[Elecraft] First-timer's K3 experiences in WW CW

[David Ferrington, M0XDF]

I recommend you download http://www.elecraft.com/manual/K3_Owner's_Man_Rev_D5_Hi_Res.pdf
or the lower res http://www.elecraft.com/manual/K3_Owner's_Man_Rev_D5_web_res.pdf

and search DISPLAY in there, but see below for specifics ...

73 de M0XDF, K3 #174
--  
Men build too many walls and not enough bridges.
-Isaac Newton, philosopher and mathematician (1642-1727)



On 4 Dec 2009, at 11:47, Zoli Pitman HA1AG wrote:

> Hello,
>
> I just received my K3 2 weeks before the WW CW so it was a rough  
> transition taking this rig in use. Steve K6AW helped me a lot,  
> spending lots of time with me on Skype explaining and giving tips  
> about how to use the K3 in contesting optimally. (TNX!!) I took the  
> K3 to Portugal where I had a mini M/S with Con DF4SA and Marq CT1BWW.
>
> I was impressed by the RX, it worked ufb, I only had a few issues,  
> which are either config
> issues (most likely my pilot errors) and some are supposedly design  
> issues, like:
>
> - I
> failed to find a way to get VFO-B freq permanently on display.

Use the DISPLAY button, in one setting it displays data about the rig  
(temp etc) in the other it displays VFO B (all the time).

Quote from pg 21 of Owners Manual:
The VFO B display can show a variety of
useful parameters in addition to the normal
frequency display. To see these, tap DISP (left
of the display), then rotate the VFO B knob.
The VFO B display will cycle through time,
date, RIT/XIT offset, supply voltage, current
drain, etc. (pg. 36).switches, PF1 , PF2 , and M1 – M4 (tap or hold).
Function menu entries can only be used via such
a switch assignment. (Examples, from the CONFIG
menu:  VFO B->A and TTY LTR.)
To set up a programmable function switch, first use



>  Having to push that
> SUBVFO-SET button sucks. I would like to have the VFO-B dial to be  
> used
> only for VFO-B whenever the SUB-VFO is activated.

VFO-B is active all the time I believe and you just change it with the  
VFO-B knob

> press BSET (have to hold and not
> even tap only!)

BSET changes the VFO that all the controls affect, so by default they  
change VFO-A, hold BSET and now everything that controlled VFO-A  
(including the large VFO-A knob) now affects VFO-B (or the sub Rx if  
fitted) instead.

> I also failed to find a way to put the CLAR offset permanently on
> display. It keeps switching back to that PA temp etc.

This is because you've got the DISPLAY set to show that, just try  
tapping it.



Just a note:
Wayne and Eric (and everyone else involved with design etc) are radio  
amatures too, so if something doesn't work the way it normally would,  
chances are you're doing something wrong. The do get things wrong  
sometimes, they are human as well :-)
But generally, they know how a rig should work and how everyone will  
want it to work

73 de M0XDF