Test Equipment Anonymous (TEA) group therapy thread

[nixiefreqq]

hey mnem 

enjoyed your river pics.  have not been there in 54 years.

but you accidently pushed a button of mine (a button without an "=").

tesla was a very very good engineer.  but he was no genius. 

Oliver Heaviside was an actual genius, and he gets credit for.......DICK.

(people are always hatin' on redheads.)

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oliver_Heaviside

edit - they should make a movie about HIM.

edit 2 one of our cats is named for HIM.

[bitseeker]

What a fool i am asking a bunch of addicts if i need more TE.  I have a Symetricom Sync Sever S300 coming my way very soon it doesn’t have a 10Mhz output as standard but I am desperately hopeful that there is a way to extract 10Mhz from it or at least learn something before i let the smoke out trying. 

As for the Anritsu I hooked it up to the 1 Khz output on my rigol and it is displaying 1000.001 Hz.  The 10Mhz output is stable at 9.99997 Mhz according to my DSO.  This is after the frequency counter had been warming up for about 2 hours.  But without a standard i suppose its all just near enough is good enough. 

It all depends what you need. Of course, here, getting some more equipment is always an option. If you don't have a frequency standard that is sufficiently more accurate than your counter, then it's probably better not to adjust the counter unless you see that it's grossly off relative to your scope. From what you've posted, it seems just fine.

So, now you can decide if you want it to be better, and shop accordingly, or enjoy it just the way it is. Nice catch, by the way.

Regarding the manual. If you scan it, you can upload it to various online repositories such as

http://www.ko4bb.com/manuals/
http://bama.edebris.com/manuals/

[Alfons]

THAT is a breadboard. From the flea market for a few euros. The part is built so solid that you could still build its circuit during a quake (if you tie up). Ingenious part, was probably then built as a teaching tool, so even untrained sausage fingers can not break anything. All contacts are gold plated. Gorgeous, those old things.

[ArthurDent]

So while I had the case off my 203-6, I repaired those pushrod issues:

I added an on-off switch to my HP53132A and just used a steel wire about the size of what is used in metal coat hangers and used a short piece of plastic air hose to couple the bent rod to the switch shaft. worked like a charm.

[Neomys Sapiens]

THAT is a breadboard. From the flea market for a few euros. The part is built so solid that you could still build its circuit during a quake (if you tie up). Ingenious part, was probably then built as a teaching tool, so even untrained sausage fingers can not break anything. All contacts are gold plated. Gorgeous, those old things.

That is a beautiful catch!
Ghielmetti is otherwise known for high quality crossbar and patch panels which are found in broadcast and communications.

[Martin72]

That is a beautiful catch!

Indeed 

[Specmaster]

snip

I use original Hakko tips on mine. Work perfectly.

My tips also work OK, its only when changing tips that the contact rings can be a problem, so I got myself another system and just keep my favourite tips in them and just swap systems or handles over as required.

[Specmaster]

Hahaha. This is standard stuff if you go with the lowest bidder.

Remember the T12. Same thing. Got replaced with Metcal which is perfect still.

Yep I remember that, thing is my T12 is still perfect too, only problems I have is with the cheap tips, breaking the contact rings.

I use original Hakko tips on mine. Work perfectly.

Yup... When I infected the thread with the T12 disease, I recommended that you get one or three of your favorite go-to tips as genuine Hakko, since the QC on the clones is pretty poor and you'll run into problems with them not making good connection.

For the move, I had to pare all my tools down to 2 Kobalt bags and one technician case. As you might imagine, my beloved MetCal didn't make the cut on account of being the size of Smaug's left testicle, so it was my T12 that got packed.

Something I HAVE been forced to change since going the cartridge iron route however... All my life I've been a die-hard wet-sponge tip-cleaner guy... But after I ruined a 3-month-old Thermaltronics tip during a week-long stint of production assembly work,  I took MetCal's advice about thermal shock to heart and started using the Brillo pad.

Fast-forward to now, using the T12 everyday again... I've found the clone T12 tips are even MORE susceptible to this damage; with the core coming loose from the SS tube on two of them after just a few hours of bench work, just like the Thermaltronics tip on my MetCal.

So... Point being... Spend the 4 bucks on a Brillo can tip cleaner. Your T12 tips will thank you.

