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write your own review of the Elecraft K1.
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ON6ZK
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Rating: 5/5
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Jan 19, 2012 07:20
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Wonderful Rig
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Time owned: 3 to 6 months
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I recently bought a second hand K1 with optional built in NB and ATU . Having used amps during contest and pile-ups I was not realy convinced about getting QRP on the air ! Well, I must admit ....the satisfaction you experience from working a station 3 or 4000 miles away with only a few watts is much more rewarding than running a KW ! These days I have my K1 on 99 % of the time. I love to play around CW on 14060 ( the QRP freq ) and work lots of stations in a row. I admit that I'm using a big 4 element yagi monoband. I going to hang up my home made wire dipole for 20 meters one of the next days. This will complete my QRP profile ! Look for you guys on the air. Oh ! by the way , I use my vanity call when I'm operating CW QRP and this is : OR0A !
Hope to see you on the air with my wonderful K1 ! It has a great receiver !
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KG7RS
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Rating: 5/5
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Jan 10, 2012 19:47
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A Great Product!
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Time owned: 0 to 3 months
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Hi Folks,
Just finished K1 #3112. What a great little radio! Truly a pleasure to build - it brought back fond memories of building K2 #1696 nearly 12 years ago. I had forgotten the quality level and precision built into these kits. The modular cabinet alone is genius.
Building my 4-band K1 took around 30 hours including parts inventory (no shortages) & grouping/organizing parts for quick retrieval during assembly. Errata sheets which were previously issued have now been consolidated into a very recent revision of the K1 owners manual. There was one Errata sheet for the 4-band module. The main manual (which covers assembly & alignment of the 2-band module) refers the builder seamlessly to the 4-band module manual and back with complete clarity. The radio worked perfectly the first time without issue. Alignment was intuitive and not overly critical. I did have to rewind the 33-turn VFO toroid as the PWB pads for the leads suggests spacing the windings to cover less than 90% of the toroid. The leads were pulled tight, soldered and clipped precluding the turns from being spread out later. Upon checking the VFO frequency range, I quickly learned it would not tune high enough to allow coverage of the low end of the bands as my installation wouldn't allow more than 75% toroid coverage. I rewound the VFO toroid to cover the entire toroid and left one of the leads slightly long to "reach back" to one of the two PWB holes to compensate for the wide-spaced holes. This did the trick - the VFO would now tune high enough to allow the VFO to tune to the bottom of the bands and a even a bit below. I considered removing one turn which likely would have resulted in a similar improvement.
I can add very little beyond what others have said about the K1. The key thing that impressed me is the outstanding signal-to-noise ratio. This is a very quiet yet very sensitive receiver. Background noise is quite low and very weak signals easily stand out. This radio just begs to be operated. It's cute, intuitive and quite capable. I find it far more enjoyable to operate for long stretches than my mainstream Japanese transceiver due to greatly reduced white noise.
There have been many comments made about frequency drift in the K1 - and this has been the primary reason I've abstained from messing with one over the years. My K1 is essentially drift-free. I wonder why some ops experience drift ranging from noticeable to profound with the K1 - perhaps variations in components and/or installation. Also, I haven't yet operated this radio in the field where it will be exposed to temp extremes. I suppose some drift is to be expected with a non-synthesized design such as this but my example has been very stable.
Key words of advice to prospective K1 builders - Identify & organize/group all parts before starting to build. Properly strip all toroid leads and ensure no enamel lead insulation enters the plated-thru hole in the PWB before soldering. Take your time and enjoy yourself.
The K1 has been around quite awhile and is still among the best multi-band CW kits out there. I hope it will be around for years to come. This is a substantial project which will give a new builder a complete building experience - and - a serious transceiver once completed. Considering the well-executed design and exemplary construction manual, I would consider the K1 suitable (and recommended!) for a new builder - with or without an Elmer standing by.
