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Reviews For: Ten-Tec 1300 series QRP kits

Category: QRP Radios (5 watts or less)

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Review Summary For : Ten-Tec 1300 series QRP kits
Reviews: 48MSRP: 119
Description:
Fine CW QRP transceiver; covers 60-70 KHz of band; with case
Product is in production
More Info: http://radio.tentec.com/kits/Transceiver
# last 180 days Avg. Rating last 180 days Total reviews Avg. overall rating
00484.3
HZ1SK Rating: 2009-01-17
Very nice Rig ! Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
Its really fun to build this kit.I built the 20m version 1320, had some problems at the beginning with testing the second phase..but the support of TEN TEC is really fantastic.So remember when buying a kit to look for support as well.One of the IC's got broken (my mistake Hi Hi ) but TEN TEC send me a replacement at no charge.

Pros :
- Very nice little rig
- Excellent sensitivity
- Rugged, the case is built like a Tank
- Clean output

Cons :
- The manual could be better,I don't know why TEN TEC doesn't have a high resolution PDF file!!
- its a bit difficult to adjust the VFO toroid.
- The usage of RCA plug for 13.8V is not recommended in my point of view.

In general,I highly recommend to build this kit.My first QSO was with the US N8II about 10600 KM away from my QTH in Jeddah - Saudi Arabia ..a Great QRP project.
I wrote an article about the rig in LASELKI.net

http://www.laselki.net/vb/showthread.php?t=3046


Best 73,

Samir
OD5SK , HZ1SK , KC5RYL
www.od5sk.com
www.Laselki.net
N6MUK Rating: 2009-01-06
Great Kit, Great Rig! Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
When I completed building and aligning my 1340 kit, I connected it to my stealth 40M attic dipole just to listen around the band and see if the receiver would work in the real world. Within 2 minutes I heard a VE7 calling CQ near 7040 kHz. Here in California, with a mere 3 Watts of RF at my command, Canada seems like rare DX so I returned his call. We had a great QSO. He was testing a new home brew Flea transmitter with only 900 mW output. So, not only did my TT 1340 work straight off the workbench, but it landed some QRP DX first the time out. Wow, I had a high for 2 days with that "first Novice QSO" feeling that I haven't had since QSO #1 in 1986! Oh I wish I had tried QRP sooner...

I received this kit from my wife as a Xmas gift. Construction is straight forward and the Ten Tec instructions, with the test as you go procedures, are just fine. I did not notice any discrepancies in the instruction diagrams about counting the turns of wire while winding the toroids like some others have mentioned; perhaps TT has updated the instructions to clarify this. I just followed the instruction book to the letter AND double and triple checked every move before I soldered each part in place. I caught myself with a part in the wrong place or a skipped step a few times!

I opted to build my 1340 without any of the modifications I've read about on the Internet. I figured I could add those changes later if necessary. Frankly, it seems pretty darn good as it is so I'm not too excited about tearing it apart to add mods at this point. I think Ten Tec knows what they are doing well enough.

Construction is not difficult but not trivial to be sure. This is not a first time builders kit. It is at least intermediate level, in my opinion. If you are a beginner, just do your best and budget some time and money to send your completed kit to Ten Tec to have it straightened out by their highly skilled technician. I know a newbie who did just this and he has a fine little rig. He also gained a wealth of electronic, radio and kit building knowledge in the process.

Regarding this Ten Tec kit, If something in the realm of Ham Radio can offer more fun for US$100, I would like someone to point it out to me please!

MM0AMV Rating: 2008-12-26
Pretty Good Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
I have just finished building a 1340 kit complete with all the recommended mods. Ten-tec's instructions and updates were spot on, and very easy to follow. Calibration took a while but was worth the effort. The radio worked first time, and is putting out around 5 watts. Audio quality is very good. Now I intend building a 1320 to keep it company.
EA5BLP Rating: 2008-12-02
A very good qrp RIG Time Owned: N.A.
I have just finished building the little 1330. After more than 10 years without touching the iron solder, i have enjoyed a lot with this kit. Is not complicated to build and alignement can be made only with another receiver and a normal tester. I have measured 4 watts on 30 m and compared with the receiver of TS 897, it has a great sensivity and a good selectivity. For the price, is a very good option. All the components are of a good quality. My only complain is the potentiometers, it´s easy to break one when assembling into the box. Be careful with it. Otherwise, a big fun for any QRPist!
73!
KB3RMX Rating: 2008-11-09
OK, BUT NOT THE BEST Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
I have built quite a few components in my time and I have to say that this rig was about the hardest to understand instruction wise. Most of the rigs that I have built uses step by step construction in detail, but the instructions for this series (1340) was very vage in procedure of what goes where.

