ELECRAFT KX3 User manual
ELECRAFTKX3
ULTRA-PORTABLE
160-6 METER,ALL-MODE TRANSCEIVER
KIT ASSEMBLY MANUAL
Revision G2, May 1, 2013
Copyright © 2013, Elecraft, Inc.
All Rights Reserved
Contents
Introduction ............................................................................................................................................... 1
Customer Service and Support ................................................................................................................. 1
Preventing Electrostatic Discharge Damage ............................................................................................ 3
Choosing an Anti-Static Mat ............................................................................................................................... 3
Overview of the Kit .................................................................................................................................. 4
Tools Required for Assembly ................................................................................................................... 5
Unpacking and Inventory ......................................................................................................................... 5
Assembly Procedure ................................................................................................................................. 7
Front Panel Assembly ......................................................................................................................................... 8
Bottom Cover Assembly ................................................................................................................................... 20
Final Assembly .................................................................................................................................................. 33
Setup and Operation ............................................................................................................................... 38
Appendix A Illustrated Parts List…..................................................................................................... A1
i Elecraft manuals with color images may be downloaded from
www.elecraft.com.
1
Introduction
This manual will guide you through assembly of your Elecraft KX3 transceiver. We’re confident that you’ll find
the KX3 easy to build, even if you’ve had no prior kit-building experience.
Every modern transceiver is complex, and the KX3 is no exception. But all of the circuits are contained on a few
factory-assembled and tested circuit boards. Also, virtually all of the alignment of your KX3 is handled in
firmware using the KX3’s built-in test capabilities.
Do not handle the circuit boards without first taking the ESD precautions listed on page 3.
If you should you have difficulty, you'll have our full support via phone and e-mail. In addition, we hope you'll
join our growing and enthusiastic community of owner/builders via the Elecraft reflector.
Further information about the Elecraft KX3, including specifications, installation, and operation instructions,
can be found in the Owner’s Manual.
Customer Service and Support
Technical Assistance
You can send e-mail to [email protected] and we will respond quickly – typically the same day
Monday through Friday. If you need replacement parts, send an e-mail to [email protected]. Telephone
assistance is available from 9 A.M. to 5 P.M. Pacific time (weekdays only) at 831-763-4211. Please use e-mail
rather than calling when possible since this gives us a written record of the details of your problem and allows us
to handle a larger number of requests each day.
Repair / Alignment Service
If necessary, you may return your Elecraft product to us for repair or alignment. (Note: We offer unlimited email
and phone support, so please try that route first as we can usually help you find the problem quickly.)
IMPORTANT: You must contact Elecraft before mailing your product to obtain authorization for the
return, what address to ship it to and current information on repair fees and turnaround times. (Frequently we
can determine the cause of your problem and save you the trouble of shipping it back to us.) Our repair location
is different from our factory location in Aptos. We will give you the address to ship your kit to at the time of
repair authorization. Packages shipped to Aptos without authorization will incur an additional shipping charge
for reshipment from Aptos to our repair depot.
2
Elecraft 1-Year Limited Warranty
This warranty is effective as of the date of first consumer purchase (or if shipped from the factory, the date
the product i s shipped to the custo mer). It covers both our kits and fully assembled products. For kits,
before requesting warranty service, you should fu lly complete the assem bly, carefully following all
instructions in the manual.
Who is covered: This warranty covers the original owner of the Elecraft pro duct as disclosed to Elecraft
at the time of order. Elecraft products transferred by the purchaser to a third party , either by sale, gift, or
other method, who is not disclosed to Elecraft at the time of original order, are not covered by this
warranty. If the Elecraft p roduct is being bou ght indirectly for a third party, the third party’s nam e and
address must be provided at time of order to ensure warranty coverage.
What is covered: During the first y ear after date of purchase, Elecraft will replace defective or missing
parts free of charge (post-paid). We will also correct any malfunction to kits or assembled units caused by
defective parts and materials. Purchaser pays inbound shipping to us for warranty repair; we pay shipping
to return the repaired equipment to y ou by UPS ground service or equivalent to the continental USA and
Canada. For Alaska, Hawaii, and other destinations outside the U.S. a nd Canada, actual return shipping
cost is paid by the owner.