73, John, KG7RS
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KC5CQD
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Rating: 3/5
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Sep 11, 2011 19:56
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Enough with the Eratta Sheets!!
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Time owned: 0 to 3 months
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Just completed my third Elecraft kit and my second K1 and it worked great at power up. No problems, whatsoever. The radio is a definite "5" but I have to admit that the "Eratta Sheets" like to drove me nuts! Come on, Elecraft....isn't it time for a revamp of the main instruction book? With the kind of money that is shelled out for one of these kits...my latest was $650.00, fully loaded...the last thing we need to be doing is living in fear of not transcribing some "change order" from an Eratta Sheet to the instruction book and thereby ruining the entire project! Not to mention having to shell out another couple of hundred bucks shipping it back and having a technician figure out the problem. It's a great finished radio but the assembly was much less than enjoyable due to all of the "Eratta Sheets" and my constant fear of missing something written as an after-thought. Considering what these kits cost, the instructions should be simple and straightforward with no guessing on the part of the customer.
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K4YND
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Rating: 5/5
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Jun 23, 2011 10:01
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Wonderful Rig
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Time owned: 0 to 3 months
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I recently finished #2999. It was my first kit and I had very little trouble. Don from the Elecraft reflector helped me with a couple of small issues. ( I had a jumper in the wrong position) It is total satisfaction to hear crisp loud CW coming out of a radio you just built. Slowly building one is very relaxing. Whenever the XYL would turn on a cooking show, I would slip over the work station and put a hour in. In a short time I have already worked 12 states. My first contact on 20 was England. I hope to buy a k2 in the next year.
Here are some the things I like
1.) built by me
2.) Radio has a commercial look and feel to it
3.) All the features you need to work cw
4.) small lightweight low current drain- cant wait to take it camping
5.) drift - not a issue 200hz or so.. Just move it back to where it should be and it tends to stay.
6.) Price- not bad when you factor in the 20- 30 hours of great fun I had putting together.
7.) Elecraft support!
8.) quality of the parts
9.) you dont need any fancy test gear
73
Don
k4YND
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WB3T
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Rating: 2/5
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Apr 9, 2011 07:34
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Follow-up... Very Disappointed
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Time owned: 0 to 3 months
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This is a follow up to my previous review. My K1 is now almost two months old and my disappointment has only deepened. The build was fun initially, and I had considered a K2 next for that reason alone. However, several issues have developed along the way of testing, and adding options to, the K1.
I mentioned that there was a considerable amount of drift. Measurements revealed that it was substantial – as much as 1700 Hz in the first 5 minutes, with an additional 1000 - 2000 Hz in the following hour in a temperature stable environment. Spec calls for 200 Hz per hour after a 5 minute warm-up. Something was obviously wrong. After replacing the VFO capacitors one at a time with silver mica types (which are temperature stable) I could only cut the problem in half. Assistance from Elecraft tech support consisted only of wild guesses that led nowhere (e.g. boil the VFO coil!). Further troubleshooting revealed a bad varactor. Replacing it corrected initial drift (first 5 minutes) but the rig still wanders 1300 Hz in the following hour with all components returned to original. For comparison, my SW Plus radio drifts 40 Hz per hour from a cold start – my Ten Tec 1340 only 20 Hz.
There were other frequency stability problems too – if you handle the radio, rest your finger on top while operating the controls, or pick up the K1, the VFO will shift as much as 1 kHz. This effect is worse yet (2 kHz) if all cabinet screws are not in place, so during troubleshooting complete reassembly and disassembly are required to gather valid data. The fact that you can QSY your radio by touching it indicates an insufficient mechanical design.
Perusing the Elecraft reflector revealed that I was not alone in this issue – frequency drift and instability from handling are common problems among K1 owners. Many have experimented and swapped data on this and custom-tuned their own K1, as I have. Different fixes have helped in different K1s, depending on how various internal temperature coefficients cancel. I would expect at this premium price point that the K1 design would be as reliable from unit to unit as the lower priced (albeit monoband) QRP rigs.
