[Elecraft] KX3 Rec'd today

Fri Aug 3 11:25:55 EDT 2012

Don & Andrew,

Thanks for taking the time to respond and for the much appreciated
information.  I have been following Elecraft and its product line since
2009 and developed a strong desire to own an Elecraft radio.  I had pretty
much settled on idea of building the K2 at the first of 2012.  The K2 would
provide me with a lot of new HF experiences including finally getting to
own an Elecaft.  The eventual goal is to have the K3 in the shack and the
K2 for portable, other operating locations and backup.  The release of the
KX3 through a  curve ball.  I went back and forth K2 vs KX3 for the first 6
months of the year.  Finally in June, the KX3 became the overwhelming
choice and the order was placed.  I am really looking forward to this radio
and all the new capabilities I'll get to explore.

In watching the reflector, I've gained more insight into the level of
knowledge, experience and realtime Elecraft support.  I certainly
recognized many issues were quickly acknowledged/addressed and that build
issues are quite often builder-related (I'm going try to make mental effort
to slow myself down during the build).  Instead of listing any questions I
might have had (all in the past have been addressed and anything current I
sure will be taken care of), I'm going the let my ambiguous 'low level
static' comment drift away.

I am really impressed with the support and information made readily
available in the Elecraft community.  A friend of mine had a recent problem
with his K2 PA.  With help from the reflector and Eleccraft tech support,
he repaired it himself and a very short time. Don, I think you helped with
that one.  So, good luck with your K2 endeavor and have fun.

Thanks and 73
John W4DX

On Fri, Aug 3, 2012 at 2:18 AM, Don Wilhelm <w3fpr at embarqmail.com> wrote:

> John,
>
> Please be assured that all valid issues will be addressed by Elecraft.
> There have been some posts that speak to operator errors, but for those
> that address real failures, they will be addressed.
>
> If you have specific concerns, please feel free to post them here to the
> Elecraft reflector, you should receive a response - if that response is
> from someone like me who had been "*associated* with Elecraft since
> 1999, it may reflect Elecraft operating policies that I have been
> accustomed to, but not necessarily an "official" response.  Other items
> are fair game - including "why does the K2 that I am currently working
> on fail the PLL Reference test" that I will be attacking tomorrow.
>
> The lack of specifics in your post just causes the "low level static" to
> be increased.  We can respond to specific questions, but the "low level
> static" must remain just that because it does not address any specific
> condition.
>
> 73,
> Don W3FPR
>
>
> 59 PM, ohn Strandberg wrote:
> > Robert -  I've been a little bit wondering same as you.  It would appear
> my
> > KX3 will ship some weeks from now.  There have been over 1000 shipped
> now.
> >   I wonder if this is just low level reflector static or if the 'issues'
> are
> > significant.  Unlike you, I also want but don't own a K3.
> >
> > 73 John W4DX
> >
> > On Thu, Aug 2, 2012 at 9:36 PM, kp4y <kp4y at yahoo.com> wrote:
> >
> >> I was notified today that my KX3 is on the way, yeah! I know that I will
> >> like it the same way I like my K3, but when I hear issues like this and
> the
> >> case vibration, I wonder if I made a good decision. Are these issues not
> >> getting worked out at factory as we speak? At near $1,400 for a QRP rig,
> >> this is an expensive toy as to be needing this type of "home made fixes"
> >>
> >> 73's
> >> Robert - KP4Y
> >>
> >>
> >>
> >>
> >> Sent from Samsung tabletAndrew Moore <andrew.nv1b at gmail.com> wrote:Tex
> -
> >> if you're referring to the scratchy mechanical noise that occurs when
> >> you rotate the encoder even when the KX3 is powered off, it seems that
> can
> >> be solved by carefully removing the main tuning knob (remove rubber
> sleeve
> >> to access the hex screw opening), carefully removing the circlip and
> washer
> >> from the shaft, and polishing/greasing them. There is no need to remove
> the
> >> nut that secures the encoder.
> >>
> >> Here's a post on the subject by Mike / W5EEA. I went through this
> process
> >> myself and it cured the scratchy. I did not polish the circlip or
> attempt
> >> to flatten the washer - I only applied some "fine polishing creme for
> all
> >> metals" to each side of the washer and polished that with a Dremel tool,
> >> then applied some white lithium grease to both sides and put it all back
> >> together. Scratchy is about 95 percent gone.
> >>
> >> Please be careful.. and obviously this is not an Elecraft-endorsed mod.
> >>
> >> Mike's post follows.
> >>
> >> 73,
> >> --Andrew, NV1B
> >> ..
> >>
> >> ---
> >>
> >> From: mikew5eea at hotmail.com
> >> To: elecraft at mailman.qth.net
> >> Subject: KX3 encoder noise fix....for some
> >> Date: Fri, 20 Jul 2012 08:39:52 -0600
> >>
> >> PLEASE DO NOT TRY THIS FIX..unless you read this and think 'I have no
> >> problem doing this'. There is every chance you will loose parts or make
> >> things worse than they were (or may end up buying a new encoder).
> >> I found the scrapping/scratching stopped if you invert the radio and
> >> turned the knob.
> >> If you remove the knob you can see a "C" clip on the shaft over a washer
> >> resting on the body of the encoder. On mine the noise was coming from
> the
> >> surface finish between the washer and the clip. The washer rotates a
> little
> >> each turn and that is why the noise does not happen at the same spot in
> the
> >> rotation of the knob. Remove the washer and clip, make them flat and
> polish
> >> them, put them back on with a good silicone grease and it feels like a
> K3
> >> VFO. If you think SM parts are small you will never see what needs to be
> >> done to the washer and clip.
> >> PLEASE, PLEASE, PLEASE do not stick a screwdriver in your had or ding up
> >> your very nice new KX3 that works *just fine* without this fix if this
> is
> >> not something that sounds easy for you to do. (I work at Lockheed where
> we
> >> make some REALLY NICE little gizmos - that's where I got the 'practice'
> for
> >> this kind work)
> >>
> >> ---
> >>
> >>
> >> On Thu, Aug 2, 2012 at 6:55 PM, pkhjr <ka5y at yahoo.com> wrote:
> >>
> >>> Received my KX3 ordered 2/17 serial # 1040.  Love the radio....  The
> only
> >>> problem so far is the noise generated I guess generated by the encoder.
> >> I
> >>> tried removing the felt pad between the knob and the chassis and the
> >> noise
> >>> is still there...?
> >>>
> >>> 73 Tex
> >>> ka5y
> >>>
> >>>
> >>>
> >>> --
> >>> View this message in context:
> >>> http://elecraft.365791.n2.nabble.com/KX3-Rec-d-today-tp7560208.html
> >>> Sent from the Elecraft mailing list archive at Nabble.com.
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