for keeping a K1 around. For one thing, it's a darned good back-up radio even if you do have something better. I doubt the KX3 will be as battery friendly as the K1. Maybe most importantly, it's a radio you can really build yourself, and if you get one that is used, you can still probably service it yourself. That has to count for a lot, at least to some of us. I take great pride in being a K3 owner. However, to be honest with you, I take greater pride in the fact that I built a K1, K2, and KX1 that work! The first transmitter I had was homebrew from the chassis up (with a lot of help from my "Elmers"). A couple of Heathkits followed, but then there was a hiatus for nearly 35 years when I didn't build much of anything. Then a couple of NorCal rigs came along (Wayne's designs), and a lot of the fun I had been missing returned. A number of other rigs followed (too many probably), and now I have a couple of shelves filled with rigs I constructed. Each one represents a very gratifying experience, and I can re-appreciate much of it each time I pull one of those rigs down and hook it up. Anyway, I prefer to think of the K1 as a "mature" radio, meaning it has been around a while, has been superceded in many respects by later designs, but still has a lot of good life to go. Again, it is a very competent little radio, and shouldn't be dismissed from consideration. For many of you it may be just what you need, and maybe all that you need--at least for certain situations. Dave W7AQK ======= Email scanned by PC Tools - No viruses or spyware found. (Email Guard: 7.0.0.18, Virus/Spyware Database: 6.18200) http://www.pctools.com/ ======= ______________________________________________________________ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft@mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html
