[TenTec] Under the Dirt...a Diamond!

[Bill Acito W1PA]

>>So, what makes the HW-9 so popular even today, given that there are newer 
>>radios, like the above, with more features?

We should take this off-list, but in short:

- I built it. :-)
- Prior to me selling it, another ham at work (RF engineer) went through it 
and swapped parts and modified it to
actually be stable, not smoke finals, and be a decent performer.

The reality is, and as you point out, for the money there are much better 
performers. The tuner and wattmeter aren't great either -- the knobs are 
thin, undersized, and difficult to adjust. And probably, for what I paid in 
1980's dollars for the HW-9, WARC kit, tuner, supply, and watt/swr meter, 
you could get a K2 QRP kit now.

...but I built them, and I wanted them back.  :-)   ...and 20 or so years 
later, I did build that K2.

Obligatory Ten Tec content:  Planning to drop a N3ZI or N4YG DDS in one of 
my Triton, Delta or Omni project radios. Will post results.  Also, looking 
for a TX-100 if anyone has one.

Bill W1PA