Test Equipment Anonymous (TEA) group therapy thread

[Brumby]

That's it! 

It sometimes worries me that these things come far too easily to me.  If it were anywhere else but on this forum, I would be inexorably embarrassed.

[grizewald]

So now a question for the experts? How do you clean the bumpers on these? Attacking it with my usual kitchen spray and sponge resulted in a net total of nothing happening.

[Non expert answer]

600 grit sandpaper?

It worked for me on a Solartron 7150 where someone had added their initials to the top of the case with permanent marker.

Or, in the dishwasher with it (remembering to remove it before the drying cycle).

[Specmaster]

@bd139 and med6753, Nice bits of kit and bd139, that really was a steal. Have you tried Isopropanol on those bumpers, I have cleaned up a lot of my gear with 99.9% strength by applying directly in small doses, scrubbing with a brush, wiping away and then immersing in warm water with a dash of washing up liquid and then drying and it certainly has made significant improvements.

[mnementh]

Yup... IPA on an old cotton terry towel is my cleaner of choice with most rubber surfaces. Just be very gentle if cleaning overmolded rubber parts, as if it gets under any edge of the microns-thin rubber coating, it will start to peel up and rub off. Especially on ABS plastics.

You wrote bitmaster (i.e., bitseeker + specmaster) as if to address us both at the same time. Hilarity ensued.

Ok, thanks bit*, I didn't catch up on spec* there.      

*-short form to avoid any further Frankensteining.

And yet you still keep your options open re: future Frankenfurter-ing... Well played, Mr URI... very well played.

Someone is selling original sealed manuals on ebay so I might grab that as well. I'm sure there's a TEA term for obsessive completeness.

My offering:

OCR - Obsessive Completeness Response. 

This insidious affliction starts out with an acquisition of test gear that is often found to be in excellent condition - even if beneath stickers, dirt and dust.  The trigger is usually the desire to add a missing component, such as a lead, manual or carry case that would have been included in the original equipment purchase or from an optional accessory.  Once this trigger has been initiated, sufferers continue with an unsuppressible drive until there is nothing missing. 

Extreme cases have been known to not rest until original twist-ties, cable ties and mains plug protectors have been obtained and stored along with "numbers matching" original carton, all in a clear baggie to protect them from dust while still allowing the prize to be adored from its pedestal high on the top shelf.

There... NOW it's finished. 

mnem

Words cannot describe the affection I'm feeling for this cup of coffee right now.

[Specmaster]

Someone is selling original sealed manuals on ebay so I might grab that as well. I'm sure there's a TEA term for obsessive completeness.

My offering:

OCR - Obsessive Completeness Response. 

This insidious affliction starts out with an acquisition of test gear that is often found to be in excellent condition - even if beneath stickers, dirt and dust.  The trigger is usually the desire to add a missing component, such as a lead, manual or carry case that would have been included in the original equipment purchase or from an optional accessory.  Once this trigger has been initiated, sufferers continue with an unsuppressible drive until there is nothing missing. 

Extreme cases have been known to not rest until original twist-ties, cable ties and mains plug protectors have been obtained and stored along with "numbers matching" original carton, all in a clear baggie to protect them from dust while still allowing the prize to be adored from its pedestal high on the top shelf.

There... NOW it's finished. 

mnem

Words cannot describe the affection I'm feeling for this cup of coffee right now.

Nah, I'm a cheapskate and I'm very happy with a free download from the web, many advantages to that not including expense, saves on storage space, if the need to have have it printed for some reason, parts that you actually require may be printed only. Can stored on multiple storage devices in case of accidental deletion  and can view on screen when required and if vision is not at its best, magnification can be easily applied, perfect for aging and tired eyes 

[xrunner]

Ran across this at a ham radio forum - check out his benches and the construction of the tables. Very sturdy!

https://mikeharrison.smugmug.com/BENCHES

[bd139]

Those are rather sexy.

Well cleaned the 33120A (only the front at the moment). Isopropyl and kitchen towel did the trick. Thanks mnementh. No terry available here. Tried old t-shirt but that was too linty.



Looks pretty tidy now. I fixed the original knob. Turned out that the side of the shaft had snapped off. Rather than glue it, the "fixer" stuck the plastic bit roughly where it was supposed to be and wrapped insulation tape around it (typical EE  ). I carefully removed it, glued it and left it for an hour and it's sorted now.

Still will keep the replacement ones as Keysight only had 27 in stock and they are probably the last ones on the planet other than ebay bastards selling them for $50 or something stupid.

[Specmaster]

That looks really good, yup, IPA can be used as a general cleaner I'm discovering for lots of things and of course it will 100% evaporate afterwards just be sure use in ventilated room and not allow it to creep under surfaces, especially ones where glue has been used.