What is not covered: This warranty does not cover correction of kit asse mbly errors. It also does n ot
cover misalignment; repair of damage caused by misuse, negligence, battery leakage or corrosion, or
builder modifications; or any performance malfunctions involving non-Elecraft accessory equipment. The
use of acid-core solder, water-soluble flux solder, or any corrosive or conductive flux or solvent will void
this warranty in its entirety. Also not covered is re imbursement for loss of use, inconvenience, custo mer
assembly or alignment time, or cost of unauthorized service.
Limitation of incidental or consequential damages: This warranty does not extend to non-Elecraft
equipment or co mponents used in conjunction with our products. Any such repair or replacement is the
responsibility of the customer. Elecraft will not be liable for any special, indirect, incidental or
consequential damages, including but not limited to any loss of business or profits.
3
Preventing Electrostatic Discharge Damage
Sensitive components may be damaged by Electrostatic Discharge (ESD) simply by touching them or a circuit
board containing them unless you take specific steps to prevent such damage. Damage may occur with static
discharges far too little for you to notice.
A damaged component may not fail completely at first. Instead, the damage may result in below-normal
performance for an extended period of time before you experience a total failure.
Parts which are especially ESD-sensitive are identified in the parts list and in the assembly procedures.
We strongly recommend you take the following anti-static precautions (listed in order of importance) to ensure
there is no voltage difference between the components and any object that touches them:
Leave ESD-sensitive parts in their anti-static packaging until you install them. The packaging may be a
special plastic bag that allow static charges to flow harmlessly over their surface, or a component’s
leads may be inserted in conductive foam that keep them at the same potential.
Wear a conductive wrist strap with a series 1-megohm resistor that will constantly drain off any static
charge that accumulates on your body. If you do not have a wrist strap, touch a ground briefly before
touching any sensitive parts to discharge your body. Do this frequently while you are working. You can
collect a destructive static charge on your body just sitting at the work bench.
WARNING
DO NOT attach a ground directly to yourself without a current-limiting resistor as this poses a
serious shock hazard. A wrist strap must include a 1-megohm resistor to limit the current flow. If
you choose to touch an unpainted, metal ground to discharge yourself, do it only when you are
not touching live circuits with any part of your body.
Use a grounded anti-static mat on your work bench (see below).
If you pick up a pc board that was not placed on an anti-static mat or in an anti-static package, touch
first a ground plane connection on the board such as a connector shell or mounting point.
If you use a soldering iron to work on a circuit board, be sure your iron has an ESD-safe grounded tip
tied to the same common ground used by your mat and wrist strap.
Choosing an Anti-Static Mat
An anti-static mat must bleed off any charge that comes in contact with it at a rate slow enough to avoid a shock
or short circuit hazard but fast enough to ensure dangerous charges cannot accumulate. Typically, a mat will
have a resistance of up to 1 Gigaohm (109 ohms). Testing a mat requires specialized equipment, so we
recommend that you choose an anti-static mat that comes with published resistance specifications and clean it as
recommended by the manufacturer. Testing has shown that many inexpensive mats that do not specify their
resistance have resistance values much too high to provide adequate protection, even after they were cleaned
and treated with special anti-static mat solutions.
Suitable anti-static table mats are available from many sources including:
U-line (Model 12743 specified at 107 ohms)
Desco (Model 66164, specified at 106 to 108 ohms)
3MTM Portable Service Kit (Model 8505 or 8507, specified at 106 to 109 ohms)
4
Overview of the Kit
The KX3 has a two part enclosure that opens for access to the batteries and for adding options. Figure 1 shows
the assembled KX3 with the enclosure open.
Figure 1. Complete KX3.
All of the basic KX3 circuits are contained on the two larger pc boards: the Control Panel (CP) board in the top
cover and the Radio Frequency (RF) circuit board in the bottom cover. Options plug into these boards, such as
the KXAT3 ATU and the KXFL3 filter shown here..
5
Tools Required for Assembly
1. ESD Protection (see Preventing Electrostatic Discharge Damage, pg 3)
2. #0 and #1 size Phillips screwdrivers. To avoid damaging screws and nuts, a power screwdriver is not
recommended. Always use the screwdriver that best fits the screw in each step. You may need a second
screwdriver for tightening certain screws (see page 32)
3. Needle-nose pliers, 4” to 6” is ideal.
4. Soft cloth or clean, soft static dissipating pad to lay cabinet panels on to avoid scratching.
5. Tweezers are handy for positioning parts in cramped spaces.
6. Straight-edge rule for checking clearances (see Figure 13, pg 13) . If a straight edge rule is not available,
you may use the edge of the KX3 heat sink.
