[Elecraft] Elecraft Service

[K9ZTV]

No radio is ever "toss and replace" if it is cared for.

There is a 52 year old Drake B-line in my shack that has never been back to Miamisburg, and a Hallicrafters T.O. keyer of the same vintage that has never revisited Chicago.

There is a 46 year old KWM-2A that has never taken a trip back to Cedar Rapids, and a 23 year old FT-1000D that has never taken a flight to Tokyo.

None are software upgradeable, all are obsolete.  None have fully obtainable parts, yet all are fully functional and occasionally on the air.

Moreover, my own 15 year old $4000 K3 has somehow survived operator miscues of a dozen or more Field Days and I trust it will survive those of the upcoming one as well.

In my experience, amateur radio equipment does not self-destruct.  They need our help. 

Which would imply that maybe the fraternity's first obligation to a new ham is to inform him of those things that will harm whatever he is eager to buy.  And perhaps its second obligation is to remind him again when he is eager to spend real money.

73,

Kent  K9ZTV



>> Someone posted:
>> "I expected a longer run for the K3 in years and the same with the K3s. Software upgradeable, never obsolete ...
>> How can we be to a point where a $4,000 radio should be considered a toss and replace?"