[Elecraft] Trivia from G0XAR

[Stephen]

Hi gentlefolks,

	Home construction has re-commenced at G0XAR after a lengthy gap due to heavy 
work commitments and having to re-establish a shack, and aerials (thanks to 
M0PUB and G0BBL for a very pleasent summer weekend getting them rigged...).

	I found some transparent small (1 meal sized) freezer boxes in Lakeland 
Plastics on St Stephens Street in Norwich (they have branches in other towns 
however I am not sure about the colonies ;-) ), they were about £4 for 50. 
These are the same form factor as used by some Chinese takaways and are 
really handy for component storage - being transparent you can see whats in 
them - and they stack. So I have said fairwell to all those altoid tins. 
tobacco tins and biscuit tins...stuff is easier to find and things are much 
tidier as a result. Having only a little time to fool around in the shack 
means that every second counts...I would rather spend it making things rather 
that looking for things...

	I am currently constructing "Yet Another Small Aerial" a 5 foot whip tuned by 
switchable toroids. In the course of building a VSWR indicator for it I have 
found the "Copper Island Construction Kit" I bought at Rochdale some years to 
be very useful...not sure if these are available any more , The concept is to  
use a piece of single sided PCB as a ground plane and to superglue small 
discs of PCB material to it - these islands are then used to solder the 
components to....once one gets used to the technique it is a remarkably quick 
way of working. 

	Once this is complete I'll probably start work on my K2 - Number 3354, which 
will be fitted with the Top band, ATU and SSB options - I understand that 
there are people who like to keep track of where all the K2s are - well 3354 
is here in Norfolk, England.....

	Just out of interest does anyone know where I can obtain or how I can make  
solder pot. Like most of us in our 50s my eyesight is not what is was. So 
tinning component leads, for example Toroids, can be a challenge..it seems to 
me that using a pot might make things easier. 

	Lastly I have a couple of Howes kits - a frequency marker and a direct 
conversion RX covering 10, 15 and i think 18 Mhz,,,,the marker works, the RX 
needs completing..happy to pass them on to a good home. And does anyone have 
a spare Norcal 38 Special kit they wish to part with.....mine seems to have 
been lost in the move from Wiltshire to Norfolk....and I would dearly like 
another one....

	
-- 
Stephen Farthing