Test Equipment Anonymous (TEA) group therapy thread

[bd139]

@bd139
Nice score!!  In this case not getting the one pictured might have been a blessing since it’s above the revision threshold and in pristine condition.  I wonder though, aside from opening it up or looking at the revision, if there’s any way to know which VFD arrangement it is... Is the only guaranteed way to know for sure I’m not getting an old VFD (based on appearance only) to buy an Agilent or keysight branded one?

No TEA for me today either. I’ll be at work for 11 hours installing a shower steam unit and prepping the shower for kerdi and tile.

Definitely the firmware revision is the only way. SYS menu -> revision -> last digit 02 or above. Sorted.


More TE fun this weekend. This just landed for the 5334B 



Going to skip Andover ARAC boot sale now as well. Got too much stuff in the repair queue. Got LM723 for the 1740A power supply as well so that should be done this week (if it doesn't immediately catch fire again)

[med6753]

Well I WAS going to change the oil in the CR-V but it looks like it's going to pour any minute and weather radar pretty much confirms it. I prefer to do oil changes outside in a far corner of our gravel/dirt parking area because no matter how much protection you put down and how careful you are you always spill some oil. I COULD do it in the garage but with that new and pristine concrete floor the laws according to Murphy state I'll have a massive accident which will piss off the landlord.  So I'll do it tomorrow.

So in the meantime the capacitor order to re-cap the 485 PSU is out for delivery but Fed-Ex never shows up here until late afternoon. So I guess I'll work on this 7A16 plug-in which has been acting goofy lately (attenuators, of course) and give it a good cleaning.

[tggzzz]

Outside the UK we have no idea what you guys are talking about. And I'm reluctant to ask because the last time I asked about Boris I got my head handed to me and told not to go there.   

I can recommend to watch Monty Pythons Flying Circus, Mr. Bean and some episodes of Top Gear in no particular order. This will help you understanding. Maybe. Drinking some alcohol may support this as well.

I'm binge-watching one of my favourite shows (Babylon 5) yet again. There are too many parallels with the zeitgeist in series 3, where your country's experiences influenced JMS's scripts.

Since that is entirely political, I'm not going to elucidate those cryptic statements.

[mnementh]

LMAO. It’s laugh at our political elite week this week. Interesting times.

34401A day today! Woohoo

Interesting time as in the Chinese proverb? From now on every day is 34401A day!

Actually, it wasn't a proverb... it was always a curse. Sometimes a "friendly" curse; but more often deliberately sly, as in "Keep your friends close, and your enemies closer" mentality.

Ok some findings for prospective 34401A owners. tl;dr: this is a keeper.

@spec: I've turned the comma off and agree. There's a menu option for that  . 50/50 on the cal now. I'm mostly concerned with relative measurements (leakage, drift) and the absolute is close enough.

Took it to bits and it's definitely the later display model. I didn't take the front panel off but you can tell the difference without removing it looking at the rear of the board. The later and good 34401-66512 panel revision only has front mounted SMD components. The older 34401-66502 has a TH microcontroller which the footprint is visible from the rear of the board. Also this puts to bed the red/black jack thing. It's not conclusive. The conclusive is the last section in the revision sys parameter which should be 02 and not 01 

   Anyway inside shots. It's absolutely pristine! (shield assembly removed here for inspection). No sign of any work, repairs or entry into the device so far I could identify.

Well, looking at your unit, the integral jack assemblies make it very unlikely the all-red jacks were a result of somebody changing the front panel on a newer unit that had been smashed or otherwise defaced. Good infodump! 

Well I WAS going to change the oil in the CR-V but it looks like it's going to pour any minute and weather radar pretty much confirms it. I prefer to do oil changes outside in a far corner of our gravel/dirt parking area because no matter how much protection you put down and how careful you are you always spill some oil. I COULD do it in the garage but with that new and pristine concrete floor the laws according to Murphy state I'll have a massive accident which will piss off the landlord.  So I'll do it tomorrow.

