I would take the stance that KX3’s (& K3) do not class as home
constructed.
Ah, but where do you draw the line? I believe Foundation licensees
are allowed to construct transmitters only from commercially-sold
kits.
Do you have to make your own components (capacitors, valves, etc) to
qualify?
Where to draw the line depends on the main object of the challenge, I suppose, though there seems to be some agreement that plugging modules together would probably not be in the spirit… (That’s not to denigrate those who build KX3 kits, they are excellent and I’d love one! The kit, that is, not the assembler. doh.)
I created a box with lots of hardware and then inserted 2 boards and
did the screws up…
A way of saving a little money, and maybe for learning what’s where and how to get at it (or not), but not something to get much constructor’s pleasure from.
Funny thing is I only ever made 3 QSOs on the beast!
Not made any QSOs on the rigs I’ve built. The RockMite does service as a Morse practice oscillator sometimes. The Radlet is sitting un-boxed waiting for me to think of a use for it.
The other challenge I’ve been thinking of would be open to anyone and that would be something where the contacts are made on either 30m or 12m. Both bands are under used IMHO but more so 12m.
30m - underused? Sounds like you need to get a decent antenna for that frequency. The pile ups around 10.118 are virtually as large as those around 7.032, usually providing 30+ QSOs per summit.
on the other hand…
12m - I totally agree - this is the forgotten band. I don’t recall seeing a commercial kit that covers the frequency, so to build something would probably be homebrew or adaptation of a kit. It could be a real challenge to get something up and running and make some S2S contacts.
Ah no, two separate challenges. One for those who build gear and one for operating. So a homebrew challenge on any bands and an operating challenge on 30m and 12m. Not everyone is confident to build gear and as we age some of us no longer have the dexterity or sight to continue building. But we can all operate.
12m is seriously unused… just 911 QSOs recorded. Somebody must have been busy on 30m because the QSO count has shot up from the levels I remember. Still it’s a band which is neither LF nor HF and I find it interesting.
I’ve done 18 activations working the 12m band. Apart from November 2011, operating from G/SP-013, when I ran into a pile-up of 40 stations using the Antron-99 IIRC, I’ve always found the band hard work
…or in other words G3CWI recommends disqualifying M1EYP from
entering this event.
Not at all; can I recommend the Rockmite from Small Wonder Labs? It is easy to build and the thrill of making a contact with something you built yourself cannot be underestimated. Building one is well within your abilities.
I still don’t see the true operating challenge of 30m. Agreed it is a very interesting band and I’ve worked across the pond from summits several times with the 817 - from home also with the same kit. My early HF contacts were with a 30m homebrew valve TX running 10W output and I worked down into VK6 with that.
My feeling is that the operating challenge should be for the higher bands where there is less SOTA activity - 17m to 10m. Then have band by band challenges for the homebuilt / homebrew category - separate because each band presents a different challenge.
Not at all; can I recommend the Rockmite from Small Wonder Labs? It is
easy to build and the thrill of making a contact with something you
built yourself cannot be underestimated. Building one is well within
your abilities.
I have worked 7 countries on 40m CW with my Tuna Tin Two transmitter. It puts out about 300 mW. And yes … I DID solder the components myself! I incorporated a simple VXO so I can QSY +/- 3 kHz which is plenty to dodge QRM.
A superb route, though a little harder than it used to be, I’ve been told recently, since a hold broke off the dierdre round the corner on the first pitch. They’ve gone back to calling it Bosigran Ridge, too, which IMHO is a shame. It might be fun to try and tempt Tom up Wicca Pillar!
“Etherkit’s CC1 beta QRP monoband CW transceiver kit is discussed in Dave AA7EE’s blog The Etherkit CC1 1st Beta – A Trail-Friendly QRP CW Transceiver – Dave Richards AA7EE . The tiny, VFO-controlled transceiver can produce 2-3 Watts out and uses mostly SMD components. This looks to be the first rival to the famous KD1JV ATS and MTR series transceiver kits.”
I’ve no chance of building it though - its nearly all SMD:-)(shaking-iron may destroy)
Yes, I’ve been following that one with interest.
It really is a little beauty and one that I will no doubt add to my kit bag, once it becomes available.
You can never have too many tiny rigs!
