In the chaos of the past two months, I managed to post a few field reports out of chronological order. I’m probably the only one who notices—these aren’t sequential stories, after all—but since I was there for each activation, it feels odd when the timeline’s off.
Case in point: you might recall this recent post where I shared how I finally landed an Elecraft K1 field-portable transceiver. I’d been hunting for a K1 for years, so I was thrilled when this one popped up locally in North Carolina.
Last month, I published this field report where I paired the K1 with my AX1 antenna for a low-profile (but high-performance) activation in Pisgah National Forest.
But here’s the thing: that was actually my second activation with the venerable K1. The first one? It took place along the Blue Ridge Parkway on February 24, 2025.
Taking the K1 to the Field!
It’s always exciting to take a new radio to the field—especially one I’d been chasing for so long. I purchased the K1 back in August of last year. As soon as it arrived, I tested it and realized it was in serious need of alignment.
I brought it over to my friend Vlado (N3CZ), hoping to use his signal generator to sort it out. Unfortunately, we didn’t have time that day, so I left the rig at his QTH. Then Hurricane Helene hit, and… well, suddenly it was 2025.
We finally got around to the alignment in February. As soon as it was dialed in, I hit the field.
Blue Ridge Parkway (US-3378)
I made my way to a familiar spot along the Blue Ridge Parkway—the Folk Art Center—and set up the K1.
Mine is a four-bander (40, 30, 20, and 15 meters) with both the optional internal ATU and AA battery pack. To give the internal tuner a little workout, I paired it with my trusty Tufteln 9:1 End-Fed Random Wire antenna.
Once deployed, I hit the ATU button, and the K1 quickly found a solid 1:1 match. With logs at the ready, it was time to hit the airwaves!
Gear
Note: All Amazon, CW Morse, ABR, Chelegance, eBay, and Radioddity links are affiliate links that support QRPer.com at no cost to you.
Radio
Elecraft K1 (four band version with optional ATU and internal AA battery pack)
I tried using an Alpha Antenna 100w 10-40m mag-loop antenna for a POTA activation. I operated on FT8 so I could monitor where my signal was being received by using the PSKreporter.info real-time signal reports from stations that spotted my transmission. I really didn’t know what to expect or how a loop antenna would perform in the park compared to a vertical or wire antenna. Did it work? You bet. Would I recommend it? I’ll share my observations and results below and let you know at the end.
I bought this antenna used on QRZ.com’s swapmeet. It was clear to me upon receiving it that the prior owner had taken very good care of the antenna. I set it up on my patio for a quick test before heading to a park.
Mag Loop Test from the N2YCH QTH
It sets up quickly. The tuning is a little challenging to learn at first but there’s no doubt when you get it right, since the received signal is easy to peak once you find resonance. The tuning knob has three turns from 40m up to 10m. Moving it slowly from the bottom of the HF band up to the top, you’ll find the sweet spot and you can peak the received signal on your radio’s S-meter. I checked it with my RigExpert antenna analyzer and as you’d expect, the bandwidth was very narrow, but it was resonant and the SWR was 1.4:1.
The Alpha mag loop can do 100 watts SSB but only 5 watts on digital modes. I fired up my KX3, set it for 5 watts and called CQ. I made three quick contacts and was satisfied that the antenna was working. I checked the spots on pskreporter,info and found it interesting to see a narrow band of stations from Minnesota and Wisconsin down to Florida spotting me.
Pskreporter.info map of spots from Mag Loop
On to the park: Indian Well, US-1684 in Shelton, Connecticut
Knowing that the antenna was working, I brought it out to one of my favorite places to activate, Indian Well State Park (US-1684). Again, set up was fast and I was able to tune up on 20 meters pretty easily.
Alpha Magnetic Loop Antenna at Indian Well State Park in Connecticut
The antenna was receiving the FT8 signals at S-9 with the KX3’s pre-amp off and you can see below that I was decoding nearly 50 stations per FT8 cycle. If you look closely at the JTAlert screenshot below, you can see I was receiving stations from all over the US as well as Canada, South America and Europe. There’s no doubt the mag-loop can hear very well.