Some of the steps will require you to perform installations of circuits that don't tell you where they go. I was very disappointed in the manual, very cheaply put together, not in order and hard to follow. I gave this a one because of price. As far as it being simple to put together, well thats up to your discretion.. Elecraft kits are much easier to put together and the instructions are very easy to follow.

As far as this rig is concerned, its going in the trash, I still can't get it tuned. Don't waste your money on this...save up and get Elecraft kits!!
K9EX Rating: 2008-03-06
Top Value QRP Xcvr Time Owned: 3 to 6 months.
I had such fun building and playing with the 20 meter version, reviewed below, that I decided to buy the 40 meter kit.

There's not much difference between the 1320 and 1340 from a kit building perspective (both output exactly 3 watts, have very quiet receiver sections, great QSK, etc.), although having also built an OHR 100A and a few other popular QRP kits recently, I must say that, considering the $100 price tag, these Ten-Tec kits are hands-down the best deal in a QRP transceiver - your $100 buys you the best performance, best design and highest quality at the best price vs the other offerings currently out there.

The Ten-Tec design is extremely stable - more so than the OHR 100A - this is probably helped by the rugged aluminum sub-chassis that is included and by the heavy-duty clamshell case. Also, the Ten-Tec assembly instructions are first class and the thoughtful, stage-by-stage testing builds confidence as you progress - very nice.

Receiver-wise, I might give a very slight nod to the OHR 100A but really, they are extremely close and since the OHR 100A is now approaching almost twice the cost of an equivalent Ten-Tec kit, it should be a lot better - it's really not, although the OHR 100A has twice the power output which generally does provide for more solid QSOs.

But, I prefer the Ten-Tec's RX xtal filtering to the OHR 100A and the receiver seems quieter. Also, in the QSK area, there is simply no comparison - the Ten-Tec QSK is head and shoulders above the OHR 100A and it is truly excellent - it's actually much better than the QSK in my contemporary main station rig and approaches the QSK of the legendary Heathkit HW-16 - it's that good.

If you are a beginning QRP kit builder, you may want to start with an MFJ Cub, which is well below the Ten-Tec in design and performance, yet much easier to build and get going. Having said that, the Ten-Tec kits are not completely out of the question for a beginner - they're just more complicated to build and tune.

For intermediate and beyond builders, these Ten-Tec kits should be at the top of your consideration list - they are an excellent value at $100!

----------------------
Earlier 5-star review posted by K9EX on 2007-03-07

I took my time and built the 20m version over several weeks of on-again/off-again building activity. And as I progressed, I tested each stage, as recommended. I ended-up with a fabulous 20m QRP transceiver with some great attributes.

I have only two very minor quibbles about the product.

First, for a better main tuning knob and to save the hassle of having to literally paint a white stripe on the supplied knob (with your paint - none supplied), consider swinging by Radio Shack and grabbing their "Communications Style Control Knob " (Radio Shack Model: 274-402). For $1.99, it not only looks a lot better than the stock knob, but it also fits the silk screening on the front panel better than the stock knob.

My 2nd quibble is slightly more serious. Toward the end of construction, be SURE to install the S0239 antenna connector on the rear chassis and solder the internal coax to it BEFORE you install the completed PCB into the chassis sub-assembly. The procedure for this is buried within an optional test portion of the assembly instructions and if you skip that optional section (like I did), then you'll have to mount the S0239 on the outside of the rear chassis (because it won't fit on the inside due to the final transistor heatsink along the rear edge of the PCB) and then you'll have the exact same difficult and time-consuming job I had soldering the internal coax to the S0239 because this step is (mistakenly) ommitted from the next, required section. (In short, just remember to solder and install the S0239 connector right before you mount the PCB in the chassis and you'll be fine.)

