Universal HF Receiver

Diz, W8DIZ has a new offering - a Universal HF receiver. The price is $20 for the main board and each band module is $10.  Looks to be a nice kit, modestly priced that will allow you to have some fun and do some experimenting.  Diz offers suggestions for implementing a digital display and the like.

It's nice to see so may low priced, high quality kits being offered, especially through the QRP community. I saw a post by Hans Summers from QRP Labs, that he has sold over 4,000 QCX kits. Bob W3BBO raves about his and Dave AA7EE had good words to say as well.  Two very highly  respected opinions that are inching me closer and closer towards sending Hans some $$ in order to build one myself. The only question would be 40 or 20 Meters?

It's hard to believe that Easter Sunday is this coming weekend. When I opened the door this morning to leave for work, it was only 24F (-4C) and there was frost all over the car windows. It feels more like mid-Winter than Spring. To add insult to injury, I saw where AccuWeather is posting about a polar vortex for the first week of April that will keep the Northeast in temperatures well below normal.

I'm itching to start bringing the radio gear with me to work, so that I can resume lunch time QRP operations again. As I get older, it gets tougher for me to deal with colder temps. Back when I was working at Sinar Bron some 11 or 12 years ago, I was headed out to the parking lot just about every day at lunch time, no matter what time of year it was. Cold temperatures didn't seem to phase me as much as they do now. My knees and hands seem to work much better in temperate weather.

Tonight, our Technician License class concludes with the exam being administered. One student gave it a go early and got her license a few weeks ago at a local VE session.  It was very gratifying to see her enthusiasm and excitement when she came in last week to tell us all about it. I think it also helped alleviate some of the jitters that some other classmates may be experiencing. It's always easier when it's all over; but I really, truly do expect a 100% passing rate tonight.  This is one of the best groups of students that it's been my honor to have instructed.

72 de Larry W2LJ
QRP - When you care to send the very least!