RockMite Transceiver
This is a really fun project for those days that have no sunspots. The Westford held a kit building meeting where a group of first time builders used this guide to create their own RockMite transceivers.
Dave Benson, K1SWL, no longer sells these kits, but he handed it off to a great fellow: Rex Harper, W1REX, who runs the QRPMe.com website. Newer versions of the radio are available there.
Dave Benson, K1SWL, no longer sells these kits, but he handed it off to a great fellow: Rex Harper, W1REX, who runs the QRPMe.com website. Newer versions of the radio are available there.
A 20m version of the RockMite
This is a pretty small and simple kit for an experienced builder, but anybody new to soldering or new to radio kit building could be a little intimidated by a bag of parts, schematics, and little else. This set of step-by-step instructions created for the original Dave Benson kit are just the edge a new builder needs to have the confidence to start—and finish-this beautiful kit. Get the PDF here.
MFJ Cub Transceiver
The ARRL Low Power Communications book was updated to the 4th edition in 2012, and optionally bundled with an MFJ Cub 40m transceiver. It seemed like too much fun to pass up! [I snagged this in 2007]
A step-by-step assembly photo gallery can be found here.
Front view
Top view
Open view
MFJ QRP-Cub Transceiver, designed by QRP-ARCI Hall-of-Famer K1BQT, uses surface mount technology (SMT), but has all SMT parts already mounted and soldered. You just insert and solder the through-hole parts such as the connectors, inductors and trimmer caps/pots. These single band radios are available in 80m, 40m, 30m, 20m, 17m, or 15m.
You get a circuit board, enclosure, a whole mess of parts, and a couple of pieces of documentation. I think my assembly instruction are better. Check them out here.
