[Elecraft] Some K2 notes after completion

[Anthony Clare]

Hello all.

I just wanted to pass along a few tidbits after the completion of my K2 (2
months ago). 

First, I want to thank Don for his patience during my low BFO level issue. In
the end, none of the normal fixes alone seemed to work. However, that problem
was solved by changing a capacitor value in combination with the usual fixes.
I did learn how critical the installation of the BFO toroid was for proper
level and frequency range. Unfortunately, in my case, it was not quite enough
in itself. All good now, though.

I thought I did a good enough job installing C70. I did not. Sure enough,
during some field day testing, I had the horrible distortion on signals around
7185 kHz. I shortened up the one lead on C70 just a little more. Problem
solved!
Do not leave ANY extra length on those leads! 

I am curious how others have dealt with the new tuning knob. It is a nice
knob, but will not reach the felt pad on the front panel. I suppose you could
stack a few pads, but you would need to fill at least a 3/16" gap. On my knob,
I attached a thick brass disc that fits within the indentation on the back of
the knob and is drilled out in the center the clear the shaft nut on the
encoder. This fills the space behind the knob. Since the disc is smaller in
diameter, it does not interfere with the display bezel. I was going the drill
and tap the back of the knob and use countersunk screws on the disc to hold
it. However, I super glued the disc to the knob to perform a temporary test
and it did not want to come back off for drilling. I guess I do not need the
screws after all.

Overall, I have been enjoying this rig and have been very pleased with the
performance and the amount of functions built into the programming. I was a
little worried about spending a lot of money for such a basic radio, but it
bothers me less every time I use it.

Have a good day,
Anthony
n3kcb