[Elecraft] K3S stainless screws

[dyarnes]

Hi All,

Interesting how experiences vary.  We spend most summers in our motorhome on 
the Oregon coast--only a couple hundred yards away from the ocean in an RV 
resort.  I've experienced corrosion in just a matter of days while staying 
there.  One summer I "toasted" a laptop just by using it occasionally 
outside under my canopy.  When I opened up the case it looked, well, you can 
guess!  On another occasion, a couple of poles from my Buddipole system got 
corroded so badly I couldn't get them apart, and they were only assembled 
together for about 10 days.  Typically I have to take my antenna down every 
week or two and "refresh" all the connections.

I don't know what causes the variation in experiences from being close to 
salt water.  Maybe it's the prevailing winds?  In our case it is almost 
always off the ocean (west to east).  I do know that, where we are located, 
we are frequently shrouded in fog--at least for as much as several hours. 
Even when it seems clear--or relatively so--you can "feel" the moisture in 
the air.

Anyway, my conclusion is that salt water is insidiously dangerous to 
anything electrical.  Even when I "seal" connections, the corrosion somehow 
sneaks in.  I know one thing--I would never buy a used car that I knew spent 
a good part of its life on the Oregon coast--or most any coast for that 
matter.  Stainless steel hardware is cheap insurance, and I try to use it on 
just about everything that might get even limited exposure to salt air.  The 
problem is that there is almost always some part of an "assembly" that isn't 
protected, and you best check it frequently.  On the K3, stainless steel 
screws are an excellent thing, but there are so many orifices in the rig, 
you need to look inside every so often!

Dave W7AQK