The completed product is very rewarding and totally worth the reasonable effort to build. Ten-Tec has always delivered exceptional value for the money and this kit is an prime example of that value. The PCB and cabinet are of high-quality and the instructions are excellent, despite the one hiccup I mentioned above. The receiver is very quiet and provides all the sensitivity you'll need to make tons of QSOs. I've been working lots of DX with it using a simple G5RV antenna up about 40 feet. (My unit outputs exactly 3 W into a perfect load.) Great job Ten-Tec!!
KB5JO Rating: 2006-05-16
Good deal Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
The T-1340 was my fourth QRP kit. It was more complex to construct and align than the others, containing more than twice as many parts. I cannot recommend it as a first build. With appropriate care the result was eventually a working transceiver. The instructions incorporate testing of each phase to insure the build is on the right path.

The receiver certainly has lots of gain, and easily drives the small speaker loud enough to produce xyl complaints. The transmitter power output is about 4 watts using a 12 VDC gel cell, nearly twice that of my other QRP rigs. The tuning range is also the widest, about 75 kHz. VFO stability seems good, with minimal drift after being powered for a few minutes. Keying is pleasant, without clicks or chirps, and of course is full QSK. None of the issues noted by others regarding oscillation of the PA, so have not modified the inductor placement. I discarded the RCA jacks in favor of more conventional key and power jacks.

The receiver noise level is somewhat higher than my others, and the CW filtering is wider (about 1kHz) than I prefer. RIT is included. I plan to incorporate a Freqmite to provide frequency readout.

I like the T-1340 better the longer I use it. For the low price, it produces good results.
NZ0T Rating: 2006-02-07
Fun kit! Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
I purchased the 1340 based on the good reviews here and I have not been disappointed. The kit arrived last Thursday and (after a few self-inflicted mistakes) I had it up and running by Sunday Evening. My only kit building experience was a few simple keyers and a rebuild of an old Heathkit HW-22A but I found the 1340 easy to build. I took my time, rechecked my work and performed all the intermediate tests. I did the C1 mod to take care of sidetone clicks and it was successful. Power out is about 3 watts though it's hard to measure on my 100 watt SWR meter.
I've already made several contacts with good reports and plan to use this rig to achieve QRP WAS.
I highly reccommend the 1340.
KI6AZS Rating: 2005-11-05
What a deal! Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
If you are new to ham radio and want some *cred* with the solder sniffers, go ahead and build this functioning ham radio that gets out and has a nice receiver to boot! It's not really difficult to complete, but it does demand your full attention. I took my time -- 9 or 10 hours a week, and completed it in about two and a half weeks.

If you plan on ever building the Elecraft K1 or K2 this kit is excellent practice. It has about 4 or 5 toroids to wind, and the PCB is quite large for a kit of this type.

The results are quite impressive. The rig really works well! You'd be surprised who'll hear you with just 4 watts and a dipole. Note that you should not skimp on the alignment process. Take your time and do it right.

This rig does have a tendency to go into oscillation. I have read how others solved this problem and now i offer you my own experience with oscillation. I cut back on the Transmitter Output filter coils, so the output was not at an absolute peak and tuned these shielded coils for minimum SWR rather than maximum output. I lost a few milliwatts, but the system stabilized. Also, don't neglect to use shielded cable to attach your keyer.

All in all, one satisfying kit!
PA5BAS Rating: 2004-02-03
1320: Great small rig! Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
I've just finished the 1320, and it works fine. There are several modifications available on the web to make it even better. Building this radio is great fun and very educational! The manual is good, but things are presented in a very strange order, so read first! Very nice printboard. Some low cost choices (dc jacks on the rear panel) are easily replaced by better types. Working with this radio is a pleasure! Easy DX: within one week after completion, I've worked VK land down under from the Netherlands, 14.000 kms, and several US hams - easy!

This radio is a real fun bargain! If you want to see what mine looks like with lots of modifications, and added NorCal keyer, please visit:

http://bas.thoen.info/gallery/QRP-trx-1320

See you on the qrp frequencies!

Best 73,

Bas PA5BAS