Products > Test Equipment
Test Equipment Anonymous (TEA) group therapy thread
Specmaster:
Looking nice, thats a lot of work you've put in to get this far but there's something about Heathkit gear that seems to make it all worthwhile, could it be that in our younger formative years we used to stand and gaze in the local electronics shop window and wish we could afford their kits then? Whatever it is I seem to be drawn towards them now, even though the newer gear is several orders of magnitudes more accurate, I mean that both of my meters use 1% resistors wheras the AVO's and TMK's use .1% resistors for their range selectors so their readings are better and the DMM's are even better still.
I see in your meter you do have some trim pots so you may be lucky and get an improvement in reading but for mine, I think I'm stuck at probably 1 to 3% errors and when you think about, for the gear that they designed for back then had such a wide band of tolerance in everything so they were ideal for their day.
I just tried that little fudge with the washing up liquid and it does indeed work, improved it loads, thanks for the tip.
tautech:
--- Quote from: bd139 on May 26, 2018, 09:38:58 pm ---Better than the Fiat I drive! :-DD
--- End quote ---
I've got 2 Fiat 4wd tractors too.
Yeah it's pretty tidy for an '80's era machine. All original light fittings. :o Only 2cyl though so you can hear it for miles chuffing away.
We had to sort out one of the steering clutches as it was a little stiff and out of adjustment. Inside there was a ball on a shaft that actuated the steering clutch fork and it was frozen on it's shaft. It runs on needle rollers and they'd dried out and with a bit of clutch dust stopped rolling. Bit on a bitch to work on without a full dismantle but we got it loose again and working as it should....few squirts of penetrant helped. :)
The adjustment mechanism we'd have never guessed without the service sheet from the owners manual or a power of guugling. He was late for dinner (I cooked, we're batching ATM) as while it was hot oils got dropped and replaced.
Not much left to do on it now except check track rollers and front idler for lube and a couple more small adjustments.
--- Quote from: bd139 on May 26, 2018, 09:38:58 pm ---Note the ancient 78/79MG wankers regulators.
--- End quote ---
I thought I'd worked on some old gear but never seen those before ! :scared:
--- Quote from: med6753 on May 26, 2018, 10:06:00 pm ---
--- Quote from: tautech on May 26, 2018, 09:18:52 pm ---
--- Quote from: tautech on May 24, 2018, 10:09:03 pm ---
--- Quote from: GerryBags on May 24, 2018, 10:00:27 pm ---I sold a really nice kit of the FAMO 18-Ton half-track to buy a 'scope - I only have room for one space hungry hobby ;D
--- End quote ---
YOU SOLD WHAT ? :scared:
You should've bought a bigger place ! :P
My son ::) but god bless him, bought a 35hp Fiat crawler for shits and giggles the other day and it spent a couple of weeks getting from one end of NZ to us in the north. Why, well cause he could and has his own decent shed in which to keep it. At only 2 tonne you can shift it on a decent 2 axle trailer.
I'll try and plonk a pic of it here in the next day or so.
--- End quote ---
Here's that pic I promised.
IS TEA related as we had to trace some non-working lights. :P
Off for his first proper spin on it ~3km around the farm.
--- End quote ---
Cool little crawler! :-+ But you know what "Fiat" stands for don't ya? "Fix It Again Tony" :-DD
--- End quote ---
Don't I know it !
Now there's three to keep going. :scared:
One of my tractors has been to hell and back for the 30yrs we've had it but for the improvements it's made around the place in that time it was a good investment way back then. Dad mucked around with 2wd tractors until when I worked in Ag equipment for a few years I convinced him to 'get with the times'.
I still remember the look on his face when I took him for a ride (him standing in the drawbar) down a steep hill below the house I grew up in. WTF, you're not going down there he said as I pushed the clutch in and let her gather some speed freewheeling. Ya hanging on I replied. Slammed on the anchors and it stopped on a dime while he wiped the sweat off his brow. :-DD Popped it into reverse and backed up to where we'd come from.
A week later he owned it. :)
************
Miss ya more than anything Pop. :'(
bd139:
--- Quote from: Specmaster on May 26, 2018, 10:11:47 pm ---Looking nice, thats a lot of work you've put in to get this far but there's something about Heathkit gear that seems to make it all worthwhile, could it be that in our younger formative years we used to stand and gaze in the local electronics shop window and wish we could afford their kits then? Whatever it is I seem to be drawn towards them now, even though the newer gear is several orders of magnitudes more accurate, I mean that both of my meters use 1% resistors wheras the AVO's and TMK's use .1% resistors for their range selectors so their readings are better and the DMM's are even better still.
--- End quote ---
Yes definitely that. I used to browse Practical Wireless and get the Heath catalogues (which were free). We never had enough money to buy any of it when I was a kid unfortunately. And literally the moment I had the cash I was all hormones so it got spent on beer, pizza, women, cars, computers and textbooks and they had long gone down the crapper when I shook that off :(
Also the Heathkit stuff has two things about it which I find nothing else does:
1. All their stuff has excellent documentation. Very few problems are insurmountable.
2. It's actually really good kit. It's solid, standard parts, easy to understand designs and does what it says on the tin.
If you crack open a Heath scope, even the higher end ones which were actually pretty damn good, you know it's going to have resistors and transistors in the front end rather than some bastard hybrid or thin film end-game part.
--- Quote from: Specmaster on May 26, 2018, 10:11:47 pm ---I see in your meter you do have some trim pots so you may be lucky and get an improvement in reading but for mine, I think I'm stuck at probably 1 to 3% errors and when you think about, for the gear that they designed for back then had such a wide band of tolerance in everything so they were ideal for their day.
--- End quote ---
You can probably trim them out a bit. 3% is absolutely fine though. That's fine for most measurements, despite what the voltnuts say. If you look in the art of electronics as an example book, most of the book is literally about telling you that within 10% is pretty much fine.
--- Quote from: Specmaster on May 26, 2018, 10:11:47 pm ---I just tried that little fudge with the washing up liquid and it does indeed work, improved it loads, thanks for the tip.
--- End quote ---
It's amazing isn't it. I couldn't believe it the first time I did it. Thought someone was having me on.
GreyWoolfe:
--- Quote from: tautech on May 26, 2018, 10:24:31 pm ---Miss ya more than anything Pop. :'(
--- End quote ---
Right there with you. I lost mine in 1992. I still have his tack hammer that is at least as old as me and his brass shoehorn stamped Belgium, 1917. I use both regularly.
tautech:
--- Quote from: GreyWoolfe on May 27, 2018, 12:30:26 am ---
--- Quote from: tautech on May 26, 2018, 10:24:31 pm ---Miss ya more than anything Pop. :'(
--- End quote ---
Right there with you. I lost mine in 1992. I still have his tack hammer that is at least as old as me and his brass shoehorn stamped Belgium, 1917. I use both regularly.
--- End quote ---
'93 when dad passed after I'd spent a great 10yrs working with him on the land.
I'd just got married in '82 and pop took to my wife like his daughter.
When we needed a babysitter dad was there in a shot.....but never the ol' lady, never !
Those were very special years, some very few get to experience with a parent.
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