[Elecraft] 6.3mm to 3.5mm adapter broke off inside the K3 paddle jack

[Chris Cox, N0UK]

Quick update on my broken plug problem.

The suggestion to use a tap to remove the broken plug tip helped a little.  It removed the plug ring and ring insulator, however, the tip of the plug is still trapped inside the 1/4” (6.3mm) socket.  What’s more, now the ring contact of the socket has sprung back open by a millimetre or two and is now very effectively blocking the further extraction of the broken tip.

Word of caution: don’t buy 6.3 to 3.5mm adapters from Amazon!

So even if I can find a tool to engage with the tip, I think it rather unlikely that I will also be able to get a second tool into the opening to then depress the ring contact out of the way.

Probably the easiest (note - didn’t say EASY!) option now is going to be to replace the actual paddle socket on the K3 RF board.

In the meantime, at least the standard key jack is still functional and so I can use an external keyer or straight key to send code.

Oh, what a palaver!

Chris Cox, N0UK
chrisc at chris.org <mailto:chrisc at chris.org>



> On Feb 27, 2021, at 1:52 PM, Chris Cox, N0UK <chrisc at chris.org> wrote:
> 
> Thanks for that suggestion, Jim.
> 
> Chris Cox, N0UK
> chrisc at chris.org
> 
> 
> 
>> On Feb 26, 2021, at 11:31 PM, Jim Shepherd <nvjims at gmail.com> wrote:
>> 
>> You can use a small screw tap like a 1-64 or 2-56 to carefully insert into the hole in the center of the broken off pin and gently turn it until it catches and you can gently pull out the pin.  Used this to pull out broken jacks from speaker-mics on handhelds.
>> 73
>> Jim W6US
>> 
> 
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