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Thread | Thread Starter | Forum | Replies | Last Post |
Emergency kit checklist | PalmettoTree | Disaster Preparedness General Discussion | 8 | 09-12-2018 11:21 PM |
CS series radio kit - low cost SSB portable xceiver | DKR | Communications | 4 | 06-24-2018 03:31 PM |
Scenario: You have to hike INTO city after major SHTF | Dock | Disaster Preparedness General Discussion | 176 | 10-09-2017 04:10 PM |
Backpacking kit updated... | ROCK6 | Wilderness Survival, Hiking and Camping Forum | 56 | 05-03-2017 01:23 PM |
72+ hour kit - NOT an INCH bag | MedicineMan | Disaster Preparedness General Discussion | 4 | 03-23-2017 11:14 PM |
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![]() Has anyone had personal experience with this kit, or similar. I was kind of thinking that this kit, along with an amplifier kit, tuner kit would make a very interesting Go-Box radio kit. That, lithium ion battery pack and solar charge controller could be very interesting.
There isn't much in the way of reviews or youtube videos. I thought it could be interesting and thought I would ask you guys. https://www.ebay.com/itm/6-band-HF-S...TFLt:rk:1:pf:1 |
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![]() Yeah, I heard of that uBITx. A lot of people really liked that radio. I could just imagine opening a little case, and having plain circuit boards that you built as a radio/tuner/amplifier that looks like a hot mess. It is more something that is fairly cheap that can work on the soldering and such.
Thanks for your input. I only ordered the one 70 watt amplifier that quite a few people have reviewed and tested. The radio looks like a fun project, but I have the same concerns you mentioned. |
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![]() I have no experience with that particular kit. So what follows is nothing but first glance guesses and assumptions. Call it a list of questions to answer.
As DKR says, it is a lot SMD stuff, as well as some thru hole. I would say this is definitely not a first timers kit. Exactly as DKRs question, how do you plan on addressing the building techniques required? Do you have the requisite skill and tools? If not, do you have the patience required to use or learn alternate methods? Such a board can be soldered using a fine tip, low wattage, iron and magnifying glass, but it can be tedious. What is required in support of this board? Obviously, power supply. What about DDS/ VFO? It seems to have one, but the schematic is not clear enough for me to be sure. What power level out of the board can you expect? Will that drive the amplifier you want to use? Is it legal for sale / purchase, or do you care about that? Yes, kits do require certification, at least Part 15 if not Part 97, if they are being commercially sold or if distributed in number (I think the number is 10 or more, but not sure). This goes back as a core issue in DKRs question of spectral purity and also its status as an unintentional radiator. If you use it you (not the kit marketer) are responsible for meeting the required technical standards. But part of the Part 15 certification process would establish if the basic kit, when properly built, can meet at least some of those standards. With that said, it is a tempting toy to play with. If you have the required skills to build it I would think it would have at least some value. I am tempted to grab one and see what kind of digital beacon it might make. T! |
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I would question the quality of the product. The company is an "unknown entity". A known company here in the States is MFJ Enterprises. Known quality and reliability. Amplifier : http://www.mfjenterprises.com/Produc...uctid=XPA-125B Xcvr: http://www.mfjenterprises.com/Produc...oductid=YHB-1B The company also sells single band SSB xcvrs. Trust you are a licensed Amateur Radio Operator. |
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As to the transceiver, I'd search around the internet to see if anyone has reviewed it. Even if you get it built it may be a poor design. It requires winding your own coils. Do you have the test equipment that's needed to troubleshoot at a detailed level? |
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![]() I do not have the set skills, and was thinking a cheap project with a lot of them could be an interesting learning experience. I am a licensed ham, extra class and VE. I was just curious if anyone had any experience. I just started kit building a while ago with the pixie then a little tuner. I asked here because there isnt much out there. The youtube videos look good, but there isnt much and could be self made propaganda type videos. As for spectrum i can almost guarentee it isnt perfect. I couldnt even find the output power data. Again, why i asked here. Just looked like a fun tinker project that could have value in an emergency. One of those things you tinker with and sits until you need it. Thanks for the input.
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I have 6 Baofeng radios. All worked out of the box and are still working. I have about 20 MFJ products with 15 having issues that either needed repair, parts, or in one case I redesigned part of it. I bought one of their fiberglass masts. Was missing a part. The replacement they sent was also wrong. Third time was the charm. I don't recommend most MFJ products to hams unless they are skilled repair technicians. |
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![]() Even fewer have the test equipment that's needed for serious trouble shooting, even proper alignment.
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![]() You guys are right. What is upsetting is that at the last hamfest I went to, there was a lot of vintage, but still worked test equipment. I was debating on purchasing, but was going to wait and see if other stuff popped out. I spent my money and couldn't get the test equipment. The seller left with it, so maybe it'll be there next year. lol.
I am working on some smaller, less detailed kits. I was just curious, and looks like it could be intruguing. Something I thought about buying and storing for now as I am working on kit building skills. I kind of wish the bigger companies still made affordable kits. They have been a good time so far. |
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You could build something like Bob Heil's pine board. I used to have many books on simple circuits. Transistor and tube. That aren't hard to build. I'll have to see if I have any left in the attic. What types of kits are you interested in? |
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![]() QRP Labs QSX - looks to be worth waiting for -
https://qrp-labs.com/qsx.html The little single band xcever QCX (https://qrp-labs.com/qcx.html) would be a good starter kit and has built in test equipment for alignment etc. |
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![]() That does look pretty interesting. Looks like it would be very interesting on SOTA activations and such. I was looking at one time at the SDR Cube, which I later decided to go with the Xeigu X108G. There were a lot of delays in enclosures and there was supposed to be an all band TX card in the works, but still hasn't been made. I was looking at this like 2 years ago, and was looking forward to it.
The QRP Labs looks nice, and will be on my radar. I can only wonder, as of now, at what price point it will be at. There is a lot there, and 10W can be useful, even now. 20W has gotten my across the US, and that was using a highly compromised buddipole. |
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![]() Also look at the Bitx40. See it here: http://www.hfsignals.com/index.php/bitx40-buy/
The PC board is already assembled and tested. You must provide the case and assemble the controls and external connections. I've had one for about 6 months now and just love it! $59.00 delivered. The kits are assembled and tested by a group of collective women workers in India, not some Chinese mega-maker. It uses an Arduino processor and the ROM code is open source. Lots of really great updated code out there and a ton of people are hacking it and making upgrades. It has a large following and there is a lot of free support from groups and individuals online. See: https://www.eham.net/reviews/detail/13221 And: https://groups.io/g/BITX20/topics |
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The manuals are absolutely terrible for this radio. It used to be you'd get a tool or a radio, flip it over and see "Made in Japan" on the bottom and think "Aw man, total carp".. Nowadays, you flip it over and see "Made in Japan" and think "Thank god it's not made in China." Funny how time changes. |
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I've had Baofengs for a while and, unit recently, never spent much time with them other than programing a few channels on Chirp and getting into memory scan mode. But the last ones I got were Radioditty with good manuals. I spent an evening with the manual and it turned out it wasn't too bad to figure it out. Even did squelch adjustments and other feature changes. I just had to tune in to their approach. Now that I understand it the Radioditty Baofeng is usually the first I take on an outing. |
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