Lee, I'm with Keith's immediate solution. Waiting a year or two to get on the HF is a long time. There are plenty of seasoned hams with HF gear collecting dust that'll get you on the HF bands. In my area it is not uncommon to get a loaner HF rig or one at a very reasonable price. You'll be On The Air. One of the local fellows I've been Elmering borrowed an IC-745 that was collecting dust. He did buy it a month or so later at a very reasonable price. It has been a year since he's had the IC-745 and he's come a long way from August 2011. He's become quite proficient on CW, worked WAS, has 54 DXCC entities under his belt & more! Soooooooo, why wait! Get a loaner, put up a G5RV wire antenna, drive in a ground rod, connect it up to your radio and get on the air. You can find information on a G5RV all over the "net". If you must have 2 meter mobile, find yourself a used piece of gear for $100. You should be able to find a FT-1802M for that. It's reliable and easy to use. Four years ago I bought one new for $139.00. There are also other pieces of 2M mobile gear out there that won't break your bank. When the time comes and you're ready to spend bigger dollars, buy the K3 or K2; both are excellent pieces of gear. They were both characterized beautifully in the email that was sent to you by Fred Jensen, K6DGW. 73, Dick, K2ZR K2 #6557 now a K2/100 w/KAT100-1 (Thanks Vic) ICOM IC-765 ( Oldie but Goodie HF Rig ) Yaesu FT-900AT ( Use it for HF mobile often ) ARRL "OO" ARRL WNY ASM FOC CWops Western NY DX Association Cold Brook Contest Club Western NY Contest Club QRPARCI #957 Pounding Brass Since March 19th,1962
Keith Heimbold wrote: >Lee, > >I would pick up a beginners HF rig from an old ham in the neighborhood for >cheap and save up for the K3. > >Look around and find a couple Elmers where you live and see what they can help >you put a system together. Hang dipole and have some fun. A QRP rig could be >a nice option but personally I would go crazy waiting two years to get on the >air. You should be able to get something going as you save for the K3. > >Good luck! > >Keith >AG6AZ > >Sent from my iPhone please excuse typos > >On Aug 8, 2012, at 9:41 AM, "Lee Herbst" <lcher...@gmail.com> wrote: > > > >>My situation is this, single income family with 4 kids. I have to save >>for anything I want. I just got my ticket in June. I am currently not >>on the air, but saving for a 2m mobile to get me started. >> >>Realistically I can only save for one HF xcvr. I chose Elecraft based >>on lurking on this reflector and learning about their excellent >>support - I don't think I can go wrong buying from these guys. >>However, I don't know if I should save for a K2 or a K3. I think it >>will take me about a year to save for the base K2 kit or about 2 years >>to save for the base K3 kit. I need to make sure that whichever I get, >>it will be something I am happy with for a long time as I would not be >>able to afford to replace it. >> >>I would like to operate cw and ssb, but cw only would be fine until I >>could afford the ssb option if I went for the K2. I am intrigued by >>building a K2 (I am handy with a soldering iron), but on the other >>side of the coin it seems like you get a lot more radio with the K3. >>So, if you were in my shoes, which would you save for? On the air >>sooner with a K2 or waiting longer for a K3? All input is most >>welcome. >> >>73, >> >>-- >>Lee Herbst - AK4WN >> >>"Give God your best and let Him do the rest" - Facing the Giants >>______________________________________________________________ >>Elecraft mailing list >>Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft >>Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm >>Post: mailto:Elecraft@mailman.qth.net >> >>This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net >>Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html >> >> >______________________________________________________________ >Elecraft mailing list >Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft >Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm >Post: mailto:Elecraft@mailman.qth.net > >This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net >Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html > > > > ______________________________________________________________ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:Elecraft@mailman.qth.net This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html
