[Elecraft] [KX3] A Comparative Performance Assessment (of Aftermarket KX3 Heatsinks)

[Gary W. Hvizdak]

Dennis (KD7CAC) recently posted ...

"I find it curious that there was no mention ... of what surface coating or
surface finishing process the tested heat sinks had been subjected to. ...
I'm also curious if Fred's lower cost version is still the original size
..."

--- - - - ---

Hi Dennis,

    The details regarding finish were omitted from his report for the sake
of brevity.  In fact, Adrian evaluated four Cooler KX(TM) configurations,
one each painted and unpainted Lite and Plus model.  The reason this
information wasn't included, is that the coating had no discernable impact
on performance.

    Addressing your questions about size ... Fred offers two models:  his
original (Lite) model is 1.25 inches deep and his newer Plus model (which
was introduced back in April as "Tropical") was originally 1.5" deep.
However, in July he increased its depth by 7% to 1.59 inches.  And yes,
Fred's Matte Black finish is electrostatically applied / heat cured power
coat paint, although the entire bottom (heat transfer) surface is unpainted.

    Fred also offers two choices of unpainted finish:  a premium Clear
Chromate Conversion undercoat; and raw aluminum (straight from the mill).

73,
Gary  KI4GGX
webmaster  http://www.ve7fmn.ca/

P.S.  I encouraged Fred to rebrand his Tropical model as Plus, after one
reviewer (on the eHam website) seemed to imply that the heatsink could be
operated in direct sunlight without concern.  Intuition suggests that an
unpainted finish would be preferable for operating under intense tropical
sun, although even that should be avoided (IMHO).