What did you buy today? Post your latest purchase!

[GreyWoolfe]

Bought a house today.  Well a second one.

In case the first one breaks? 

McBryce.

Obviously not.  It's in case the first one get filled up with TEA.

[paulca]

Bought a TS100 Soldering iron. 

+Laptop brick PSU, soldering accessories.

[rsjsouza]

My Rigol Calibration kit just arrived from TEquipment. Interesting that their photograph is completely different from the product itself... 

[thm_w]

My Rigol Calibration kit just arrived from TEquipment. Interesting that their photograph is completely different from the product itself... 

That sucks, I'm sure you can return it if it doesn't do what you want.

Looks like this is the product in the picture: https://www.rigol-uk.co.uk/Rigol-DS6000-DK-Demo-Board-p/ds6000-dk.htm
Rigol DS6000-DK Demo Board Our Price: £190.00 (228.00 inc VAT)

Part number DS6000 vs DS6000-DK?

[rsjsouza]

My Rigol Calibration kit just arrived from TEquipment. Interesting that their photograph is completely different from the product itself... 

That sucks, I'm sure you can return it if it doesn't do what you want.

Looks like this is the product in the picture: https://www.rigol-uk.co.uk/Rigol-DS6000-DK-Demo-Board-p/ds6000-dk.htm
Rigol DS6000-DK Demo Board Our Price: £190.00 (228.00 inc VAT)

Part number DS6000 vs DS6000-DK?

Thanks, but that is exactly what I need. I had a strong suspicion the photograph was wrong all along, as the Rigol cal procedure calls for the multi-cable setup and not for a board - which you are right: the DS6000-DK is the demo board (which I don't need).

I sent a PM to the resident TEquipment account around here to let them know about the problem. Hopefully they read private messages.

[bitseeker]

Bought a house today.  Well a second one.

In case the first one breaks? 

McBryce.

Obviously not.  It's in case the first one get filled up with TEA.

Exactly!

[Mr. Scram]

I finally received my stackable silicone banana leads. Against my better judgement I ordered them from far away lands. They seem okay. The resistance is very low, which indicates they didn't skimp too much on the materials. They are a bit tighter than I'd like them to be, but using them a few times helps. One plug crapped out almost right away, so the judge is out on the quality. Might have been a dud, or the durability isn't that great.

I'm yet to have a go at them with the soldering iron to see how the silicone holds up.

[paulca]

Yesterday I got some LM2576T-5 G's from RS Components.  The order was for LM2576T-5 G, the stock number was for LM2576T-5 G, the antistatic bag the parts where in said LM2576T-5 G, but the components where small surface mount 3 pin devices that look like linear regulators and most definately not TO-220-5 devices.

Obviously I will return them, but as the anti-static bag has the correct stock number and part name, I'm worried I will just receive the same wrong part back again.

I've also now found that 2 of my 5 ATTiny85s from RS are DOA and might need HV fusing... or are totally dead.  Not really worth returning at £1 each though.

[Mr. Scram]

Yesterday I got some LM2576T-5 G's from RS Components.  The order was for LM2576T-5 G, the stock number was for LM2576T-5 G, the antistatic bag the parts where in said LM2576T-5 G, but the components where small surface mount 3 pin devices that look like linear regulators and most definately not TO-220-5 devices.

Obviously I will return them, but as the anti-static bag has the correct stock number and part name, I'm worried I will just receive the same wrong part back again.

I've also now found that 2 of my 5 ATTiny85s from RS are DOA and might need HV fusing... or are totally dead.  Not really worth returning at £1 each though.

That doesn't sound much better than a generic Chinese source.

[paulca]

That doesn't sound much better than a generic Chinese source.

Well, the two LM2576's I got from a British seller, which are probably from China and not much cheaper behave awfully like linear regualtors.  Voltage drops from 5V to 4.45V when you pull 0.5amps through them.  When RS hopefully sort the order out I intend to straight swap the component and see what happens.

[Insatman]

HP 214B vintage pulse/delay generator.    Vacuum tube output amp.  + or - output up to 100V into 50ohms.   Ext or int trigger.  Double pulse mode.  All in all a nice unit, just heavy and in need of some TLC.

[Mr. Scram]

I hit the mother lode at the thrift store today. Nearly 20 NES, SNES and Atari games for roughly $25. Some are in rough shape, but having daily drivers is more fun than prestine collector's items.

I'm debating going back for the Atari 2600 and two more games. Not as cheap as the rest, but it'd be a neat console to add to the collection, even though it's not part of my childhood like the rest. No TV connector or power, though.

[nctnico]

I bought a bunch of Raaco Assorter boxes to store machine screws, nuts, washers and various sizes of lugs.


They are not terribly expensive and I couldn't find something similar on Aliexpress quickly.

[blueskull]

Something AvE would say to put your dick in.



I would say for $120, I'm totally not impressed. I expect to see proper chamfered edges and thick anodized aluminum or tool grade steel. Colorless type III would be acceptable, but thin type II is not.