Finally the day came to build the ATU but my kit was short all ten relays. A call to Elecraft to explain no relays are in the kit and they tell me they are on the way. This project will now have to wait again. A week later, here is the package, but it’s rather small. OK here’s my relay. Singular. One relay. Nuts. Another call to Elecraft to say, “Please send the rest???”
Meanwhile, the battery unit and noise blanker went in – and finally the ATU. I would not buy the battery adapter again – it has turned out to be quite a speed bump during the alignment and extensive troubleshooting processes necessitated by design problems. I’m happy enough with an external battery pack and would gladly forego the metal battery bracket and short hanging wires I had to work around to keep the bracket from marring the cabinet. I had removed it at one point, but placement of the PCB holes for the leads are inconveniently placed for solder removal and re-installation. This turned out to be a grueling project.
I am not going to “swap boards” to change over to the 80 meter band, which as I explained in my earlier review is not a simple task, especially with other expansion boards present. Frankly I’m a bit miffed at Elecraft for making the board swap sound easy – it’s not. They tell you it takes 2 minutes. The radio is NOT designed to be pulled apart and put back together repeatedly to change bands – certainly I would not try to swap board in the field. There are two standoffs that need to be balanced on the filter board while you install the ATU and fish the screws and washers in. This, with the other maneuvers required to change boards, is bench work – definitely not field work – that takes about 20 minutes, not at all like you’re flipping a band switch.
I decided to build a separate monobander for 80 – a Small Wonder Labs SW Plus with frequency enunciator and keyer circuit. I also converted my SW Plus 20 to 17 meters, so I now have the six bands I should have gotten with the K1... but only with help from two additional radios, and now I'm stuck with a two-band board that will see no use. I wish I had gotten a heads-up on some of these facts, or at least a realistic representation from K1 advertising materials concerning band board changes and VFO stability. This is a most regrettable purchase, and being a kit, is not returnable.
I have $675 in this rig and am still wanting for one rig with all the bands I want for field use. Yeah yeah, I know – get a K2. No thanks. I called “QRP Bob” to order a Wilderness Sierra, but alas, the KC2 digital readout/keyer/power meter circuit is out of production. I wish I had bought one of these while I had the chance, and never gone through the K1 project. I am going to watch eBay for a used Sierra in mint or like new condition.
I have scoured the Internet looking for a good American-made multiband QRP transceiver kit, but there is currently a lack of these things since the OHR 500 and Sierra/KC2 went that-a-way. Heathkit had it right - I sure do miss them!
WB3T
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WB3T
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Rating: 4/5
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Feb 23, 2011 11:16
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Pricey!
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Time owned: 0 to 3 months
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I just finished my K1. I don’t need to reiterate many of the positives already here in other reviews, so I’ll just add my .02 and my list of gripes, with the understanding that I think this is a great radio. Not perfect, but excellent. I am a ham of 35 years, mostly QRP, and have built over 100 radio kits since 1963. I have also designed many of my own projects and worked in radio engineering professionally for almost 30 years. One of my designs, the TechSonic Milliwatter, was favorably reviewed in the October 1994 73 Magazine.
For all the expense and hype, the K1 is certainly not without its shortcomings. I noticed it does drift considerably the first 5-10 minutes it’s on, maybe about 500 Hz or so. It is not synthesized, a disappointment considering its price tag. I also did not like the narrow tone resulting from the 4-pole crystal filter. You can change the filter bandwidth using the menu system, but by design it will only open up to 800 Hz.
So I bypassed two of the crystals with a 47 pF capacitor and it sounds much better. Now it is easier to tune through the band looking for signals without inadvertently skipping over a few. I can still narrow it down when I need to, using the other two filter settings (there are three) but there is no indicator for which filter setting is active. You have to hold the XFIL button to see, but then you’ve moved it! So you need to push and hold three times to get it back around to where you were. Then you can read the setting.
