I like the way the way the VE7FMN heat sink I bought for my KX3 looks. Now that the PAs are on the side of the KX2, I just don't feel the same about the appearance of the heat sinks I've seen for it. Kind of look lopsided.
-Kevin (KK4YEL) ----- The problem with the world is that the intelligent people are full of doubts, while the stupid ones are full of confidence. On May 14, 2017, at 16:02, Kevin - K4VD <ke...@k4vd.net<mailto:ke...@k4vd.net>> wrote: Thanks Wayne. I bought the heat sink for the KX3 and found it wasn't needed for the way I operate. Seems the same for the KX2. Normal conditions don't require additional heatsinking. Extreme conditions might. 73, Kev K4VD On Sun, May 14, 2017 at 12:55 PM, Wayne Burdick <n...@elecraft.com<mailto:n...@elecraft.com>> wrote: Hi Kevin, We have shipped many thousands of KX2s, and in all that time I have seen only a few comments asking about additional heat sinking. The KX2’s thick right side panel is thermally integrated with both the top and bottom cover. This results in heat sinking that is entirely adequate in all modes at full power, even from a 14 volt external supply. When running from internal battery (11 V), heat dissipation is further reduced for a given power level. To put a rough number on this: I just ran my KX2 at 10 watts key-down in CW mode, into a dummy load, while watching the PA temperature (using the DISP switch function). It took well over 7 minutes for the temperature to reach the limit (63 C), at which point power was reduced automatically to 5 watts. If you persisted in operating key-down, the radio would eventually exit transmit mode. Starting temperature was 25 C (shack ambient). Additional heat sinking might be desirable if you’re going well beyond “typical” operation: e.g., trying to run full power key-down for many minutes at a time, repeatedly, in a hot car or in direct sunlight. In that case, you have other options besides using supplemental heat sinking: reduce power, run from a lower supply voltage (like the internal battery), move into the shade, roll down the car windows, etc. But for the overwhelming majority of our customers, the KX2’s thermal design is completely up to the task. Note that the heat sinking is intentionally designed to heat up the right end of the enclosure, so that when using the rig like an HT (holding the non-antenna end), you’ll barely feel any increase in warmth. 73, Wayne N6KR Kevin - K4VD wrote: From a recent post: "We have been told by people running the rig in digital modes at 10W the unit will thermal down after a few transmit cycles" I understand the KX3 also had an early issue with heatsinks that was corrected in time by the company making the aftermarket heatsink unnecessary I think? I wonder if Elecraft has acknowledged the issue and is correcting it for the KX2 also? ______________________________________________________________ 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 Message delivered to z_kev...@hotmail.com<mailto:z_kev...@hotmail.com> ______________________________________________________________ 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 Message delivered to arch...@mail-archive.com