{"id":276,"date":"2012-09-20T23:52:53","date_gmt":"2012-09-20T23:52:53","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/nf3v.com\/wp\/?p=276"},"modified":"2012-09-21T01:41:41","modified_gmt":"2012-09-21T01:41:41","slug":"kx1case-modification","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/nf3v.com\/wp\/?p=276","title":{"rendered":"Elecraft KX1 Case Modification \/ Replacement…"},"content":{"rendered":"

Considering that this is my radio amateur blog, I have yet to post any posts to that subject. Well, here one is.<\/p>\n

A while back I built the Elecraft KX1 Radio. \u00a0I love kits, there is no doubt about it. \u00a0Something about the smell of solder. \u00a0Anyway, I found this little kit that would put out a good QPR signal and received rave reviews.<\/p>\n

Trouble is, with only 6 AA batteries, the output is only about 1.5 watts. \u00a0Not bad, but you could do better. \u00a0…and John \/ N0EVH did. \u00a0He got a buddy to draw up a sheet metal template that would replace the bottom section of the KX1 and allow 8 AA batteries, giving closer to 12 volts, and between 3-5 watts out.<\/p>\n

Here is a link to the original article..\u00a0http:\/\/naqcc.info\/newsletter_126.html<\/a><\/p>\n

I bought the 15 gauge aluminum from Online Metals…about $16 with shipping.<\/p>\n

I used a Harbor Freight 18″ bending brake for the bends. \u00a0If I were to do it over, I would use the 30″ brake from Harbor Freight. \u00a0Not much more expensive, but it would probably be a little better. \u00a0The long bends really push the little break and cause it to bow ever so slightly.<\/p>\n

If you do choose to make the base, take the time to lay out all the lines with a scribe. \u00a0The dimentions are perfect…really. \u00a0Whoever made the template really knew what they were doing, because ALL the bend allowances are spot on.<\/p>\n

Here are some photos of the job and the my complete go kit.<\/p>\n

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The template. \u00a0See the original article for full-sized drawing. \u00a0Need to print on legal-sized paper.<\/p>\n

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Completed KX1. \u00a0Weighs in at 15.5 oz, including 8 Lithium AA batteries. \u00a0That, my friend, is trail-friendly.<\/p>\n

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Cover made from Lexan,\u00a0furniture\u00a0protectors. \u00a0Not pretty, but works.<\/p>\n

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GoKit Items : KX1, Paddle, headphones, antenna, counterpoise, BNC to Mini Banana plug.<\/p>\n

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Fully packaged, this kit weighs in at 28.9 oz…that’s only 1.8 pounds!!!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Considering that this is my radio amateur blog, I have yet to post any posts to that subject. Well, here one is. A while back I built the Elecraft KX1 Radio. \u00a0I love kits, there is no doubt about it. … Continue reading →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[6],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/nf3v.com\/wp\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/276"}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/nf3v.com\/wp\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/nf3v.com\/wp\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/nf3v.com\/wp\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/nf3v.com\/wp\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=276"}],"version-history":[{"count":6,"href":"http:\/\/nf3v.com\/wp\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/276\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":288,"href":"http:\/\/nf3v.com\/wp\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/276\/revisions\/288"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/nf3v.com\/wp\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=276"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/nf3v.com\/wp\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=276"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/nf3v.com\/wp\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=276"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}