Forty-seven stations are being received and decoded. POTA stations in the bottom right pane
I called CQ and had a few responses right away. However, I was finding it challenging to get stations to reply. It took almost an hour for me to get my 10 contacts to activate the park, which is unusual. I should mention that the space weather was acceptable, sitting just below Kp3, so that wasn’t the reason.
Once again, I checked Pskreporter.info. Interestingly, it had the same pattern of spots that I saw when testing the antenna at home, a band from Minnesota to Georgia. Of the first 10 contacts I made, four were in North Carolina, two in Florida and the rest were coming from within that narrow band who could hear me.
Spots from US-1684 using the Mag Loop
I understand that a mag loop is directional, so I tried moving it 90 degrees to see if it made a difference. Not really. The spot map looked the same after the change in direction. I was able to receive a few more EU stations after I moved it. I did have to re-tune the antenna after I turned it, the SWR had gone through the roof.
For comparison, after struggling to make contacts on the loop, I decided to set up my “go-to” antenna of a 17’ telescoping whip on a 10’ mast with a counterpoise.
Buddipole with 17’ telescoping whip and elevated counterpoise
I unplugged the mag loop and plugged in the vertical using the same transceiver set at 5 watts. Take a look at the stations who could spot me on PSKreporter now…
PSKReporter Spots with vertical antenna on 20m QRP
Clearly, that same 5 watts from the KX3 had better coverage on the vertical than using the mag loop.
Here’s a screenshot of WSJT-X on the vertical (click image to enlarge):
WSJT-X and JTAlert reception using 17’ vertical with counterpoise
Once I switched to the vertical, I knocked out 10 more contacts in just 20 minutes.
So, after all that, what do I think?
The Mag Loop sets up quickly, uses very little space and finding resonance isn’t difficult to do. It receives very well, of course this is one of the true advantages of mag loops, is their inherent ability to receive well in noisy environments.
As an antenna to use for transmission? Well, I think this is where the challenge lies, for me anyway. It was certainly hearing stations way down in the noise from far away. However, as you can see by my real-time reception reports, it did not give me the wide transmission coverage that I’m used to with the vertical. Maybe this would be different on SSB with 100 watts, but it’s a difficult to measure SSB reception like you can with digital.
Can you activate a park with it? Yes, indeed. Would it be my first choice for POTA? Probably not. If you were using this on SSB, the antenna itself (not the radio) would need to be re-tuned for every frequency change (if you were hunting), which is not convenient. If you are the activator, then you could tune up for the frequency you selected and it would be good to go.
My next test with this antenna is to try tuning it to a WSPR frequency and comparing spots it receives to my other antennas. I suspect this it where it will shine.
As promised, here’s Part 2 of my extended HRWBOTA activation report from March 16, 2025!
(US-6856)
As I mentioned in Part 1 of this activation, I’d planned to operate for the full four-hour window of the March 16th Ham Radio Workbenches On The Air (HRWBOTA) event—a rare luxury for me. Most of my field activations typically last anywhere from 30 to maybe 90 minutes at most. So, sitting in one spot and operating for four full hours definitely stretched me a bit—but in a good way!
After two hours of non-stop CW with the Elecraft KX3, I took a brief break, swapped radios, and continued the activation with my Penntek TR-45L.
This portable rig is one of my favorite minimalist CW transceivers, and I thought it was a perfect fit for the second half of the HRWBOTA event. I used it to work 20, 30, and 40 meters in CW (in that order).
One nice bonus of using the TR-45L is that mine has a built-in Z-match ATU, which allowed me to easily find a match on 30 meters, even though the Spooltenna EFHW isn’t resonant on that band. The antenna was the same excellent 40-meter EFHW prototype from Rob (KO4HUI) that I featured in Part 1.
