List your test equipment "scores" here!

[usagi]

I wonder how they blew the GPIB interface? I would bet it's probably fixable, they generally have a transceiver IC. It's not a feature most hobbyists are likely to need anyway though.

I did fix it.

probably explains why it was so cheap and almost brand spanking new -- it even had the screen protector still on. it was probably used for a manufacturing test station, someone blew out the gpib and that rendered it completely useless to the business so they dumped it on the second hand market. even though it was still working in all other aspects.

I suspect many second hand test equipment acquired by eevbloggers may have busted gpib and they don't even know it.

[Smith]

I was at a local thrift store yesterday, and scored a brand new boxed Bresser Researcher ICD (LED version) stereo microscope complete with 4 weeks warranty for less than 10 euro's. Retails for about 230 and up. Does 20 - 80x magnification. Even has the LED option with 3 GP industrial batteries, wich can be charged with the adapter plugged in. Ideal for electronics.

I used a cheaper Bresser microscope for years and I could work for hours on these things.

[anachrocomputer]

Hard to say whether this is a "score" or not, but I have a fine 1971 Fluke 893A Differential Voltmeter. Got it for £50 or so. Seems to work OK, and readings agree well with my Fluke 8800A and HP 3456A (on a simple test; will need to test in more detail). Last calibrated in 1992. It emits a high-pitched whine when operating, which I suspect is a DC-DC converter. The reference is a zener diode, with temperature compensation. The date is from a paper label next to the zener. Someone has changed the original oval mains connector for a wired-in mains lead in modern UK colours (brown/blue/green-yellow).

[macboy]

Hard to say whether this is a "score" or not, but I have a fine 1971 Fluke 893A Differential Voltmeter. Got it for £50 or so. Seems to work OK, and readings agree well with my Fluke 8800A and HP 3456A (on a simple test; will need to test in more detail). Last calibrated in 1992. It emits a high-pitched whine when operating, which I suspect is a DC-DC converter. The reference is a zener diode, with temperature compensation. The date is from a paper label next to the zener. Someone has changed the original oval mains connector for a wired-in mains lead in modern UK colours (brown/blue/green-yellow).

The whine could be coming from the chopper amplifier.

[nfmax]

A Hewlett-Packard 8110A 150 MHz programmable pulse/pattern generator, with one 81103A output card and the optional 81106A PLL card. Listed on the 'Bay as 'faulty/for parts', my offer of £165 was accepted. Some mechanical damage to the plastic front panel, and the display module had come adrift at some point, but it was easily repaired and seems to be fully functional, although the VFD display is dim.

I even had a set of System II feet & bail stands for it in the junk box!

 

[TheSteve]

A Hewlett-Packard 8110A 150 MHz programmable pulse/pattern generator, with one 81103A output card and the optional 81106A PLL card. Listed on the 'Bay as 'faulty/for parts', my offer of £165 was accepted. Some mechanical damage to the plastic front panel, and the display module had come adrift at some point, but it was easily repaired and seems to be fully functional, although the VFD display is dim.

I even had a set of System II feet & bail stands for it in the junk box!

 

Great score!

[mmagin]

Hard to say whether this is a "score" or not, but I have a fine 1971 Fluke 893A Differential Voltmeter.

I have the older tube-based 801.  The whine may be a mechanical chopper, which is ok.  I mostly got it for curiousity and historical volt-nuttery, but there is one practical thing I have used it for: accurately directly measuring the voltage across a geiger tube without loading it down.  Since a differential voltmeter is a null meter and Kelvin-Varley divider, at balance, the input impedance is theoretically infinite. 

Admittedly I could have used the high voltage divider probe (10G input I think?) with my handheld fluke instead, but this was more fun.

[nfmax]

I was able to rescue quite a nice thermometer from the surplus equipment left over when the calibration facility at my (former) workplace was closed down recently. It's a Labfacility Tempmaster 100, and it came with two PRT probes, one of which is an Isotech 935 14-13 'semi-standard' probe, rated from -196?C to 250?C, with typical uncertainty of around 10mK after calibration, and typical drift of 0.01?C/year at 0?C. Unfortunately, it doesn't have individual calibration data, but the specified tolerances on alpha and R0 should give an uncertainty of around 0.1?C over the 0?C to 100?C range, at least. An ice-point check with this probe read -0.02?C, which is very encouraging. The second, 'industrial' type probe read -0.04?C.

A random selection of K-type thermocouples and meters was anything reading from -0.8?C to 1.7?C in the ice-point bath, which sounds terrible but is within their specified tolerances! Precision temperature measurement - say to better than 0.5?C uncertainty - is hard.