I am not at all crazy about having to swap boards to get on 80 meters. On Sprint nights or other contests, you want 80/40/20 meter operation at a minimum. The only way I can get that in one radio would be to buy the 80/30 meter module for my KX1, but geez why then did I buy the K1? I thought changing the board would be easier. Elecraft advertises that you can “change boards at any time,” but what they don’t tell you is that you need to do a bit of disassembly and re-assembly to do it. It actually is a little deceiving the way they make it sound simple. Yes, you can change boards at any time, but you can build a battleship at any time as well.
As one reviewer said, it’s not like the Wilderness Sierra. With that one, you just pop open the hood with latches, pull/swap the board, replace the cover, and go. 10 seconds max. With the K1, you remove four case screws, then two more from the ATU, and another off the filter board. Then swap the filter boards. Put back the filter board screw, then plug the ATU back in, then two more screws. Then put the cover back on and its four screws. Then go into the menu and re-assign the first two bands. Then, recalibrate frequency using a frequency standard of some sort – another radio or a crystal calibrator. I don’t know if I’d bother with all of that in the field. Why didn’t Elecraft design 80 meters into the 4 band board? They tell me it can’t be done for technical reasons. But I dunno, the HW-9 didn’t have a problem with that, nor the HW-8. Or a whole line of Argonauts. Or the IC-703. Or FT-817…
Otherwise the K1 is an awesome little radio. I love the digital readout, keyer memories, filter selection, multiband operation, and available options that allow for an all-in-one-box portable station. The assembly instructions and processes are first-rate. Yes, a beginner could do this despite what other reviewers have said (as a 40+ year kit building veteran, the instructions were mostly far too detailed for my needs and could walk anyone through the build).
My main complaint is that this is one expensive, overpriced radio. At that price point it should be a state-of-the-art product that includes a synthesized frequency source, at least a couple of frequency memories, rotary encoder for frequency control (rather than a squeaky potentiometer that has been known to fail), and wider filtering options. Add up engineering time over the number of units sold, to the cost of production, advertising, and overhead – then add in a healthy profit margin, and you could sell this kit for much less – or at least include some of the necessities rather than selling them at additional cost as options or leaving them out altogether - to keep the cost down, which didn’t work anyway.
Case in point, the tilt stand is $40! (It’s just a metal bracket and some screws.) I used large rubber feet from Radio Shack in the front and stacked the original K1 feet on top of those to angle the front upward, and used smaller Radio Shack feet in back. I have a nice tilt for a few bucks. (OK I stole that idea from the classic Heathkit HW-9.) And it looks much cleaner too than the bracket offered by Elecraft.
There is a $20 - 30 additional charge for the display backlight. I have never seen such a thing. All HTs and HF radios I’ve ever seen come with backlight, no extra charge. Elecraft also sells the “finger dimple” for another $7, no fooling.
Another example might be to include the battery box with the kit instead of charging $40 for it. It’s little more in labor and materials to produce than the supplied cover it replaces, but with the addition of a plastic Chinese-made battery holder. It’s the same one All Electronics sells for a buck. After all, the KX1 includes the battery holder, as does the Hendricks PFR-3 and other field-ready QRP rigs. What happened here?
I am not regretful I bought the K1, let’s just say I spend my money on Elecraft products very carefully and hesitantly. I am a builder and I this might be the most enjoyable kit I’ve ever built, with the possible exception of Heath Kits. This was fun, fun, fun! And absolutely NO building issues. Everything went together as it should, and I’d be the first one to whine about building troubles. Just see my Web site and look at the complaints about other kits and poorly written manuals.