Also I would like to see some care -- at least they could get rid of the tooling marks. A buffing wheel and a few seconds of time per side is more than enough to at least remove exterior tooling marks.

[rx8pilot]

That is marginal even for the ultra-low cost.

For reference - I got 4" vises recently, they were over $1,000 USD each. Very good quality.
The ripoff version from China is about $250 through US distribution. Quality is marginal.

http://www.shars.com/products/toolholding-workholding/vise/4-440v-cnc-milling-machine-vise-0-0004-1

[blueskull]

That is marginal even for the ultra-low cost.

$120 for a vise is called low cost?

It looks to me like just an 8'' by 2'' by 3/4'' aluminum block and three 3/4'' by 2'' by 1'' aluminum blocks plus some screws and a steel ball pressed in.

The design doesn't look anywhere novel, and the machining can be done with a special (thin, angled) cutting tool on a 3-axis CNC.

I expect the real value of this thing to be $30 if made in China. Is everything CNC related all THIS expensive?

[BravoV]

Mean Well HLG-185H series with CC/CV capability and adjustable, 185 watt rated at (36V/5.2A), used and working fine, both for about US$15. 

[TerraHertz]

That is marginal even for the ultra-low cost.

For reference - I got 4" vises recently, they were over $1,000 USD each. Very good quality.
The ripoff version from China is about $250 through US distribution. Quality is marginal.

http://www.shars.com/products/toolholding-workholding/vise/4-440v-cnc-milling-machine-vise-0-0004-1

Coincidence, everyone buying machinist vices? I need one too. Something like this:
  https://www.aliexpress.com/item/QM100-4-Accu-lock-machine-vice-with-swivel-base-table-vise-machine-vice/32731773536.html
Hoping to find something second hand that will do.

[MasterTech]

Is everything CNC related all THIS expensive?

Good quality stuff is. Brands like Sandvik Coromant or Seco make the best tools. And when you see the work it takes to make end-mills for example, from steel manufacture to thermal hardening, you'll realize that it is not that expensive.

This is a nice catalogue of everything cnc related, although you'll only need the smallish stuff for your cnc, they are well known in Europe not sure if they deliver in the US.

https://www.hoffmann-group.com/GB/en/houk/assortment/Main_K48_GB

[Gary350z]

Taking a reference from YouTubes Voltlog.

This the thread that will touch both your passion for electronics and your bank account at the same time.    Both and 

[ChrisLX200]

That is marginal even for the ultra-low cost.

For reference - I got 4" vises recently, they were over $1,000 USD each. Very good quality.
The ripoff version from China is about $250 through US distribution. Quality is marginal.

http://www.shars.com/products/toolholding-workholding/vise/4-440v-cnc-milling-machine-vise-0-0004-1

Coincidence, everyone buying machinist vices? I need one too. Something like this:
  https://www.aliexpress.com/item/QM100-4-Accu-lock-machine-vice-with-swivel-base-table-vise-machine-vice/32731773536.html
Hoping to find something second hand that will do.

I've had many machine vices and I would suggest buying one with the moveable jaw on a (adjustable) dovetail slide. The blue one pictured is a 6" jaw width vice made by Bison. The smaller 4" is a no-name vice that always suffered from jaw 'lift' - you tighten it up and the moveable jaw lifts a few thou (that is what you want to avoid).

The type of vice to avoid is anything that looks like the green one on the second image - horrible thing that wouldn't grip anything. Looked OK and was well made, but the design is just poo.

[ChrisLX200]

Received today - a decade capacitance box to match the resistance box I scored a few weeks ago

[nctnico]

That is marginal even for the ultra-low cost.

For reference - I got 4" vises recently, they were over $1,000 USD each. Very good quality.
The ripoff version from China is about $250 through US distribution. Quality is marginal.

http://www.shars.com/products/toolholding-workholding/vise/4-440v-cnc-milling-machine-vise-0-0004-1

Coincidence, everyone buying machinist vices? I need one too. Something like this:
  https://www.aliexpress.com/item/QM100-4-Accu-lock-machine-vice-with-swivel-base-table-vise-machine-vice/32731773536.html
Hoping to find something second hand that will do.

I'm still looking for an extra machinist vice as well but the good ones are horribly expensive.

[3db]

I bought a Brymen 869S via Amazon.co.uk
The meter came with a padded soft case,thermocouple and test leads that look like the ones Dave supplies with his BM235.
I have no idea if this is the norm when you buy a BM896S.
The actual supplier was Welectron in Germany.
I get the impression that Welectron are a pretty good supplier.
3DB

[ChrisLX200]

I bought a Brymen 869S via Amazon.co.uk
The meter came with a padded soft case,thermocouple and test leads that look like the ones Dave supplies with his BM235.
I have no idea if this is the norm when you buy a BM896S.
The actual supplier was Welectron in Germany.
I get the impression that Welectron are a pretty good supplier.
3DB

A good meter from what I've read!