Category Archives: Gear

Passing Pixie!

Posted on February 21, 2017 by robert

After experimenting with T37-6 yellow core inductors, it was time to change to the T37-2 red core.  These have a lower operating frequency, up to 10 MHz, and it is possible that they might have a higher attenuation on 14 MHz … Continue reading →

Posted in Gear, Pixie, Projects, QRP | 1 Comment

A 40 Meter LPF for the Pixie

Posted on February 20, 2017 by robert

As I mentioned the 40-meter Pixie QRP rig has pretty horrible harmonics, well above the maximum allowable FCC limit (-43 dBc).  One Pixie was about -9 dBc, and the other was about -20 dBc. The output filter in the Pixie … Continue reading →

Posted in Gear, Pixie, Projects, QRP | 2 Comments

Pixie Pain

Posted on February 11, 2017 by robert

There is an inexpensive QRP kit that sells on eBay for somewhere between $4-10, called a Pixie.  It is a single conversion rock bound 40 meter QRP rig often set to 7.023 MHz, but sometimes 7.040 MHz.  They are often … Continue reading →

Posted in Gear, Pixie, QRP | 1 Comment

K1 Tuner Completed

Posted on November 30, 2016 by robert

It took about an hour to wind the 5 inductors and install the remaining components, so the entire kit took about 2.5 hours to assemble.  Some minor changes need to be made to the K1 itself, and the meter circuit … Continue reading →

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Gotta Love Portable Operation

Posted on August 20, 2016 by robert

My family and I went to Lake George in early August for a week of fun — I’m not as bendy as they are, so while they were parasailing and kayaking, I hung back at our hotel to make a … Continue reading →

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A Grand Day at ARRL HQ

Posted on March 31, 2016 by robert

A friend of mine, Paul, N1PSX, and I drove to ARRL HQ yesterday for a visit.  It was Paul’s first trip, and the first time in a long time for me (my father and I visited in 1982 when we … Continue reading →

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K1: All But Final 2 Toroids

Posted on December 31, 2015 by robert

Two hours and 5 minutes later, and the final transmitter components, with the exception of T3 and T4 have been installed.  Total time is now  24.25 hours.  It’s going to take an hour to wind those two remaining toroidal transformers, … Continue reading →

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K1 Passes Voltage Tests

Posted on December 22, 2015 by robert

Assembly of the K1 RF Board continues.  Today, I added 49 more components in 115 minutes.  This means the RF Board assembly time so far is 7.5 hours after 193 components, and the total K1 assembly time now stands at 19.5 hours.  There are … Continue reading →

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XMT2XMT: WA1ABI<->WB4SON Success!

Posted on December 21, 2015 by robert

At 1903Z, Dec 21, 2015, I had a CW QSO with John, WA1ABI, on 7.020.00 MHz.  I had reconfigured the Christmas Tree Antenna so that the “hot” side of my feedline was tied to one side of the lights string, … Continue reading →

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K1 Assembly Burp #3

Posted on December 18, 2015 by robert

I spent 65 minutes fabricating three SMT replacement for a SA612AN chip that is no longer available in through-hole.  The process involved in stripping 24 1″ wires, somehow holding them in place while soldering them to an adapter that is … Continue reading →

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