[Yaesu] FTdx-100

[Walter A. Hutchens]

This is indeed a very cool little radio -- an astonishingly good performer for 
the time and many miles ahead of anything being made in the U.S. in the late 
60's.   It is the parent of the FT-101 and except for lower power (50w PEP 
out on SSB) fairly similar in performance.    The construction is 'boxy' and 
many mechanical details are similar to the FTdx-400-series but the internal 
design is completely different; the 400-series are the last gasp of mostly 
vacuum tube designs at Yaesu, while the FTdx-100 is an infant -101.   

This is the radio on which Yaesu learned that plug-in boards would be 
needed; basically everything is on a flat chassis with the small parts and 
circuit board buried under other stuff.   It's a four-star bitch to work on.

I have been seeing only one or two of these a year but perhaps someone 
with a more ambitious hamfest schedule would find more.   Mine came from 
eBay a year or so ago.

Walt Hutchens
KJ4KV