On Feb 26, 2022, at 22:12, Mike AE0IH <michael.ramos.exec@...> wrote:

Dave and Ohwenzelph,

Thank you for the photos of your mods.  

Ryan - sorry about the 1117 failure.  Looking forward to your next video as you resurrect your QDX!  

I'm currently halfway through the build of my Rev1 QDX and I'll be incorporating Dave's substitution of the 1117 with a 78M05.  How difficult is it to scrape away the solder mask for grounding the tab?  What's the best tool for the job - an x-acto knife?  I'm planning on using a dremel with dental burr on the trace but will need to be very careful - it's pretty thin.  Also, any thoughts on best way to remove the 1117-5?  I used Chipquick SMD1 removal alloy to remove the smd inductors.  It worked like a charm!  Thinking about using that on the 1117-5.  Your photos, Ryan's videos, along with Hans' excellent Rev1 manual with schematics and board layout have been very helpful as I plan the next steps.   

Thanks to you all and 73,

Mike - AE0IH