July AI6YM Project Updates

It’s been a little while since I sent one of these updates so lets get right into it.

• FoxSniffer production is wrapping up.
• T42 Mini has taken one step back and three steps forward - I’m collaborating with a local ham who has (rightly) challenged many of my design decisions.
• PicoFox has been selling well, I’ll probably need to run another batch of them soon.

I’ve also moved most of my fulfillment out of my shop to a dedicated warehouse partner. Space in my shop was getting tight and having professionals handle fulfillment means you all get your orders faster.

Read on for details!

FoxSniffer Production Update

For those of you waiting for your pre-order FoxSniffer (or your replacement - if you got one of my first batch) your wait is almost over! The second production batch is nearly done and should start shipping in about two weeks. This batch covers all of the pre-orders and replacements plus enough to keep some in stock.

Production plastics are in (no more 3D printed enclosures and buttons). Hardware, displays, batteries, and even the main PCBs are all ready. The RF PCBs will do done soon too.

In addition to fixing the RF switch issue I took the liberty of improving the filters and low noise amplifier circuits a bit. The previous amplifier didn’t quite perform as the datasheet suggested. The filters were good but bench testing showed they could be a bit better with a couple extra elements.

Thanks to everyone for being patient, I hope you all agree the wait was worth it.

T42 Mini Update

I’ve been collaborating with Jack (N6CH) on the T42 Mini, Jack needed a summer project and I had far too much on my plate so the timing was perfect. On my end it’s been fantastic working with someone so capable, especially in the aesthetics and UX department.

Many of my design decisions were questioned, debated, and revised. The result is a smaller, more capable, and more upgradable T42 Mini (and also a lot more work). More prototyping is needed but I’m really proud of what Jack and I have created.

Take a look at the render below (shown with some optional upgrades).

That’s all for now folks.

73, AI6YM