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Author Topic: all-band CW transceiver  (Read 658 times)

K4WK

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all-band CW transceiver
« on: November 08, 2021, 05:28:13 AM »

Looking around for a small and lightweight CW XCVR for hiking, backpacking portable ops.  40, 30 and 20m would be ideal.  All mode transceivers exist but what about CW only.  Do you know of a good one?  Many thanks. 
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K5LXP

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Re: all-band CW transceiver
« Reply #1 on: November 08, 2021, 06:51:13 AM »

I bought an ATS III a good 15 years ago now and it has been my primary backpacking rig.  A modern descendant of it is the LNR Mountaintopper series of rigs.

Mark K5LXP
Albuquerque, NM
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KL7CW

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Re: all-band CW transceiver
« Reply #2 on: November 08, 2021, 09:57:06 PM »

I would look at the LNR rigs.  The MTR 3B is very small and light.  The best spec. is that it draws only 35 ma on RX which is very important and only about 1/2 amp on TX. I have found that a power of 2 to 5 watts is plenty for me on many of my QRP expeditions since the 1950's and 20 and 40 meters have been the bread and butter bands.  So 40,30,20 meters and 2.5 watts should satisfy many of your requirements.  My favorite QRP rig for the last 15 years has been my Elecraft KX1 which I usually run on the internal batteries and the 1.5 to 2 watts has proved very satisfactory for most of my operations in the field, especially years ago when the sun actually had some spots. For your type of operation the 500 Hz filter should be very acceptable and I often prefer something between perhaps 400 to 1000 Hz as a good compromise for casual operation, not in a crowded contest from the home QTH.  I do not have a LNR but I built a similar rig with push button tune and frequency input with the paddle.  I was about 75 years old at the time, but found it easy to master this instead of a knob VFO and even used it in a contest and I could quickly go to a frequency with the paddle then move around with the push button.  The ham I built it for could not master how to work it so he donated it back to me.  The disadvantage of something like the 3B is that there is no built in battery and no built in antenna tuner.  For me these were important since putting up resonant antennas or having an extra item with the external battery was not what I wanted.  These things may or may not be important to you.  When 15 and 17 meters open up more, these could be very good bands.  Some years ago I had a one watt home brew rig on 15 meters.  I easily made good QSO's, usually 2000 to 4000 miles, in fact I was more successful than on 20 meters when I ran 4 watts.  Part of the reason was that on 15 and 17 it is less crowded and the WARC bands do not have contest QRM, but bands higher in frequency than 20 meters are open many fewer hours a month. Many folks prefer a full 5 W QRP rig, and there are times when I also wished for a extra dB or two.
        I now have a KX2, but it is expensive and much heavier than minimal rigs.  I probably will not take it on long hikes or on our trips to Europe, etc. since for me ham radio is not my main reason for traveling, but visiting family and friends in several countries and states is my priority.  With a very small light rig, I can take it along and if I find I have an extra hour or so once in awhile great, but if not that is fine also.  I may buy one of the very light rigs if the KX1 gets too big or heavy !!                        Have fun, enjoy your portable CW operations.  It has been the highlight of my 67 year ham career.               Rick  KL7CW
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VE7EA

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Re: all-band CW transceiver
« Reply #3 on: April 20, 2022, 11:42:37 AM »

I have a YouKit HB-1B (latest version). 40-15m. Have used it for many SOTA activations. Great little radio for a reasonable price. A 3x18650 battery pack easily fits inside.
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W0RW

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Re: all-band CW transceiver
« Reply #4 on: April 20, 2022, 12:45:04 PM »

i just got a Penntek TR-35 Kit.

   The TR-35 is a QRP, 5W;  40, 30, 20, 17 Meter, Rig.
See  http://www.wa3rnc.com/store/
Works great.. The display is a bit hard to see in bright sunlight.
Paul  w0rw
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W7LB

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Re: all-band CW transceiver
« Reply #5 on: April 20, 2022, 01:37:52 PM »

The Hendricks PFR-3B is a nice little field radio for CW that covers 40, 30 and 20.  Its main distinguishing feature is that it has a built-in tuner for coax or twin-lead.  I have one that I am not using if you are interested.  Check it out.
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KL7CW

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Re: all-band CW transceiver
« Reply #6 on: April 20, 2022, 02:15:35 PM »

I have a PFR 3A and it may be the best rig for some folks.  On the plus side is the reasonable cost and it is an easy build.  It puts out a full 5 watts with the internal AA cells, and the internal manual tuner can tune many lengths of random wires and coax fed dipoles, etc.  I have used it with approximately a half wave wire thrown up in a tree or on a roof, with only a short counterpoise wire....no coax required.  On the negative side is that it is larger and heavier than some minimal rigs, but since it includes both internal batteries and a wide range tuner, this may still be acceptable.  If you want nearly everything in one rig and do not want to spend big money, this may be the rig for you.  It is not my main QRP rig since I prefer others, but, could be happy with it as my only QRP rig.  The fixed sharp CW BW may bother some folks and the 3B, I believe has a real knob for tuning.  The PFR rigs have plenty of room inside for modifications, and the circuit board is spread out enough to make modifications.  Some folks have even added an internal speaker, perhaps with an audio amp, and other mod's such as touch key circuits.    Good Luck
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NM5S

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Re: all-band CW transceiver
« Reply #7 on: April 20, 2022, 03:26:25 PM »

My suggestion for a very affordable ($188) and capable CW only rig for portable use is the Venus SW-3B. It puts out 5W on 20, 30, and 40m. Very small and lightweight. I've done hundreds of SOTA activations with mine. Very pleased with the filtering and the receiver in general.
https://www.venus-itech.com/product/sw-3b-qrp-cw-transceiver/
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W0CKI

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Re: all-band CW transceiver
« Reply #8 on: April 20, 2022, 05:25:05 PM »

Check out WA3RNC. He has good rigs in a simple kit or wired and tested.
Gary
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