DSE UHF Radio

[N0SDV]

can anyone please tell me where i can get manual for the Dick Smith Explorer 40 channel UHF transceiver, K-6300.
recently aquired one and am not sure of it operating features am new to formun is great forum thanks for any help

[VK4CZ]

You might be able to get some help from Alan VK2CA... see:

http://www.vkham.com/resources/kits-man ... nformation

[VK3YE]

Construction details were published in EA magazine circa September 1983.

Try enquiring with Silicon Chip for copies of the article.

ZL2TFA has been doing some work on it http://www.qsl.net/zl2tfa/index.html

[VK5ZD]

Hi

Do you mean one of these? I have the original manual.
Is there any particular information you want? The entire thing is 60 pages and it will take a while to scan them all.

If it's not urgent I'll try and get it done this week.

[N0SDV]

i believe that is the one would appreciate your help thanks gary

[N0SDV]

i believe that is the one would appreciate your help thanks gary

[N0SDV]

does anybody have manual on the dse explorer uhf model got one at ham feast not sure how to work it or if it is capable of tones for repeaters thanks for any help

[VK2AAH]

Definitely no CTCSS....

Cheers

Richard
VK2AAH

[VK5ZD]

Hi

See http://www.vk5zd.com/files/DSE/

Can't find the schematic, though.

[ADMIN]

I don't have a copy of the original articles, otherwise I would scan them in for you, but I do have an Electronics Australia 10-Year index to EA articles covering this period though.
If anyone is able to assist, the issues required are:

40 Channel UHF Transceiver, Part 1 - EA September 1983
40 Channel UHF Transceiver, Part 2 - EA October 1983
40 Channel UHF Transceiver, Part 3 - EA November 1983

[VK3XYX]

Hi,
I would suggest that you file it in the nearest circular filing receptacle. It's not even worth your time or effort to do anything more with it. Most if not all, DSE ham kits were very poorly designed and getting them to work in any acceptable manner is really not worth your time or effort. A friend of mine has 5 of these radios in various states of repair (dis-repair) and he has given up on trying to get them working as expected.

Regards
Garry VK3XYX

[VK3BSF]

I agree ..they were terrible to hold lock and when they did only capable of a few channels...best to junk it unless u have specialised talents!!

[VK2AAH]

I totally disagree with those remarks...

The only fundamental problem these kits had was that many hams building them had a higher opinion of their construction knowledge than in reality. I was one of the "guinea pigs" for the 2m version and without the aid of the printed book- just a hand drawn circuit diagram & component layout- mine worked first go. I saw many of the returns that came in under the "Sorry Dick It Doesn't Work" warranty & it made me roll my eyes...

I appreciate the hard work that Gary Cratt and Gill McPherson VK2ZGE put into developing these designs... maybe they gave some hams too much credit when it comes to construction.

Cheers

Richard
VK2AAH

[VK4GHZ]

My recollection with the DSE UHF version is, it was originally meant to be sold as a UHF CB.
After much anticipation, it never materialised.
We can only assume it failed type acceptance.

Then... the amateur 70cm version was released as a kit, where it didn't really matter (in the context of home brew and almost anything goes!)

Even if I have the timeline a*** about, the outcome was the same.

That aside, N0SDV is still looking for a schematic.
Anyone willing to spend a few minutes scanning it in?

[VK2AAH]

The CB version of the kit did materialise... I saw one of them about a year ago. It very much works but my understanding was the problem was regulatory- not technical.

These kits were commercially successful & many were sold and that then drove many other kit designs sold by DSE. OK compared to modern standards these kits were nothing flash but at least Australia had radio kits back then. What have we got now? Not much...

Anyway... moving right along...


Richard
VK2AAH

[VK3ALB]

DSE UHF PT 1.pdf

DSE UHF radio Part 1

(1.63 MiB) Downloaded 677 times

DSE UHF PT 2.pdf

DSE UHF radio Part 2

(1.37 MiB) Downloaded 401 times

DSE UHF PT 3.pdf

DSE UHF radio Part 3

(619.74 KiB) Downloaded 304 times

[VK4APN]

I totally disagree with those remarks...

The only fundamental problem these kits had was that many hams building them had a higher opinion of their construction knowledge than in reality. I was one of the "guinea pigs" for the 2m version and without the aid of the printed book- just a hand drawn circuit diagram & component layout- mine worked first go. I saw many of the returns that came in under the "Sorry Dick It Doesn't Work" warranty & it made me roll my eyes...

I appreciate the hard work that Gary Cratt and Gill McPherson VK2ZGE put into developing these designs... maybe they gave some hams too much credit when it comes to construction.

Cheers

Richard
VK2AAH

I have to agree with the remarks of VK2AAH. I built 2 kits of the 2M version, 1 of the UHF and also 1 HF 80M version. All used same ordinary black plastic box. Both the 2M versions and the UHF versions worked first up and continued to do so. The only issue was the 40 way channel select switch was a bitch to read on the UHF model. I needed help to get the TX side of the 80M version working. Looking back these were an ambitious kits to construct and I suspect gave DSE a headache or two. I still have a partial block of the wax used to "drip" into the PLL box when finished. You still see incomplete/unstarted kits on offer
from time to time - sort of supporting the theory of biting off more than you can chew!!!
Paul

[VK3XYX]

I totally disagree with those remarks...

Richard
VK2AAH

I am glad you totally disagree me my remarks, as we all have our own options and are free to express them.
My comments were not just "off the cuff" having trained as a electronic technician. The only DSE ham kit that I was successfully able to get working was the 70cm power meter and I still use it today. So I certainly was not a "ham with a high opinion of myself".

I needed help to get the TX side of the 80M version working.
Paul

I am glad you got your 80M version working, because the VFO in mine drifted so fast it made my head spin. So I built a very similar style VFO from an ARRL handbook and it worked very well, so I tossed the 80M DSE radio were all rubbish belongs.
Next challenge was the 6m 100W power amp. I always thought that using two 95W capable transistors to produce 100W was a bit odd. I investigated the Wilkinson dividers and found that the input one was providing a split of around -5dB. This is 2db more loss than what it should provide, even with component losses, a Wilkinson divider should provide about -3.2db out. I did some calculations on the inductor and capacitor values and found that values used in the DSE kit were not even close. So with that much loss on the input divider and output combiner, no wonder they were only rated at 100W output. I investigate another ARRL design and it was rated at 100W output with the same single transistor.
I am glad that others have had more success than me. I guess that my training in electronics was all for nothing.
I know that this is now way off topic, still.....isn't interesting how these topics get us all fired-up.

[VK5PL]

I have one of these kits in the shed, still in its box, never got around to building it.

[VK2AAH]

Hi Garry,

It is great that you have posted the design faults here some 20-25 years after these kits came out! I'm not having a dig at your qualifications at all- my observations were based on the construction quality I saw with my own two eyes at the time these radios were being sold- either poor soldering, failure to follow the instructions (ie. keeping lead lengths short), or component errors. No matter how good the product design it can't overcome poor construction. If there were design flaws it would hardly make these radios unique but I've known plenty of these to be built successfully. I know mine met the specs. I never built the 80m radio so I can't comment on that one. While I don't dispute your technical qualifications or experience, I would also consider both Mr Cratt and Mr McPherson's track record in the communications industry more than speaks for theirs.

Cheers


Richard
VK2AAH