[Elecraft] Page 46, KX1 Manual, "Locate"

[Larry Kayser]

Page 46, KX1 Manual
“Locate a small flat-blade screwdriver or tuning tool for use in 
adjusting the trimmer capacitors…….”

Nothing to tell you to look in an envelope or package, just “Locate”…..

Neither the friendly “Turn the board top face up with KX1 in the upper 
left corner.

Nor the complimentary “Turn the board bottom face up with jack J1 in the 
upper right corner.”

just the ominous “Locate”.......

OK, so where does one “Locate” a tuning tool on a Saturday evening on a 
small Island a mile off shore on a large lake in Eastern Ontario?

Contemplation, take the boat to shore, then the car, to somewhere 30 to 
50 miles away that might be open. Not a good idea.

Look through the house. Look through the cabin, crawl under the cabin 
and look in the boxes of radio junk, find two ancient red tuning wands, 
the wrong type of course, these came with Heathkits so many many years 
ago. Also find, two Ham IV control boxes, three isolation transformers 
and many boxes of old GE and Motorola radios – nothing to make a tuning 
wand out of and resolve the “Locate” issue.

Come back to the house, go through all the little boxes of junk that 
accumulate over the years, especially when one is building a cabin, then 
a home, out buildings etc. Nothing.

Desperation. Slip into the bathroom and go through all the cupboards and 
things and see if anything there can be conscripted into the urgent need 
for a tuning wand. Beside a small bottle of black stuff is a small 
plastic handled brush. The plastic looks good, reasonably hard, about 
two inches long.

Quickly cut off the brush, chuck the remaining rod in a drill, grab a 
file, and with the drill screaming, file down the plastic shaft to about 
1.3 mm. Carefully holding the small end, shave the slot end screwdriver, 
testing fitting the result into 20a, 20b and 40 of the KX1 main board.

Now the magic “Locate” has been resolved. Peak up the trimmers on 20, 
slip down to 40 and repeat the process. Enjoy becoming familiar with the 
controls of the newly working KX1 receiver. Fool with this tiny receiver 
for several hours.

This morning while getting ready to go ashore there was a call from the 
bathroom asking if I had any idea what had happened to the Mascara 
brush. Am I in denial or should I beg for forgiveness? Married to the 
same lady for 44 years convinces me to suggest that Mascara would be 
overdressed for the occasion – with some persuasion I get away with it – 
well at least I think I got away with it.

During the boat ride to the mainland I am told to remember to stop by 
the drug store so she can replace the Mascara brush that has gone 
missing. Everything was going to be OK until she added as we were tying 
up the boat at the shore if she should get two new brushes in case I 
needed another one for my radio project!!!!!!

Are there any other things like “Locate” in the rest of the KX1 assembly 
manual?

Larry
VA3LK