Cheers,

mnem
*contented widdle dwagon widda belly full of steak & loaded baked potato*

Yep I have gone down the brillo pad route myself and it makes a perfect job of cleaning the tips. 

[Specmaster]

In all honesty: What for? A die-hard voltnut may appreciate it, but for everything else it is rather impractical. The last 2 digits just won't sit still in a normal environment, so they're utterly useless. If you really need the accuracy and precision, you have to get it calibrated regularly (which is not cheap). And it is big.
Mine is switched on very rarely.

But I confess that it is nice just to have one and relish the engineering. 

My sentiments precisely but put a more elegantly, in most cases the 3rd and sometimes the 4th digit is as far as anyone really needs to go, my two 6.5 digits are rarely switched on.

[GreyWoolfe]

THAT is a breadboard. From the flea market for a few euros. The part is built so solid that you could still build its circuit during a quake (if you tie up). Ingenious part, was probably then built as a teaching tool, so even untrained sausage fingers can not break anything. All contacts are gold plated. Gorgeous, those old things.

I might just have sausage fingers.  Sausage fingers can break anything.  Mrs GreyWoolfe would agree with me. 

[Mr. Scram]

My sentiments precisely but put a more elegantly, in most cases the 3rd and sometimes the 4th digit is as far as anyone really needs to go, my two 6.5 digits are rarely switched on.

The practical difference between 8 and 6 digits is quite substantial.

[Alfons]

THAT is a breadboard. From the flea market for a few euros. The part is built so solid that you could still build its circuit during a quake (if you tie up). Ingenious part, was probably then built as a teaching tool, so even untrained sausage fingers can not break anything. All contacts are gold plated. Gorgeous, those old things.

I might just have sausage fingers.  Sausage fingers can break anything.  Mrs GreyWoolfe would agree with me.

I do not have sausage fingers, but I'm also good at destroying things. I could list a lot here. But with this device, I have my first experience and nothing destroyed !!!

[Mr. Scram]

I wouldn't mind one of those breadboards on my desk. Very nice.

[factory]

Visited one of my least favourite fire alarm panels on Friday. It's controlled via an old and very unreliable touch screen:

It's a lottery whether you get any touch detected, a single touch, or a double touch. Makes inputting access codes frustrating to say the least...   

This bloody thing has been going off for about six or seven hours at the flats my brother lives at, both with a fire alarm (false) & general fault.  Shame it doesn't tell you which flat caused the problem.



David

[factory]

again generator... found this in the bay.
"with not used batteries" 

interesting if the new batteries from the 204B are healthy, they are the original batterie set (ca 1961) 

http://hpmemoryproject.org/wb_pages/wall_b_page_10a.htm

They don't look corroded enough to be from the 1960's. 

David

[bd139]

I dunno. Sometimes stuff miraculously survives. I found this in a Heathkit V-7 last year and it still had 1.5 volts across it!



Have gone PC bits shopping rather than TE shopping this week. Another 16Gb of RAM and Be Quiet Dark Rock Pro 4 cooler incoming as the stock AMD one is bloody annoying late at night. Sounds like a fucking lawnmower.

[factory]

It was so much much fun today, I was in heaven

(Attachment Link)

spolier just for the TEA dragons:

(Attachment Link)

much much more to come.

Next year you have to come with me.

Well the Keysight is clearly useless it won't match the beige of my other gear 

Easily fixed. 

Yeah... paint it ALL Smurf-Smear Blue...

There you go, fixed it for @med.



David

[factory]

I dunno. Sometimes stuff miraculously survives. I found this in a Heathkit V-7 last year and it still had 1.5 volts across it!

Maybe those are Mercury batteries with that HP 204B (rechargeable Ni-Cruds were also available for it), I've yet to see a Ni-Crud battery in anything HP I've bought that doesn't have some, or a lot of leakage & corrosion.

Have gone PC bits shopping rather than TE shopping this week. Another 16Gb of RAM and Be Quiet Dark Rock Pro 4 cooler incoming as the stock AMD one is bloody annoying late at night. Sounds like a fucking lawnmower.

So you didn't buy any of those HP 3311A's then?

David

P.S. trying & failing to catch up again.