[bd139]

Yeah I'm buzzing away here now 

(only joking )

[mnementh]

Ran across this at a ham radio forum - check out his benches and the construction of the tables. Very sturdy!

https://mikeharrison.smugmug.com/BENCHES

Mmmhmmm... nice woodworking.   

I like his idea for wiring rings made from PVC pipe... similar idea to my own made from coathangers bent into shape with chain-nose pliers. 9 pieces takes about 15 minutes to make, and that included rummaging for ringnose pliers and a coathanger in the closet. 

I prefer hooks to rings as they're more convenient when hanging cables; but they do rust where the PVC rings don't, they're conductive/inductive where PVC isn't, and they're entirely hand-made/hand work, so consistency is only as good as your own craftsmanship whereas with the PVC you can knock together jigs in a few minutes to cut/drill uniformly.

But cost of coathangers is essentially $0.00 (and a scowl or three from SWMBO  ), so you can put up lots more if needed.

But building TEQ racks into my bench... that's a whole 'nuther level of OCD. To me, the beauty of racks is the fact they can be put on rollers and specific families of gear on different racks for different purposes rolled up to the bench or stowed PRN.

Those are rather sexy.

   Well cleaned the 33120A (only the front at the moment). Isopropyl and kitchen towel did the trick. Thanks mnementh. No terry available here. Tried old t-shirt but that was too linty.

Looks pretty tidy now. I fixed the original knob. Turned out that the side of the shaft had snapped off. Rather than glue it, the "fixer" stuck the plastic bit roughly where it was supposed to be and wrapped insulation tape around it (typical EE  ). I carefully removed it, glued it and left it for an hour and it's sorted now.

Still will keep the replacement ones as Keysight only had 27 in stock and they are probably the last ones on the planet other than ebay bastards selling them for $50 or something stupid.

Glad I could help. Terry tends to be a bit linty too, but wiping with a dry corner of the towel usually takes most of it away.   

One of my fixes for knobs with cracked hubs like you're describing is to glue as you've done, then 2-4 lines of CA on the outside along the long axis of the hub, then slip a length of heat-shrink over it all and hit it with the heat gun. The CA on the outside dries almost instantly, but watch out for CA creeping inside the hub. When it's all dry ( you can test with a Q-Tip swab to be sure ), trim the excess HS tubing off the end and good for another couple decades unless some college kid gets a-hold of it. 

mnem
*Feeling almost human*

[grizewald]

Happiness is:



Straight eights! 

I hope I never have to replace one of those displays again. I was breaking a serious sweat putting the displays back in. So many tiny thin pins which have to align perfectly with the microscopic sockets. 

Of course, nothing else seems to be working as I get zero on each of the test steps, but least I can make a start now.

[tggzzz]

They are nice, aren't they

Don't forget each of those ribbon cables has two ends that needs to be seated properly, with non-oxidised connections.

Measure the  two reference voltages, easily available on the floating logic board.

[grizewald]

They are nice, aren't they

Don't forget each of those ribbon cables has two ends that needs to be seated properly, with non-oxidised connections.

Measure the  two reference voltages, easily available on the floating logic board.

Beautiful displays. Neon is underappreciated.

Most of the ribbon cables were half hanging out of their sockets when the meter arrived, so I'm hoping to find some of the other ends (that I can't currently see) are in the same condition.

I'm not sure about the blue IC sockets that they plug into though. They don't exactly conjure up the word "grippy".
 

[bd139]

Those are the same types of sockets Tektronix liked to inflict on people. Very problematic.

[tggzzz]

They are nice, aren't they

Don't forget each of those ribbon cables has two ends that needs to be seated properly, with non-oxidised connections.

Measure the  two reference voltages, easily available on the floating logic board.

Beautiful displays. Neon is underappreciated.

Most of the ribbon cables were half hanging out of their sockets when the meter arrived, so I'm hoping to find some of the other ends (that I can't currently see) are in the same condition.

I'm not sure about the blue IC sockets that they plug into though. They don't exactly conjure up the word "grippy".

Definitely check them, since they carry most things except 180V.

Try to avoid removing the floating  board, since the hidden 4 finger connector is a pain. You can remove some of the cross brackets relatively easily, which might make it possible for you to get your fingers underneath to push on the cable.

[URI]

My GPSDO finally came in today.  Seems to be working fine.  Heather sees it and seems happy.

I bought this one: https://www.ebay.com/itm/GPSDO-Symmetricom-Inside-GPS-10MHz-1PPS-GPS-Send-GPS-antenna/263458624856?hash=item3d575b9558:g:bk8AAOSw9vlaael4:rk:1:pf:0

I was pleasantly surprised. It came with a RS232 to USB 1 meter long adapter ( a real one)  a 1.5 meter RS232 extension cable, the antennae, the bnc adapters in the pic, and software / manual on a mini cd.  Even had a 'inspected by #2" card with the date of manufacture on it.  It was packed so well I think it could have been used as a football by the NFL and not gotten damaged.

