Ham Radio Kits
Double Your Pleasure!

Ham radio kits bring the greatest sense of accomplishment there is ... well, OK, working DX on QRP is highly satisfying too!:-)

Kit parts

This Page Covers

The Bonus in Kits

My Recommendation

Kit Manufacturers

Brag About Yours

Yes! Amateur radio kits do indeed provide double-action pleasure.

1. You obtain a valuable piece of equipment at a very affordable price.
2. You build it yourself ... and it works!

I built my first kit in 1973, a Heathkit Morse Code Practice oscillator.

(The no-morse-code license did not exist back then!)

HW-101 Transceiver Kit (Source Eham.net)

Then, I graduated to building the Heathkit HW-101 transceiver in 1974, just in time to go on the air with my newly obtained ham radio license.

I was hooked on kits by then ... and I still am!

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Ham Radio Kits
Come With A Bonus

There is an added bonus to the advantages already mentioned in the introduction above.

That extra feature is worth money! It is also an extra source of satisfaction that commercially built equipment can never bring.

In short, you get a lot of value for your hard earned money by building your own equipment from professionally designed and engineered amateur radio kits.

Nowadays, ham radio kits are easier to build and more reliable than ever. The most critical and hard to assemble parts are pre-assembled and tested. An example are the modules that use surface-mount components.

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My Recommendation

Make sure you learn how to solder components properly before you start building your first kit! There are many soldering tutorials available on the Web. Only a few are worth recommending. Here are three of my favorites. Each of them cover soldering from a different point of view.

Start with a simple kit, like an accessory for your ham radio station. Then, if you like the experience, don't be afraid to graduate to more complex projects.

Why not plunge into the wonderful world of Software Defined Radio (SDR)?

• Look into the Softrock Lite II Project and the latest info on the Softrock RXTX V6.3 Software Defined Radio transceiver. You will find it more than interesting!
• The Softrock family of QRP kits are available from KB9YIG.

Worthy of mention here is the new Elecraft KX3 10W XCVR which is available in "modular" form. It allows operation on 160 to 6 meters in the following modes: SSB, CW, Data (RTTY, PSK), AM, FM.

Even if you do buy commercially made, factory assembled and tested equipment later on, you will find that you will always have a special attachment - a "soft spot" - for the ham radio kits you built yourself.

This is especially true if your commercial rig breaks down and needs repair by a specialist.

In the meantime, you can always fall back on your "old reliables" to get back on the air! :-)

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Ham Radio Kit Manufacturers

Most of the manufacturers listed below produce kits of low to moderate complexity. They come with generally clear instructions. Therefore, anyone - able to handle a soldering iron adequately - should have no trouble assembling them.

Midway Electronics
http://www.midwayelectronics.us/qrp/index.html

7726 Main Street, Middletown, VA 22645

• They offer three QRP kits: ME Series QRP Transceivers
  ME40+ ME80+ ME30+
• The kits come with above average documentation and a (quote) "No B.S. Warranty".
  

EMTECH
http://steadynet.com/emtech/

PO Box 296, Tracyton, WA 98393-0296 USA

• NW Series Monoband CW Transceiver (80, 40, 30, 20 meters)
• ZM-2 ATU (Antenna Tuning Unit)

FiveDashInc
http://fivedash.com/

Home of the famous SoftRock family of software defined ham radio QRP RCVR and XCVR kits.

Bliss Radio QRP Kits
http://www.nitehawk.com/blissradio/

Sean Gordon, KA7MWL, PO Box 3141 Sedona, Az. 86340 Phone: 505-469-8109 and 928-300-2599

QRPme
http://www.qrpme.com/

PO Box 160, Limerick, Maine 04048 USA

Rex, W1REX, is a one-man part-time business operator. He offers QRP transceivers, receivers and transmitters and fun accessories. Home of the "The 'Rock-Mite ][' Transceiver " - A Simple CW transceiver for 80,40,30 or 20 Meters.

HamCrafters
http://www.hamcrafters.com/

Makers of electronic keyer kits since 1997.

Radio Kits Co. UK
http://www.radio-kits.co.uk/

Makers of the Hunter - SDR Receiver / Panadapter and MKARS80 Transceiver kit.

Spectrum Communications
http://www.spectrumcomms.co.uk/Amateur.htm

Located at 12 Weatherbury Way, Dorchester, Dorset, DT1 2EF, England

A source of unique kits for amateur radio. Worth investigating.

http://www.kitsandparts.com/

2866 Deer Hound Way, Palm Habor, FL 34683 USA

They offer RF toolkits that are designed to be electronic building blocks. Think of these small kits as a "QRP Erector Set".

Quasar Electronics
http://www.quasarelectronics.co.uk/

PO Box 6935, BISHOPS STORTFORD, Hertfordshire CM23 4WP UK

Almost 300 kits to choose from. For hobbyists, education and industrial applications.

SOTABEAMS
http://www.sotabeams.co.uk/

89 Victoria Road, Macclesfield, Cheshire SK10 3JA, UK

They make amateur radio antennas and kits "for the great outdoors".

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73 de VE2DPE
Claude Jollet
7, Rue de la Rive, Notre-Dame-des-Prairies, Québec, Canada J6E 1M9

QTH Locator: FN36gb