[Elecraft] How Long will it take to assemble a K3/100??

[Ron D'Eau Claire]

4-40 screws are really quite easy to twist in half with a power screwdriver.
That's easy to fix if you have a spare. It's also easy to rip the threads
out of the PEM nuts. That's not so easy to fix. 

That's why Wayne was clear that we should specify *no* power screwdriver in
the assembly manual. 

It sounds like the factory is pushing the envelope on the torque, at least
on some of the screws. 

This doesn't appear to relate to your situation, but for those "reading the
mail" out there, sometimes a panel screw will act stuck even though you know
you didn't over-torque it at assembly. That's because the panels shift
slightly as the screws are tightened, and one screw might bind against the
hole. If one feels stuck, always loosen all the other screws holding the
panel first and very often you'll find that the "stuck" screw comes out very
easily. 
 
Ron AC7AC
 

-----Original Message-----
From: elecraft-bounces at mailman.qth.net
[mailto:elecraft-bounces at mailman.qth.net] On Behalf Of Mike K2MK
Sent: Sunday, January 01, 2012 5:11 PM
To: elecraft at mailman.qth.net
Subject: Re: [Elecraft] How Long will it take to assemble a K3/100??

Hi Dick,

As an owner of a 3 year old factory built K3 I kind of knew that they used
"power screwdrivers" in the assembly. One day I plan to perform surgery on
the one remaining front panel screw that I was unable to remove. Doing the
DSP board swap was an adventure.

73,
Mike K2MK