The only other minor change during this segment of the activation was behind the camera. Since I was filming in real-time for four straight hours, I had to pause at one point to connect my action camera to a portable battery pack which then limited my ability to use wireless microphones with wind screens. The gusty wind will be more noticeable in this portion of the activation video as a result—but, hey, it’s all part of the field experience!
Now, let’s dive into Part 2 of the gear and activation details…
Gear
Note: All Amazon, CW Morse, ABR, Chelegance, Spooltenna, eBay, and Radioddity links are affiliate links that support QRPer.com at no cost to you.
Radio
Penntek TR-45L with built-in rechargeable battery and Z-Match antenna tuner (discontinued)
As I mentioned in Part 1, this was a longer activation, and since I needed to submit electronic logs to HRWBOTA admin Mark (N6MTS), I skipped paper logging—a true rarity for me.
Instead, I logged directly into AC Log on my Microsoft Surface Go, just as I would during Field Day.
Check out the following announcement posted to the QRP-L discussion group by Wayne (N6KR) at Elecraft:
We’re pleased to announce the AX3 whip antenna.
This highly integrated antenna covers six HF bands, handles up to 30 W, and has many features to facilitate quick-deployment POTA/SOTA and general QRP field operation:
Coverage of 30/20/17/15/12/10 meters (+ 40 meters with AXE1 adapter)
Right-angle BNC connector for direct coax attachment
Unique low-loss, plug-in contact block simplifies band switching
Built-in tabletop tripod
Housing, whip and removable tripod legs quickly disassemble into 6″ (15 cm) pieces
1/4-20 threaded mount in base for use with taller tripods and hiking poles
Two counterpoise attachment points (mini-banana jack and binding post)
Supplied with waterproof nylon bag and counterpoise wire
Did you know that magnetic north changes over time? And with that, magnetic declination changes over time! The link below is from the organization Alpine Savvy. Apparently, both have change dramatically.
Their website has a chart showing the change at Portland Oregon. It illustrates a dramatic change since 1900 to today, from 14° East to 22° East (currently), a full 8° difference over time.
Bear in mind, magnetic declination has a greater, more exaggerated variance and effect closer to the equator.
So what does it mean for the Ham rotating a large beam? Everything. Everything should be based on current data, specific for their location. It matters.
Many of the online references, even those at the USGS website are incorrect. Printed maps, topographic maps, are often incorrect.
Accordingly, you’ll need to orient your Azimuth map, and your antenna orientation! In my case, 12° 52′ East in Boise… Not 15° East as shown on USGS references.
It may not seem as important in HF field operations, given many field operators utilize wire antennas and therefore antennas orientation is less impacted by precise magnetic declination. But you need to understand these changes, in declination and magnetic north are, in some way, connected to the Sun and its influence on radio propagation, and the earth’s geomagnetic fields.
As an example… In WW2, the US Navy torpedoes often failed to detonate properly due to their magnetic proximity fuse detonators. The problem: They were not properly calibrated to their respective lat/long declinations. A simple oversight, or a misunderstanding with profound implications. Its costs were incalculable and directly affected the war effort.
If you’ve been a reader of QRPer.com or a subscriber to my YouTube channel, you’ve no doubt figured out that I’m a huge fan of the Elecraft KX1 transceiver.
The KX1 was my first handheld CW field transceiver and, frankly, it still holds its own today as an effective and fun field radio. With up to four bands, an optional internal ATU, internal battery pack, attachable paddles, and even a built-in logging lamp, it was well over a decade ahead of anything else in its class for size, weight, and portable versatility. In fact, the only commercially available product that truly bests the KX1 in every category is the Elecraft KH1—produced two decades later in 2023.
Using the built-in LED logging lamp!
Even with the release of the KH1 and other ultra-compact radios on the market, the KX1 remains a rare find on the used market and has long since been discontinued.
Over the past few years, I’ve received numerous inquiries from readers asking which spare parts they should order to keep their KX1s on the air.
