[Elecraft] K2 Battery Charging System With out Mods?

[Don Wilhelm]

Bruce,

The answer is yes.  There are several choices, but here are two basic ones.
1) Use a power supply that you can adjust upward to the 13.1 to 14.3 
volt range to power the K2.  The internal battery will charge, but it 
will take a long time to come to a full capacity charge.
2) Make a direct connection to the battery and use a 2 or 3 state 
charger designed specifically for charging gel cells.  The A&A 
Smartcharger is one example.  You do not have to drill any holes - use 
the existing transverter holes in the top cover to mount the jack for 
the direct battery connection.  Be sure to put a fuse inside the K2 when 
making the direct battery connection, if the external connection is 
shorted in any way, one would find out just how much energy is in a gel 
cell - molten metal, flying bits of hot conductor pieces, and other bad 
things will happen.  Even though the voltage is low, it is still 
dangerous because the current capacity is huge.

See my website www.w3fpr.com for information related to 2) above.

73,
Don W3FPR

Bruce James Howes wrote:
> Hello all,
>
> Is there a simple off the shelf model of battery charger which I can 
> buy or build that will properly charge the K2 battery?
> I'd prefer not to drill a hole in the rear apron, so I'm looking for a 
> commercial solution, ideally with an adjustable output.
>
> What have you found that works, or how did you solve your K2 battery 
> dilemma?
>
> Thanks!
>
>
> 73 Bruce W1UJR
> www.w1ujr.net
>