[Elecraft] K3 - inventory was short...but not really

[DOUGLAS ZWIEBEL]

Hi:

Well, it's been a full week now since I finished the assembly (I can't
bring myself to call it a build).

When I did the initial inventory, I short 3 or 4 pieces of hardware,
at least according to the parts list.  The only thing I really
"needed" was a black pan head screw...I had the rest around anyway,
but since I wanted that black pan head, I asked for the other couple
of missing hardware parts as well.

When I finished the assembly, boy did I have lots of hardware left
over...and that's BEFORE I got the replacement hardware from
K3Support.  I feel really bad that Elecraft spent time and money to
send me a few odds 'n' ends that I actually didn't need.  In my case,
the inventory list clearly included more than necessary, but it was
not flagged as "this is extra."

To be fair, I did order the KPA3 with the K3, so there may have been
some hardware in surplus due to that (but there wasn't supposed to be
and certainly not as much as was left).

I had LOTS of surplus locks (both types) and LOTS of surplus nuts and
I even ended up one black pan head screw OVER, even after the
inventory said I was short one.  So....when YOU do an inventory and
find that you are a couple screws, locks, or nuts short, don't sweat
it.

OH yeah...one more thing.  When I went to put the KPA3 in, I was very
concerned about the SOUND of something very loose on that assembly.
Every time I tipped the unit one way and the other, something was
"rattling."  After 10 minutes of searching for "stuck hardware" that I
knew was there somewhere, most likely stuck between the bottom of the
board the heat sink, I found that it was the ferrites around two leads
sliding back and forth.  Oh for goodness sakes!

de Doug KR2Q

And one last thing about the KPA3.  Thanks to the posts here on the
reflector, I noted that the "floating resistors" (I think they are
resistors) were pushed down near to the board.  I simply applied a
tiny bit of upward pressure and moved them away from the "other stuff"
so that they were more air born.