But be careful about adding all the options. If you do, you’ll spend more than a brand new FT-817ND, which includes all of the above-mentioned missing features, plus SSB operation and a mic as well. The full-up K1 with six bands, backlight, dimple, noise blanker, and battery case will currently run you $567. Then add the tilt bracket and auto tuner and you’re at a whopping $717, plus shipping. As of this writing you can order the FT-817ND with free shipping for $629.95. Even the battery and finger dimple are both included!
All in all the K1 is a real nice radio and a lot of fun to use. And the filter is very effective. This is a great QRP contest rig. My K1 was ready for the second day of the International DX CW Contest this past weekend. I worked 10 states and provinces including PA, OH, MN, MA, ON, FL, AZ, TX, HI, and PR. Also 14 countries – Barbados, Uruguay, Curacao, Montserrat, Canary Islands, Colombia, Spain, Brazil, Aruba, Belize, Cuba, Mexico, Costa Rica, and Argentina. I covered about half the globe on 5 Watts! To Hawaii westward, Spain to the East, Argentina to the South, and Ontario North. Not too shabby for a QRP station in a pileup-infested band! Yeah, go for it. It may be the best QRP kit ever produced. But you will have to empty your pockets.
See you on the Adventure Radio, QRP ARCI, Flying Pigs QRP, and NAQCC Sprints!
WB3T
(ex WR3K)
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N8UW
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Rating: 5/5
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Jun 19, 2010 10:42
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Rugged lil beast
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Time owned: more than 12 months
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I built number 1239 years ago, and added everything except the tilt stand, I put a set of Palm Mini Paddles on the side instead. Paddles work great held to the side of the radio, and I can always find something to prop it up with.
I was never taught how to solder in all my electronics education! I built a simple dummy load, then jumped into this. I was able to troubleshoot about a half dozen boo-boos I made, the circuits are well designed, as is the documentation. There is a lot here, but it is not too tough to handle. I enjoyed the building experience. I use an oscilloscope to align, and have a nice set-up with all the needed tools.
I don't like the battery compartment so much, but since I can't come up with a better way to pack so much into so little space, I can't fault things too much. I have noticed using rechargeable batteries will not give me full power out, still plenty to make contacts with, though. With a 13.8V supply or good batteries, there is about 7 watts available.
I agree about consolidating the documentation, I have about half a dozen different pieces I need to put into one folder, both hard copies and the electronic versions. I'll do that some day. I noticed the online community, but I really haven't had a need for much technical support. And, the designers and owners come here to Dayton every year, if I want to ask a question. I bought a two band board to add 80M and 17M, after a chat with Eric or the other guy, about details of switching it in and out.
The tuner is great, I have been able to get really creative with antennas in the field. A BNC adaptor with post connections, some thin rope, two wires, and something to throw over a tree limb will do fine.
I am rough on stuff, this unit has been stuffed into my backpack, and my dog's backpack, with little consideration for its well being. I've transmitted into open circuits, etc. several times. It was assembled by a beginner. It sat for a few years, and fired right back up. I've made hundreds of contacts, and look forward to more.
At home, my K1 also has a place on the desk and on the antenna switch, it performs great with my little pistol antennas. I like to listen to it as much as my TS-570, TS-830, and R-390A. Well, not as much as the R-390A, but you know, I can work on the boat anchors and kit radios. That's a big plus to me. If you want to build something high quality, rugged, QRP, full featured, and ready for home or field use, I really recommend you check out the K1. They tell me they will continue to sell and support it, yipee!
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W9HC
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Rating: 5/5
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Apr 4, 2010 16:53
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Bravo!
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Time owned: more than 12 months
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I bought my K1-4 after some delay and hesitation. Then, after more than a year later, I decided to build the radio. Now, a couple more years later, I am writing the review. So, I've had a nice chance to get to know this rig. It does everything it is supposed to do the way it is supposed to do it. I'll have some nitpicks to report, but don't let them disuade you from getting one of these neat little American radio kits. The radio is easy to operate and requires about a 1 hour learning curve (if that). The receiver is excellent and the output seems to be of good purity based solely on signal reports and limited bench testing. The keyer is quite sufficient, and the AF output is clean and of adequate volume.
