[Elecraft] Enhanced K2 or basic K3 dilemma...

Wed Sep 12 04:38:33 EDT 2012

Bill

>From experience this past summer the Elecraft bug seems to be going around
and being passed person to person the CDC has not found a cure YET!

That said I started with buying a partial built K2/100 kit with quite a few
accessories and a KAT100 tuner. Shortly after owning that radio a few months
I bought a very high serial # K3/100 from a gentleman who had it for a spare
for a good price he has my thanks. I was very impressed with the K3 after
using it for a month or 2 and it was fairly basic K3 with only a 2.7 filter
and a couple of options. It came very close to being as good as my current
radio that I had owned for 2 1/2 yrs a FTDX-5000MP and is a base radio. So I
purchased a few more options and several more filters for it and a new
P3/SVGA and installed all of them. The continued testing improved the K3
between the 2 radios till the receive performance was blurred they were so
close you could not tell them apart. That is until band conditions became
very crowded most noted in the lower bands I was hooked that the bad
news.....

Thought I had bought another very late model K3/100F loaded but seller
changed his mind at the last minute and backed out. So I did the only thing
I could think of I went to the Elecraft web site and ordered every option
available for the K3 everything but the second receiver ( a bad mistake and
one I'm taking care of very soon ). When it arrived I thought it would never
get here but finally did I set it up on the bench in place of the other K3
no more room for the moment*.

Started all my comparisons again improvements were noted across the board in
small increments had it hooked to the second transceiver input on my VL-1000
amp so could compare with the push of a button on the same antenna same
signal sane second back and forth making it easy for me. But I was still not
being fair to the K3 I was not an experienced operator and did not know how
to get the most from it so the test was a bit bias.

To make this a very long post shorter the K3/100 is an excellent place to
start for anyone. I opted not to buy the Elecraft Amp and Tuner and ended up
buying both units from Alpha and like Elecraft Alpha's tuner will not ship
till next month.

I mentioned room earlier for both K3's well I have decided to sell my
FTDX-5000MP and downsize somewhat into a SO2R using the K3's and all
microHAM gear. One thing I left out was the K144V it is a very nice 2m radio
in itself have it hooked up to a 350w amp for SSB/Digital modes.

Thanks everyone at Elecraft for their products, support and continued push
for improvement.

73,
Fred/N0AZZ

-----Original Message-----
From: elecraft-bounces at mailman.qth.net
[mailto:elecraft-bounces at mailman.qth.net] On Behalf Of Robert G. Strickland
Sent: Tuesday, September 11, 2012 11:09 PM
To: elecraft at mailman.qth.net
Subject: Re: [Elecraft] Enhanced K2 or basic K3 dilemma...

Bill...

I built a K2 with the 100w amp several years ago and early this year got a
K3 with 100w amp. I wouldn't part with the K2 for anything short of a
financial emergency. 
That said, it's like the difference between the bottom and top of the
Mercedes-Benz
line: there sure are some significant differences, yet that entry level car
is still a prize all by itself. If you must restrict yourself to just one
radio, then probably best to start investing in the K3. That item has long
legs to stay at or near the top for some time. Concerning the K2, one hears
of slowly encroaching problems sourcing its components. My impression is
that the company is doing everything it can to keep the K2 line moving, and
I sure hope that they're successful. Still, the K3 is probably the money
investment at this point. PS - keep the K2 if you can.

...robert

On 9/11/2012 23:46, Bill Tubbs wrote:
> Looking for feedback from you K2 and K3 owners:
>
> I'm fairly new to the Elecraft family, having bought a T1 a few years 
> ago for my FT-817, then getting into the Elecraft transceivers earlier
this year (finally).
> I now have a KX1, K2, and a KX3. I bought the KX1 and K2 used, but 
> assembled the
> KX3 last month.
>
> I haven't used the KX1 or K2 much, but am having a ball with the KX3. 
> So now I'm realizing it just makes sense for me to wean myself off of 
> other rigs and focus on the Elecraft family (I sold my FT-897 and 
> FT-857 gear earlier and am preparing to sell my trusty IC-735). In 
> order to have a nice 100-watt Elecraft rig I've given myself 3 choices:
>
> 1. Upgrade my K2/10 to a K2/100.
> 2. Sell the K2, find more cash, and buy a K3/100.
> 3. Wait for the KXPA100 for my KX3 (and maybe sell the K2).
>
> If I upgrade the K2 I'll have spent another $400+ and have a nice rig, 
> but I suspect I'll be wondering if I should have held out for a K3. If 
> I go for the K3, I really need to sell the K2 to pay for part of it.
>
> I like the idea of owning the top-of-the-line K3 and would likely 
> upgrade it as I go along, but I'm thinking I'd have most of what I 
> want with a fully upgraded
> K2 even though I realized there is an awful lot more to the K3.
>
> Has anyone sold their K2 and bought a K3, and if so, any 
> regrets/comments/other thoughts?
>
> Thanks.
>
> Bill
> WK6A
> KX3 #1216
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--
Robert G. Strickland, PhD, ABPH - KE2WY
rcrgs at verizon.net
Syracuse, New York, USA
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