[Elecraft] Wayne on KNBx

[Neal Campbell]

 I had a hard enough time finding a magnifier for the normal components (yes
I am that old!) so SMDs are way beyond my meager eyesight and shakey hands.

-----Original Message-----
From: elecraft-bounces at mailman.qth.net
[mailto:elecraft-bounces at mailman.qth.net] On Behalf Of EricJ
Sent: Tuesday, July 19, 2005 5:42 PM
To: 'Mike Morrow'; elecraft at mailman.qth.net
Subject: RE: [Elecraft] Wayne on KNBx

Heh heh heh. I've been their target on QRP-L. Almost 50 years ago, my
friends gave me a cigarette to try. I did. I puked for hours afterward. They
all laughed and said I'd get used to it. I asked them, "But why would I want
to?" It's remained a good test for me in other things in my life.

SMTs were made for cheap machine assembly or to save space where it is
important to save space. 

As hams, we have different requirements than consumer electronic
manufacturers. We can pop for the 5 cent resistor instead of the 2 cent SMT
equivalent. And there is no labor saving hand assembling with SMTs. If
anything it takes longer. Our gear is usually large enough to meet our needs
for tuning knobs, etc. so space is rarely the overriding consideration. I've
built some SMT kits that weren't significantly smaller than they would have
been using traditional 1/8 resistors mounted on end. And I've built some
that were very small, but could easily have been twice as big and still fit
where they were supposed to go. SMTs for SMT's sake is pointless.

I'm NOT saying they have no place in ham radio. Where the overriding
objective is small size, such as the ATS-III, SMTs are the only way to go
and it is deemed worth it for a relatively small number of experienced
builders.

Anyway, I don't bother with SMT kits anymore for one very simple fact. They
aren't fun for me. I'm a hobbyist, not a manufacturer. 

Elecraft and other kit builders are selling fun as much as they are selling
ham gear.

Eric
KE6US

-----Original Message-----
From: Mike Morrow [mailto:kk5f at earthlink.net]
Sent: Tuesday, July 19, 2005 8:57 AM
To: EricJ; elecraft at mailman.qth.net
Subject: Re: [Elecraft] Wayne on KNBx

Eric wrote:

>Maybe many hams don't consider building with SMTs relaxing or fun 
>although THEY CAN DO IT. It may not be that hard, but for many it is 
>not
much FUN.
>
>snip many other good points
>
>Maybe we forget that SMTs were developed for MACHINE assembly, not hand 
>assembly.
>
>snip many more good points
>
>I might as well get one built better than hand assembly by some machine.


Hi Eric,

You make many excellent and well-stated points.  I agree with every one of
them.

But watch out for the ire of the "wage holy war for SMT" folks out there who
will imply that you're reactionary, ignorant, stupid, out of date, out of
step, lazy, not properly motivated, unskilled, etc. because you won't do
"SMT."

I love kit SMT PCBs...as long as the SMT parts have been machine
pre-assembled on the PCB before I have to put other parts on the PCB
(example...MFJ Cub QRP kits).   That's the appropriate and intended use of
SMT technology.

Any kit that requires manual SMT application above one or two large parts is
a kludge design that I would *never* buy under any circumstance.

73,
Mike / KK5F

_______________________________________________
Elecraft mailing list
Post to: Elecraft at mailman.qth.net
You must be a subscriber to post to the list.
Subscriber Info (Addr. Change, sub, unsub etc.):
 http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft    

Help: http://mailman.qth.net/subscribers.htm
Elecraft web page: http://www.elecraft.com