++++++++++++++++++ Date: Mon, 24 Jun 2002 06:52:38 -0400 From: "Mark J. Dulcey" To: =?ISO-8859-1?Q?Tom_Hammond_N=D8SS?= Cc: elecraft at mailman.qth.net Subject: Re: [Elecraft] K2/100 at N0SS for FD... Tom Hammond N=D8SS wrote: > Just wanted to report that K2 #00008 and KPA100 #(something) accounted = > for over 1,100 CW QSO's from N0SS during FD 2002... and it never even=20 > broke a sweat!!! K2 #1984 (Big Brother is Listening) plus a shiny new KPA100 (this one=20 separated according to the KI6WX instructions) handled 510 CW QSOs at=20 W1BOS. (These CW contacts, made on 80, 40, and 15 meters, were the only=20 CW operation at W1BOS. There were also two HF phone stations, an HF=20 digital station, two VHF/UHF SSB stations, and one VHF FM station.) The=20 K2, sans KPA100, also handled 10 QRP contacts for our solar-power bonus. = We worked N0SS, so we may have had a K2/100 - K2/100 contact! The newly-completed amplifier worked flawlessly during Field Day. The=20 only operational problem is that we didn't get full power out of it all=20 the time, because we couldn't get the SWR down low enough even with an=20 antenna tuner. (The antenna we used with the K2/100 was a recently=20 homemade 80/40 meter dipole. It was cut just a BIT too long; the=20 resonances were slightly below the ham bands. My big old AEA AT-300=20 doesn't seem to be able to match such an antenna - the inductances=20 probably don't go low enough.) The K2/100 gave a HI REFL warning, but=20 happily soldiered on at somewhat reduced power. The contest was a trial by fire for a newly-constructed amplifier. I=20 finished the basic KPA100 assembly on Wednesday, and made a couple of=20 contacts with it. (The first one was T9 - not too bad.) The separation=20 was completed on Friday evening, and never tested live - too much other=20 stuff to get ready for Field Day. I had to take the station off the air=20 briefly on Saturday evening to retighten the power transistors. (It was=20 well into the 5-10 hour range of operation by then!) As it happened, we=20 had an appropriately-timed power outage, so we didn't lose any operating = time that we wouldn't have lost anyway. Dave Hunt, WX1G, was impressed by the K2. I loved it all along - but if=20 Dave, one of the best CW operators around, liked it, that really means=20 something! He particularly noted the smooth QSK and the effective=20 filters. I just did the crystal filter grounding mod last week; that=20 couldn't have hurt. +++++++++++++++++ To: elecraft at mailman.qth.net Date: Sun, 7 Jul 2002 21:03:09 -0400 From: Michael E Dobson Subject: [Elecraft] K2 #2221 QRV. 100 Watts With some help from Andy, WA3LTJ, I completed the power alignment steps for my KPA100 and installed it in K2 #2221. Using his Bird Wattmeter we were able to adjust R26 properlly so I no longer received a Hi Curr warnings when setting power to above 60W. We then checked power on all bands. With the K2 display set for 100W, the KPA100 produced between 98 and 105 watts on all bands 160-10. Cranking the power all the way up it produced over 100W on all bands. We did not keep the key down very long but even after all the full power tests, the finals were barely warm. Congrats to Elecraft on an excellent design. 73, Mike WA3KYY K2 #2221 ++++++++++++++ From: "Mike Harris" To: Date: Mon, 20 Jan 2003 18:00:37 -0300 Subject: [Elecraft] Beacon G'day all, For what it's worth K2/100 #1400 has just completed 330 hours of QRSS 10 (3:1) duty as a Grey-line experiment beacon on 40 metres, 10 hours per night. The output was set to 11 watts. Heatsink temps were running at approximately 46C and the whole K2 was comfortably warm. I have just taken the lid off and had a look around the PA unit for any signs of stress, cooked components etc. and all looks OK. The PA's had been burnt in and retightened before the beacon run. No further slack in the screws. The drift took about 20 minutes to settle thereafter nothing to worry the receiving stations and was predictable, that is, the frequency returned to the same place every night. SpectrumLab was used as the recording FFT application and was unattended overnight. Frequency stability mods have not yet been done, still waiting for the kit. Regards, Mike VP8NO (IOTA SA-002) GQRP 10148 K2/100 #1400 ++++++++++++++++++