So in the meantime the capacitor order to re-cap the 485 PSU is out for delivery but Fed-Ex never shows up here until late afternoon. So I guess I'll work on this 7A16 plug-in which has been acting goofy lately (attenuators, of course) and give it a good cleaning.

That sucks. Personally, I'd put a dropcloth down and cover it with cardboard and get the job done; the standard to meet here is "reasonable care". You should be able to expect to USE the garage.

Speaking of "suck": I was out in it till 2300 last night, literally sweating rivulets with a bandanna wrapped around my head like some Benny Hill sketch. I pulled the plug on the project and came inside when I noticed that I had STOPPED sweating... 
And I'm out in it again this morning, finishing up the trailer wiring to go along with the towbar I installed on the RAV4 last Christmas. Damn Toyota and all their funky little body panel clips... 

mnem
I donn' wanna. 

[med6753]

Under the category "It Ain't Gonna Last Long". Apparently the kid upstairs has a new girlfriend. She's in the process of moving in. Her car is absolutely stuffed to the gills with her crap. She's already made about 7 trips to her car and up 3 flights of stairs unloading the car. And where is he helping her? No clue but I'm sure he's up there. Heard them talking. Now wouldn't you think if you had a new GF you'd help her? I certainly would.

It ain't gonna last long. 

[med6753]

That sucks. Personally, I'd put a dropcloth down and cover it with cardboard and get the job done; the standard to meet here is "reasonable care". You should be able to expect to USE the garage.

mnem
I donn' wanna. 

It's no big deal. I use the garage all the time for my woodworking as well as car maintenance that doesn't require fluids like oil. And knowing clumsy me no matter how much drop cloth or cardboard I put down I'll spill some. Besides, I'm retired, got all the time in the world. 

[med6753]

OK, the 7A16 plug-in is cleaned, seems to working OK, and stuffed back into the 7904 and burning in. Now what? 

[med6753]

Well it's a good thing I have no packages pending from USPS. Fire Alarm at my local PO. Fire dept responding. Don't care it burns up one of my bills or two. 

[mnementh]

That sucks. Personally, I'd put a dropcloth down and cover it with cardboard and get the job done; the standard to meet here is "reasonable care". You should be able to expect to USE the garage.

mnem
I donn' wanna. 

It's no big deal. I use the garage all the time for my woodworking as well as car maintenance that doesn't require fluids like oil. And knowing clumsy me no matter how much drop cloth or cardboard I put down I'll spill some. Besides, I'm retired, got all the time in the world. 

Amen, brutha.

I'm off to the Toyota dealership to see if they'll sell me the terminal to go in the fuse panel so I can add the trailer light circuit. Rest of the install is done but I'd rather finish the job right, not with a pigtail fuse at the battery like the butchers at UHaul.  If not, still time for the 20K service.

mnem
*tzzzzzt*

[BU508A]

Since that is entirely political, I'm not going to elucidate those cryptic statements.

May I offer you instead an 18yo Highland Park? 

[Mr. Scram]

Outside the UK we have no idea what you guys are talking about. And I'm reluctant to ask because the last time I asked about Boris I got my head handed to me and told not to go there.   

It sounds like you're up to speed because the politicians don't have a clue what they're talking about either. 

[tggzzz]

Since that is entirely political, I'm not going to elucidate those cryptic statements.

May I offer you instead an 18yo Highland Park? 

You may, but it won't last long enough

[Mr. Scram]

May I offer you instead an 18yo Highland Park? 

Don't mind if I do.

[worsthorse]

I finished cleaning up the Collins DL-1 dummy load and that's on the block now.  Located the service manual and calibration procedure for the BK 2831D so I can finish refurbishing it for the sale queue.  After that, I will tackle the Keithley 199.