Back in 2021 or 2022, I placed an order with Elecraft for a few needed parts to repair my KX1. While I was at it, I decided to order additional spare parts I might need in the future.
Before placing the order, I consulted with Elecraft’s KX1 repair specialist to get suggestions—focusing especially on components that may not be easy to source outside of Elecraft. Fortunately, Elecraft still maintains a healthy stock of KX1 parts—no doubt because every KX1 started life as a kit!
Suggested Spares List
I recently went back into my order history and pulled together a full list of the parts I purchased for my KX1 spares bag. Some of these components (like the 3.5mm jacks) are relatively common, but I’ve included them here for completeness:
Front face buttons (from Mouser, Elecraft no longer has these)
I would have added a spare firmware chip to the list, but those are no longer available. If you’re digging into your KX1, handle that firmware chip with care and take precautions to protect it from electrostatic discharge.
The good news? All of these parts—and every other component in the KX1—are easily cross-referenced in the KX1 manual. You might even spot a few other components worth adding to your order while you’re browsing.
Saturday, May 10th, 2025, 09:30 am until 02:30 pm, at the Heyward Park on Savvany Hunt Club Rd in Sandy Run Calhoun County. (Just off Exit 119 of Interstate I-26.) Come rain or shine… Event is in a covered pavilion! [Click here for Map.]
Sponsored by The South Carolina QRP Club. Co-sponsors: Calhoun County Amateur Radio Group, Dutch Fork Amateur Radio Club, Edisto Amateur Radio Society
Things to see and do!
Free admission and parking
All hams, new hams and want to be hams are welcome
Prize Drawings every 30 minutes
Free food
Our famous “QRP Dogs”, Chips and Soft Drinks will be served from 10:30am to 02:00pm
QRP On-The-Air!
There will be two QRP stations set up for on the air demonstration. New hams are especially invited to make contacts (Elmers will be present to assist!)
Show and Tell
Bring your QRP equipment, kits and home brew rigs to show and share with others.
Come and get it Parts Bonanza!
Thousands of electronic parts free for the taking… transistors, diodes, capacitors, inductors, resistors, knobs, hardware and more!
Kit Building Sessions
Three different kits will be available to build at the park. All tools, soldering equipment and supplies will be provided, As well as experienced builders to provide guidance.
Kits will take between 15 to 30 minutes to build. We will stay longer if needed! The price of each kit is $10.00 each (cash only)
Kit Choices:
1. Ham Radio 24 Hour Clock (easy build) (bring a kid)
2. Endfed Random Wire Antenna (9:1 unun)(only 5 solder connections)
Some of you might recall that back in the summer of 2022, I performed a POTA activation with my buddies Eric (WD8RIF) and Miles (KD8KNC) at Hawks Nest State Park (K-1813). Here’s the field report, and video:
You might have also noticed that I recently performed an activation with my own Elecraft K1. Here’s a bit of the back story on this particular radio:
My K1 Journey
I originally owned an Elecraft K1 from around 2010 to 2013. It was a four-band version (40, 30, 20, and 15 meters) with the optional ATU. I loved that little radio, but at the time, I wasn’t as dedicated a CW operator and hadn’t yet discovered programs like WWFF and SOTA—POTA didn’t even exist back then! Those programs would’ve given me a perfect excuse to take a lightweight, portable radio to the field regularly.
Eventually, I sold my K1 to help fund the purchase of an Elecraft KX3.
I mentioned in my 2022 K1 field report that I’d been keeping an eye out for a deal on another K1. That Hawks Nest activation reminded me just how much I enjoy operating this simple QRP kit radio.
Not an Easy Search
Finding a good K1 isn’t easy, for a few reasons.
First, there are quite a few K1 variants out there, since Elecraft offered a number of optional packages. The K1 supported up to four bands, but the default kit only included two. Optional modules included an ATU, a battery pack, and a noise blanker.
Most of the K1s I’ve come across have only two bands and no ATU. I’ve been on the lookout specifically for a four-band version with the ATU.