7. Flush cutters (or sharp knife) for trimming nylon screws to length (see Figure 31, pg 23)
8. 3/16 nut driver (optional for mounting standoffs).
Unpacking and Inventory
CAUTION
Do not handle the circuit boards without anti-static protection! Doing so may damage
sensitive components. See Preventing Electrostatic Discharge Damage on page 3 for important
information handling the boards.
Before starting construction, do a complete inventory, comparing the parts in your kit with the parts list in
Appendix A, to familiarize yourself with all of the parts and to ensure the kit is complete. When inventorying,
look in the sealed envelopes to identify their contents, but not mix them up. A paper clip or piece of tape will
hold the envelopes closed after you check their contents. Note that a few extras of some screws, nuts and
washers may have been included on purpose.
All dimensions given in the assembly procedure are provided in both US Customary (often called English) and
metric measurements. The native dimensions of the parts are in US Customary units. Approximate metric
equivalents are given to assist those more familiar with the metric system to identify the correct parts.
6
Screws
A number of different types and sizes of screws and washers are used in the assembly. It is very important that
you use the screw specified in each location or your finished KX3 may not fit together properly. In some places,
using the wrong size screw may damage components. The following various screw types and sizes specified in
the text are shown in Figure 2. Images are shown for comparing relative sizes. Due to the printing process used,
they may not be exactly to scale. The lengths of the screws called for in the text are measured as shown.
Figure 2. Screws Used to Assemble Your KX3.
Standoffs
A number of threaded standoffs are used. As with the screws and washers, be sure you use the correct size as
specified in the text. Standoff lengths are measured as shown in Figure 3. Standoffs with 2-56 and 4-40 threads
are used in the kit.
Figure 3. Typical Standoffs.
7
Assembly Procedure
IMPORTANT ASSEMBLY INFORMATION
Check off the steps as you finish each one. Skipping a step is easy to do without taking a moment
to be certain that you completed the previous step. This can result in serious damage to your KX3
or, as a minimum, having to disassemble it to correct the mistake.
Use your rule to check the length of screws and standoffs before installing them. Some
components are only 1/16” different from others but using the wrong size may result in parts not
fitting correctly, possibly damaging electrical and mechanical components. See Screws and
Standoffs on pg 6 for measurement instructions.
Start all the screws in an assembly before tightening. When mounting parts with multiple screws
or adjacent parts that fit together, start all the screws in the threads before tightening any of them. If
you find that a screw is binding, loosen the other screws to free it, and then re-tighten.
Ensure all screws are tight but do not over-tighten. Do not attempt to turn screws and nuts
beyond the point at which the lock washer is compressed. Screws without lock washers should be
tightened only until you feel significant resistance to further turning. Do not attempt to turn screws
or nuts 1/4 turn beyond “tight”.
Threads can be easily stripped if too much force is applied when tightening screws. Use the
correct size hand tool and apply only moderate torque. Do not use a power screwdriver!
Do not adjust the turns on any toroids. The position of the turns on the cores of many toroids has
been adjusted at the factory to produce exactly the inductance needed for the circuit to work
properly. Any attempt to adjust their position or to make a coil look “nicer” may seriously degrade
circuit performance.
Remember your ESD protection. Failure to observe ESD precautions may result in your KX3 not
operating at all, or operating but not meeting normal factory performance specifications due to
damaged components. See Preventing Electrostatic Discharge Damage on pg 3.
Handle PC Boards by their Edges. Avoid unnecessary mechanical stress on any pc board
components by careless handling.
8
Front Panel Assembly
Inspect the inside surface and tabs at the ends of the KX3 front panel sheet metal and remove the masking
tape from the areas shown in Figure 4. Failure to provide good electrical contact at all the points shown may
seriously degrade the performance of your KX3. The tape is not ordinary masking tape. It is a strong plastic
tape. You can loosen most pieces by pushing a blunt tool through the hole from the other side. The Allen wrench
supplied for mounting the VFO knob will fit the smaller holes. If the tape breaks, you can grab the broken edges
with your needle nose pliers and peel it off. Optionally, you can press on the edge of the tape with your
fingernail or blunt tool (Figure 5) to peel up the edge of the tape enough to grab an edge with your needle nose
pliers. If you find any adhesive residue left behind, place a piece of ordinary cellophane tape on the area and
then peel it off. The residue will generally come off with the tape.
Figure 4. Front Panel Clean Contact Areas.
Figure 5. Removing Masking Tape.
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5
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