Neither the 197 or the 8800A have sold yet, maybe I have them priced too high? Maybe most folks  (outside of our little freak show here  ) don't see the need for a 5.5 digit DMM? Though I dread the idea of it, I guess I will have to figure out how to sell on ebay.

All that said, no TE fun today. Today is tax day. As in 2018 tax day. As in, no they are not finished yet, don't ask and they must be done without further delay.

[BU508A]

Since that is entirely political, I'm not going to elucidate those cryptic statements.

May I offer you instead an 18yo Highland Park? 

You may, but it won't last long enough

Yeah, I can see the problem. But even it wont last long it gives me a nice and warmth feeling, even better in good company.

[mnementh]

At the Toyota dealership now... parts desk couldn’t find what I was asking for; but service manager is being very helpful and trying to find me a junk fuse panel I might be able to rob the electrical bits I need from.

We’ll see if what he returns with is usable. 

mnem
*dealership shuffle*

[bd139]

HP 1740A progress finally .... https://www.eevblog.com/forum/testgear/hp-1740a-power-supply-burn-up/msg2665509/#msg2665509

Remaining issue, possibly a wonky cap 

[med6753]

That sucks. Personally, I'd put a dropcloth down and cover it with cardboard and get the job done; the standard to meet here is "reasonable care". You should be able to expect to USE the garage.

mnem
I donn' wanna. 

It's no big deal. I use the garage all the time for my woodworking as well as car maintenance that doesn't require fluids like oil. And knowing clumsy me no matter how much drop cloth or cardboard I put down I'll spill some. Besides, I'm retired, got all the time in the world. 

Amen, brutha.

I'm off to the Toyota dealership to see if they'll sell me the terminal to go in the fuse panel so I can add the trailer light circuit. Rest of the install is done but I'd rather finish the job right, not with a pigtail fuse at the battery like the butchers at UHaul.  If not, still time for the 20K service.

mnem
*tzzzzzt*

Turns out the rain slipped north of me and is now clear. So I proceeded with the oil change. Hit a temporary snag. It turns out some Gorilla (me) the last time they changed the oil installed the drain plug so tight they had to get their 18 inch breaker bar to loosen it.  And yes Mother, I changed the crush washer. Anyway, it's done without any further drama. 

[mnementh]

Good man!  I’m guessing you learned the lesson of drain plug gaskets the hard way. 

mnem
Everybody who learns that lesson learns it that way.

[med6753]

Good man!  I’m guessing you learned the lesson of drain plug gaskets the hard way. 

mnem
Everybody who learns that lesson learns it that way.

The problem wasn't the crush washer. The problem was the dumb ass who tightened the drain plug the last time. 

[Cubdriver]

Good man!  I’m guessing you learned the lesson of drain plug gaskets the hard way. 

mnem
Everybody who learns that lesson learns it that way.

The problem wasn't the crush washer. The problem was the dumb ass who tightened the drain plug the last time. 

Apparently you took the 'crush' part a bit too seriously...  Lay off the spinach until AFTER the oil change, Popeye! 

-Pat

[med6753]

Good man!  I’m guessing you learned the lesson of drain plug gaskets the hard way. 

mnem
Everybody who learns that lesson learns it that way.

The problem wasn't the crush washer. The problem was the dumb ass who tightened the drain plug the last time. 

Apparently you took the 'crush' part a bit too seriously...  Lay off the spinach until AFTER the oil change, Popeye! 

-Pat

 

[med6753]

The capacitors showed up for the 485 PSU re-cap. Hard to believe that this little box is almost $65 USD worth of parts. And basically all it does is the PSU. It doesn't cover a tenth of the total tants in that scope. I've pretty much resigned to the fact that I'll run it until smoke then replace. 

[bd139]

It hurts doesn't it 

Given up on the HP for the night. Power supply issue is weird as fuck.

[med6753]

It hurts doesn't it 

Given up on the HP for the night. Power supply issue is weird as fuck.

Are their sense lines coming back from those boards that maybe aren't sending back a "power good" which is causing the shutdown?