K1s—regardless of configuration—rarely show up on the used market. When they do, the good ones are snatched up almost instantly.
And perhaps most importantly: all K1s started life as kits. There was never a factory-assembled option. So, your K1 is only as good as the person who built it. Building one yourself is no longer an option, either—at least, in the past ten years, I’ve never seen an unbuilt K1 kit at a swap meet, in person or online.
Then Came a Tip…
On July 19, 2024, my buddy Eric (WD8RIF) sent me a message about a K1 for sale.
I skimmed the message on my phone and immediately noticed that it belonged to Joe White (WA4GIR), one of the founding members of the Knightlites QRP Association. It was a four-band K1 with the ATU and the internal battery pack—asking price: $550 shipped.
I ran to my computer and fired off an email expressing my interest.
Soon after, I learned from Gary (N3GO) that this was actually an estate sale to benefit Joe’s widow. Somehow, I had completely missed the /SK in Eric’s original message. Joe had become a Silent Key in July 2023, and I had missed the news due to our summer travels that year.
Suddenly, $550 didn’t feel like too much at all. I had been hoping to find a K1 closer to $400–$450, but this one had two valuable options I wasn’t even counting on. On top of that, it was built by someone I knew of—and had even met before.
Totally worth it, in my book.
Not a Shelf Queen
This K1 isn’t going to sit on a shelf. I plan to take it to the field and put it through its paces with both POTA and SOTA.
Eric reached out last month and asked if I needed a noise blanker module for my K1. Honestly, I hadn’t even checked to see if mine had one installed.
Turns out, the internal battery pack and the noise blanker are mutually exclusive—you can’t install both. The smaller speaker used with the battery pack conversion kit occupies the same physical space as the NB module.
That’s fine by me. I very rarely need a noise blanker in the field anyway and I’ve no plans to mount this in a vehicle.
That said, I am considering replacing the AA battery holder with a small Li-Ion pack—maybe even one I can charge internally, like Elecraft’s KXBT2.
I’m curious: have any other K1 owners done this mod? Had Li-Ion packs been commonplace back when the K1 was released, I imagine this would’ve been a standard option.
Fine Tuning
This radio is in excellent shape—impressive considering it was built in 2001 (serial number 420!).
The only maintenance I’ve done so far is calibrating the frequency—it was about 500 Hz off. I do eventually need to look at the button contacts, which are a bit finicky.
K1 Bail or Stand?
If you own a K1, I’d love to hear what solutions you’ve found for propping it up in the field.
I’m thinking about adding a small fold-out laptop foot, like the one I installed on my TR-35, to give it a better viewing angle. I don’t want anything bulky—just a little elevation to make operation more comfortable. Please comment if you have a suggestion!
Why the K1 Still Shines in the Field
After spending time with this K1 again, I’m reminded why it’s such a superb field radio—especially when fully loaded. With the internal ATU, it easily matches my random wire antennas, making setup in the field quick and painless. I love that the K1 is a complete field radio system in one compact package.
The receiver and audio characteristics are truly impressive: it has a low noise floor, smooth QSK, and brilliant, mellow audio that’s easy on the ears during long CW sessions. Keying is clean and responsive—just what you want when you’re trying to work a pileup or snag that weak signal.
And while it’s not pocket-sized like some modern QRP rigs, for a tabletop-style radio, the K1 is remarkably small and lightweight. It slips into a field pack without taking up much space, yet delivers performance that holds its own against much newer gear.
Since the K1 was a kit radio, it’s also easy to repair and incredibly well-documented. I’ve always believed that kit radios are ideal for emergency preparedness. If something goes wrong, it’s much easier for a non-radio-tech to trace a fault and potentially fix it. That peace of mind—knowing you can service your own gear—is a huge bonus.
In short, the K1 may be over two decades old, but it still ticks all the right boxes for avid field operators!