The kit is NOT for beginners as another reviewer has noted. Nor is it a weekend quickie kit. Expect to work 30-50 hours over several days - if you are average to slightly above average in building skills. On the other hand, there is nothing so complicated that a talented newbie couldn't get it done if careful enough and patient enough.
Nitpicks:
1) Alignment of the K1-4 isn't easy. It IS easy to get it "in the ball park," but I wanted to be better than that.
2) The instructions for that little chuck of coax that runs under the main board need to be revised so that you don't end up short. Bottom line: cut it long and trim one end AFTER you have attached the other one and get a clearer picture of what's required.
3) At 40-ish dollars, the stand is severely overpriced. Twenty, maybe. Forty? Greedy.
4) My manual was a bit of a mess, with numerous updates and corrections to the corrections. Hey kids, why not have and offer an updated pdf version that has all the "corrections" correctly corrected? Or just reprint the darned thing.
Overall, this is a very nice little radio that provides a ton of fun in or out of the shack. The customer service and tech support were very good and - as it turned out - needed in my case.
The K1-4 is a well designed radio and a well manufactured and presented kit. I love mine...
Steve-
W9HC
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N4OI
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Rating: 5/5
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Jan 28, 2010 18:50
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Real CW Radio!
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Time owned: more than 12 months
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My K1 was the first QRP kit I built about six years ago. The process was a blast and it functioned perfectly the first time -- no rework. It is the 4-band version with 40-30-20-15 meters plus the ATU and tilt stand, which is a very nice luxury, BTW. Although all my other QRP kits I built afterward were very cool and fun, they reside in a drawer -- to be tried out once in a while and then put back. But not so with the K1! It resides next to my FT-920, always connected to its own position on the coax switch. Perhaps conditions are improving, but I find that I am almost exclusively using the K1 these days. Even at six watts, my calls and CQs are almost always answered and my signal usually holds up over a long CW QSO. It just has a great sound from the little speaker and the silent QSK is flawless. The filters work great and I can follow drifting signals around with the RIT. Of course, the AGC is a little slow, but I rarely use the earbuds anyway so no problem. It is exquisitely small,very elegant (as in Ele-craft), and in summary -- a real, very capable CW rig. Guess it's my baby....
73 de Ken N4OI
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M0BMN
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Rating: 5/5
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Jan 23, 2010 12:36
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Great Kit , Great After Sales Service Too!
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Time owned: 0 to 3 months
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I have built a number of Kits over the years inc the K3/K2/K1/Kx1 and many others. This Christmas i got a nice new K1 kit to build, The XYL let me have it a week before the big day so i could get it built and on air over the hols, well i spent a few hours a night putting it together and finished the set off on the night of the 25th, all looked well to start with untill i noticed a load of drift, i had heard other comment on drift of a 100hz or 200HZ from a cold start for a few mins but mine was more like 1-2KHz !
i looked at ever thing and check my values, all seemed ok. I thought i would send a email to their support dept to see what help they could be, i fired it off late on christmas night and expected it would be after the new year when i got a relpy, i was shocked to find that after a hour or so i had received a email back, it was from Don (one of the tech guys) with a detailed check list for me to work through with details of voltages on pins to check etc, well a quick check found that one pin on a connector had not been soldered so the voltage was floating around, a dab with the iron and the drift was gone.
Its now rock solid, from cold it drifts less than 100Hz (no display change) in the first 5 mins and then doesnt seem to move if i leave it on over night. I can not think of any other company that gives such good customer service.
Anyway the K1 is now fitted with the Auto ATU and battery options and it works great, well over 5 watts with the internal battery pack and very nice tone. If your looking for your next radio kit this should be it.This is my Third K1 and its going to stay here this time, well done Elecraft.
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