[garymck]

Not Sure if it was a good buy, but got a DSE rebranded PS-1005 100mhz 2 channel analogue oscilloscope for $50 Aust. Mint condition with manual.

http://www.pintek.com.tw/product_detail/landersound/index.php?Product_SN=19249&Company_SN=6002&Product_Site_Classify_SN=16856

cheers
Gary

[tautech]

Not Sure if it was a good buy, but got a DSE rebranded PS-1005 100mhz 2 channel analogue oscilloscope for $50 Aust. Mint condition with manual.

http://www.pintek.com.tw/product_detail/landersound/index.php?Product_SN=19249&Company_SN=6002&Product_Site_Classify_SN=16856

cheers
Gary

Good buying Gary, well done.

[bitseeker]

That sounds quite nice, Gary.

[rx8pilot]

HP custom smoke generator arrived today  - oops. But it was cheap 

Looks like a repair project. The good news is that the PSU still provides power and the unit was still working when the smoke poured out. A loud pop had me pulling power rather quick.

[TheSteve]

I have same model, just configured with different options. Bought it cheap to use as a 0-1 GHz clock gen with fast edges.

[nctnico]

HP custom smoke generator arrived today  - oops. But it was cheap 

Looks like a repair project. The good news is that the PSU still provides power and the unit was still working when the smoke poured out. A loud pop had me pulling power rather quick.

Sorry but I can't help finding the picture including smoke somewhat funny. But don't worry, it has happened to me too and sometimes even resulting in a blown mains fuse as well.

[AF6LJ]

HP custom smoke generator arrived today  - oops. But it was cheap 

Looks like a repair project. The good news is that the PSU still provides power and the unit was still working when the smoke poured out. A loud pop had me pulling power rather quick.

That has happened to me also...
What is that anyway...
I don't recognize it and the picture is too grainy to read the model number.

[IRFP460]

Got a EDC / Krohn-Hite MV 116 DC standard (same as the MV 106, but with the ranges 100 mV - 1 V - 10 V), a Hameg HZ 65 component tester and some small things for 100 bucks this weekend...
The standard was last calibrated in '97, but is still in spec from what I can tell.

I guess that's how that voltnut thing begins?

[rx8pilot]

Sorry but I can't help finding the picture including smoke somewhat funny. But don't worry, it has happened to me too and sometimes even resulting in a blown mains fuse as well.

I got a good laugh out of it. It is the pride of 1982 purchased off from a liquidator. It was making 1Ghz pulses with 275ps edges for a moment there....no problem.

What is that anyway...
I don't recognize it and the picture is too grainy to read the model number.

HP 8080A Frame with:
8091A Rate Generator - 1 Ghz with <300ps rise times 1.2v
2x 8093A 1Ghz Amplifiers
2x 8092A Delay/Frequency dividers

Was looking for the fast edges and an external clock source. I imagine this thing was quite a special unit back in its day. The pots need some cleaning and obviously a small smoke issue but I think it will be a welcome addition to the growing rack of old gear.

I would love to have newer, smaller, fancier, ethernet automated gear - but for $175 and probably 2 hours of labor I will skip it. You can get a LOT done with old HP/Agilent/Tek, Anritsu, etc if you have the space to put it.


UPDATE:

AC Suppression cap totally let go - split in half and made a mess. $.50 to replace it. While I am at it - I will probably replace most of the caps that even slightly look suspect. There are 4 Y rated and 2 X2 rated that are easy to replace. Taking old HP gear apart never gets old, the engineering is over the top. Starts to feel like there are endless screws holding it together.

[TheSteve]

Do you like all the pretty hybrids in it?
And I was shocked, no fan - pretty rare for a piece of HP gear.

[rx8pilot]

Made in Germany too. There is a sticker that warns of mixed metric and imperial fasteners. If anything other than the PSU breaks - I may not bother fixing it.

And yes - no fan needed.

[james_s]

Made in Germany too. There is a sticker that warns of mixed metric and imperial fasteners. If anything other than the PSU breaks - I may not bother fixing it.

And yes - no fan needed.

I hate that, seems like the Ford Ranger pickup I had when I was a teenager was that way. I'm fine with imperial, I'm fine with metric, but come on, don't mix them in one device!

[AF6LJ]

Very cool and an easy fix...
Yah Get them tantalums before they get you.

[rx8pilot]

Do you like all the pretty hybrids in it?
And I was shocked, no fan - pretty rare for a piece of HP gear.

Do you know what the hybrids are doing in there?

[MadTux]

Do you know what the hybrids are doing in there?

Making fast pulses ;-)
The german HP guys really loved to pack everything magic into hybrids, since all german HP instruments are full of them. And unfortunately, they aren't really reliable, I had bad ones in HP-8112/8116A, 8165A and 8082A. Most of the 8000 series instruments are made in germany, so be careful when buying these for "easy fix"

[mmagin]

My HP 8082A even has some of the wonderful BeO ceramic in some of its special modules.

Still need to fix up its jitter problem, I think it's narrowed down to a small part of the circuit. The power supply parts of my HP 8082A seem fine also, at least as far as the voltages and ripple.

FWIW, I do not get so excited about wet tantalum capacitors, they've generally been fine for me, and to really replace them 'correctly' is expensive

[Towger]

Rifa caps, little fire crackers. ..