Unfortunately, I had one scheduling conflict I couldn’t change, which meant starting the event with my KH1 in a downtown Asheville parking lot before heading to Lake James State Park for a couple of hours of solid pileups with my Icom IC-705. I posted a field report and video of the event—it was a blast! Click here to check it out.
On March 16, 2025, we held our second HRWBOTA event, and this time, I was better prepared with a clear schedule and a plan to operate for the full four hours!
Zebulon Vance Birthplace (US-6856)
Of course, even the best-laid plans can run into hiccups, and mine did. I was delayed due to some chainsaw work I wanted to complete before leaving home. As a result, I arrived at US-6856 just as the event was starting (14:00 local).
No worries, though! I turned on the camera and wasted no time deploying my antenna and setting up my radio gear.
The Spooltenna!
For this activation, I used a prototype of the Spooltenna, designed by Rob (KO4HUI).
Rob, a fellow North Carolinian, had been in touch with me about his antenna idea for months. Back in February, when my daughter interviewed for a scholarship at NC State University (which she was later awarded!), I met up with Rob on campus, and he handed me an early prototype of the Spooltenna. He had just completed the build that very morning.
It’s a unique design based on his own needs for a field antenna. From his website:
SPOOLTENNA is a compact, lightweight antenna designed for portable amateur radio operations like Parks on the Air® (POTA) and Summits on the Air™ (SOTA). Its innovative spool form factor is intended to ensure efficient deployment, teardown, and storage, providing a frustration-free operating experience that doesn’t compromise performance.
The design is also Open Source under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
The Spooltenna he gave me is a 40-meter end-fed half-wave (EFHW). Before this activation, I had only set it up at home to check resonance on 40, 20, 15, and 10 meters. I deployed it as a sloper, with the transformer at the highest point.
The Spooltenna is quick to deploy–by placing a pencil, tent stake, or screwdriver in the center hole–and the spool design ensures a tangle-free wind-up. The components feel very high-quality. Rob is also producing high-quality cable assemblies, which were included in the package he gave me.
Rob has rapidly turned this idea into a side business involving his whole family. In just two months, his wife Christi has launched a website, ordered inventory, and—just a week ago—even set up an affiliate program and coupon code offering free shipping to QRPer.com readers.
UPDATE: Rob tells me that he will have some inventory at RARSfest this weekend and will even temporarily open up his website for Spooltenna orders tomorrow (Saturday, April 4, 2025) during the RARSfest.
Again, I’m most impressed with all that he and his wife have accomplished in a few months.
Deploying the Spooltenna was easy, though I had to adjust my setup. I originally planned to support the transformer with a tree next to the picnic shelter, but that tree had been blown down during Hurricane Helene.
No worries! I set it up as a sloper with the transformer close to the ground—similar to many of my EFHW deployments.
My HRWBOTA Activation Plan
I planned to use two radios during this activation—first my Elecraft KX3, then my Penntek TR-45L on the lower bands.
To maximize the chance for HRWB listeners to work me:
I did not spot myself on POTA.app, even though I was giving all contacts POTA credit. I knew that if I spotted myself, the normal weekend POTA pileups might make it harder for HRWBOTA participants to contact me.
I started on 10 meters and slowly worked my way down.
If time allowed, I planned to work SSB on at least one band (spoiler alert: CW kept me too busy!).
First up was the Elecraft KX3! I set up the radio and wasted no time getting on the air.
Gear:
Note: All Amazon, CW Morse, ABR, Chelegance, Spooltenna, eBay, and Radioddity links are affiliate links that support QRPer.com at no cost to you.
Since this was a long activation and I needed to submit electronic logs to HRWBOTA admin (Mark, N6MTS), I skipped paper logging. Instead, I logged directly to AC Log on my Microsoft Surface Go, just as I would during Field Day. Continue reading Ham Radio Workbenches On The Air Field Report: Part 1→
Many thanks to Scott (VA3EKR) who shares the following guest post which was originally posted on his blog:
Mar. 29, 2025, Troubleshooting Audio Capture with Voice Recorder
by Scott (VA3EKR)
When I activate a park for POTA, I always use HAMRS, running on a tablet as I get better battery life than a laptop, and I confess I still like the confirmation from QRZ that you have the correct contact, or that it at least matches the state you think it is. Still, sometimes I do not have internet connectivity, and additionally, I often neglect to put in the proper RST of the QSO in the fields (POTA doesn’t actually require it), as the tablet is not terrific about hopping between fields.