Ah, by the gods of time-nuttery, the symmetricon variant!      

I've got the Trimble variant here, bought from the same seller*.
The seller shows photos of the inside on the 'bay for the Trimble but not for the symmetricon.
Since I already had an original Trimble GPSDO board that I knew works well I chose the Trimble path again.   

I did a teardown when it arrived even though I knew the pics of its inside.   

How's your "symmetricon inside" GPSDO built inside?

The output signals are buffered with a circuit the manufacturer* builds around the Trimble GPSDO and the sine output has a DC offset of 1 or 2 Volts IIRC.
How does your Symmetricon based GPSDO behave in that field?
*-These GPSDOs are offered by several sellers on ebay all from china.

[tautech]

Here's my newest toy. Siglent SDM3055 5.5 digit bench DMM. Haven't had a chance to put it through a complete checkout yet but so far looks good. I may even do a teardown.

Hope it grows on you, they're a well featured DMM. It should have the latest FW but it's still a good idea to check; V1.01.01.19
Oh and an issue that's under investigation, IMO the rear panel fuse is the wrong type and should be a fast or FF (ferking fast) blow. It's a 5x20 glass 250V 10A while the internal fuse is slow (T) 12A 250V HRC.
There's a few pics of the guts already scattered in the SDM thread.

[URI]

Happiness is:



Straight eights! 

I hope I never have to replace one of those displays again. I was breaking a serious sweat putting the displays back in. So many tiny thin pins which have to align perfectly with the microscopic sockets. 

Of course, nothing else seems to be working as I get zero on each of the test steps, but least I can make a start now.

Thumbs up! These displays look really good.   

A working display is a good starting point btw.   

[mnementh]

A little Cross-Discipline TE pr0n...



Running my packs down in prep for storage charge after doing a little prop testing.

For old school, these RCX 2208/2000KV perform well enough... 6S capable, still hit .95-1.2kg on 4S. Think I'll keep 'em on my Stray Dawg build for now. 

mnem
Yes, it sounds like a Dyson dirtsucker on crack.

[mnementh]

Just to make y'all cringe...   


Since you're all "Ooooh-ing and Ahhhh-ing" over delicious Panaplex displays and e'eythang... 

mnem
*Agitating-ily*

[0culus]

mnem, how fast do those little motors turn?

[Mr. Scram]

Ok have stripped it down (don't turn it on, take it apart!) and found no major crimes other than the encoder knob being bodged pretty badly and the fan being duff. No sign of any repairs on the output side of things which is a common failure. Keysight still stock the knobs so I will buy a couple of them I think for stock.

It has the panel cutouts for the TCXO option and the board connector (SMB by the looks).

Gubbins:



Rear panel holes:





Someone is selling original sealed manuals on ebay so I might grab that as well. I'm sure there's a TEA term for obsessive completeness.

Edit: damn I love HP / Agilent / Keysight. Phoned them up, answered by human straight away, took order for parts over phone.

I bought two knobs (incase I munt the replacement in the future) and they were £2.28 each 

You got lucky on the parts order there. I called them and got met with nothing useful and "send us a mail".

[Mr. Scram]

Those are rather sexy.

Well cleaned the 33120A (only the front at the moment). Isopropyl and kitchen towel did the trick. Thanks mnementh. No terry available here. Tried old t-shirt but that was too linty.



Looks pretty tidy now. I fixed the original knob. Turned out that the side of the shaft had snapped off. Rather than glue it, the "fixer" stuck the plastic bit roughly where it was supposed to be and wrapped insulation tape around it (typical EE  ). I carefully removed it, glued it and left it for an hour and it's sorted now.

Still will keep the replacement ones as Keysight only had 27 in stock and they are probably the last ones on the planet other than ebay bastards selling them for $50 or something stupid.

That cleaned up nicely. How's the top?

[bd139]

Needs unstickering. Have peeled them off and need to work on some glue residue. Looks clean though. There is “Jim” written underneath the unit in permanent marker. Assume that was to stop Jim’s AWG from being nicked in the lab.

As for parts order, sometimes you get lucky . 

Edit: TBH Keysight UK are excellent. The only issue is the PO system is min £40. Not a problem as they take credit cards for lower amounts. The bugger is they have to raise the PO in the UK and then some random person from Spain calls you up to take card details around 24 hours later.

[Specmaster]

Needs unstickering. Have peeled them off and need to work on some glue residue. Looks clean though. There is “Jim” written underneath the unit in permanent marker. Assume that was to stop Jim’s AWG from being nicked in the lab.

To remove permanent marker, write over it with a dry marker and it will normally lift the permanent pen writing straight off, wipe over with IPA and a terry towel