A nice solution to this is audio capture, where I can fix a broken call sign, fix the RST before submitting to QRZ/LOTW. I am too self-conscious to video myself, so I use an audio recorder. It is pictured below. It was only about CAD $100, and has a nice line-in and a line-out so that I can record while I listen.
Next to the recorder is a toroid I had as extra when I made a transformer last summer, and a relatively long audio cable that I coiled as many times as I could around the toroid.
This is an example of the audio quality before troubleshooting the problem. Just the first few seconds demonstrate the issue.
The received audio is reasonable, and it is when I am sending that the problem shows itself. It was unclear what the problem was, perhaps one of:
Bad audio levels, either the gain on the recorder, or the monitor level of the KX2.
Stray RF being coming back from the antenna on transmission
The audio input cable acting as an antenna picking up transmission
I did not think it was bad audio levels, as I had done some playing-about, though not in a terribly rigorous fashion. The stray RF was my largest suspicion, as I had only started noticing the problem when I started using a Ham Stick in my car during the winter months. Inside the car, there are a series of LEDs on the transmission shifter that indicate what gear the car presently is engaged. I noticed that when I transmit, the “drive” LED flickered a LOT, and this worried me. I had not bothered to ground the HamStick to the car chassis, but did run a 17-foot counterpoise that I clipped to the antenna shield, and I hoped this would be sufficient. As corroboration, I have been able to hit France, Spain, Norway, Oregon and Idaho with the setup.
After a very chilly and rainy day at the horse barn, I was tempted to do an activation, but I decided to stay in the warm house and do some experimentation. I set up in the living room with my AlexLoop that I got in Dayton last year. This gave me the opportunity to try another configuration, and see if the audio was the same as when using the Ham Stick in the car. Indeed it was.
I tuned the loop for maximum noise on 20m, and tuned with the internal ATU of the KX2. I found a POTA activation in North Carolina, and he gave me a 599 with 5 W! I love getting surprising performance with obviously bad operating conditions, like from the interior of a brick house! And the antenna was oriented for east-west, not south! But the audio was still terrible when transmitting.
I spent some more time adjusting the monitor level, and recorder gain. Still nothing sounded good.
I next wanted to see if perhaps the common-mode current was the issue, so I used a LDG 1:1 UnUn, shown below. I was really hoping it was not this, since when you add the BNC connectors and the additional cable, the added size is about the size of a KH1!
After putting the transformer in line with the antenna, the audio was not appreciably different.
The last experiment, corresponding with the last theory, was to put in an audio cable that had better shielding from HF.
This seemed to really do the trick! Here’s the resulting audio with a QSO to North Carolina from inside my living room. There is an initial try at the beginning, and then another successful QSO at the 1:17 mark.
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Last month, I published this field report where I paired the K1 with my AX1 antenna for a low-profile (but high-performance) activation in Pisgah National Forest.
It’s always exciting to take a new radio to the field—especially one I’d been chasing for so long. I purchased the K1 back in August of last year. As soon as it arrived, I tested it and realized it was in serious need of alignment.
I made my way to a familiar spot along the Blue Ridge Parkway—the Folk Art Center—and set up the K1.
Note: All Amazon, CW Morse, ABR, Chelegance, eBay, and Radioddity links are affiliate links that support QRPer.com at no cost to you.
I started calling CQ POTA on 20 meters, thinking I’d eventually migrate to 30 meters if things slowed down. Continue reading First Field Outing with My New-to-Me Elecraft K1! 
This will be corrected tomorrow.