[Specmaster]

I dunno. Sometimes stuff miraculously survives. I found this in a Heathkit V-7 last year and it still had 1.5 volts across it!



Have gone PC bits shopping rather than TE shopping this week. Another 16Gb of RAM and Be Quiet Dark Rock Pro 4 cooler incoming as the stock AMD one is bloody annoying late at night. Sounds like a fucking lawnmower.

Those ever ready batteries lasted a good long time, the heathkit V-7 I had came with an old ever ready red battery in it and it still measured 1.5 volts as well. So the RAM will take you to what, 32GB? thats I have and I'm not so sure that it gives any performance benefit over 16GB, if it does its very marginal but that cooler has an impressively low noise rating, but shit it requires a lot of space in the case.

Just hope that when it arrives, your case will accept it ok.

[mansaxel]

THAT is a breadboard.

Ghielmetti. Swiss made, then. They make the highest quality patchbays and pin matrices. Very expensive. Very reliable. If it wasn't audiophoolery, I'd borderline argue that audio sounds better after having passed a Ghielmetti patchbay 

A breadboard from them, then, ought to be something extra. Most impressive. Very envious.

[tggzzz]

I dunno. Sometimes stuff miraculously survives. I found this in a Heathkit V-7 last year and it still had 1.5 volts across it!

Maybe those are Mercury batteries with that HP 204B (rechargeable Ni-Cruds were also available for it), I've yet to see a Ni-Crud battery in anything HP I've bought that doesn't have some, or a lot of leakage & corrosion.

From memory, SP11s are zinc carbon, size C.

[factory]

I meant the battery packs with the HP 204B @Martin.M bought, the manual says they were four packs of 6.75V Mercury batteries (Mallory type TR235R or equivalent) or a rechargeable option.

http://hparchive.com/Manuals/HP-204B-Manual-sn-416.pdf

David

[mnementh]

THAT is a breadboard. From the flea market for a few euros. The part is built so solid that you could still build its circuit during a quake (if you tie up). Ingenious part, was probably then built as a teaching tool, so even untrained sausage fingers can not break anything. All contacts are gold plated. Gorgeous, those old things.

Ghielmetti. Swiss made, then. They make the highest quality patchbays and pin matrices. Very expensive. Very reliable. If it wasn't audiophoolery, I'd borderline argue that audio sounds better after having passed a Ghielmetti patchbay 

A breadboard from them, then, ought to be something extra. Most impressive. Very envious.

Yup... I'd have jumped on that kit m'self, and I loathe breadboards on principle alone.  



I found myself in need of a new 2430 battery for my favorite watch; feeling deprived on my pitiful little bench & having not even a resistor to play with... I decided to go grocery shopping. A few clicks on Amazon.ca and a trip to the Dollarama around the corner netted this assortment of goodies. Grand total: 104 Canadian doll-hairs, or ~US$81.

Before you say it, Spec... yup... they ARE those evil steel-leaded Chinese cheapumm resistors... just like the caps. I figured by going with the smaller "only" 56 value (mostly a good spread from 1-100KΩ) 1% kit I might escape that fate; no luck. But at CAD$7 & CAD$16 respectively, I can tolerate checking them before I use them. 

I'd been looking at this variant of the Chinesium Component tester for a while; I like that it has the SMD contact bed built in. I know that if I waited I could get it from China for ~$US22 without the tweezers; but they had a sale and a coupon on the less-popular red one that saved me $7 on the with-tweezers model, getting it to me next day for CAD$36/US$28. I was totes Amazon's bitch on this load except for the nifty COB desk light and ginormous divider boxes from Dollarama at $4 each.

Next on the agenda will be to scout up a laptop or similar power brick to juice up that 32V/5A panel controller for a basic CV/CC power supply. 

mnem
 

[worsthorse]

hey mnem 

enjoyed your river pics.  have not been there in 54 years.

but you accidently pushed a button of mine (a button without an "=").

tesla was a very very good engineer.  but he was no genius. 

Oliver Heaviside was an actual genius, and he gets credit for.......DICK.

(people are always hatin' on redheads.)

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oliver_Heaviside

edit - they should make a movie about HIM.

edit 2 one of our cats is named for HIM.

I agree wrt Heaviside. In addition to being, well, a pain in the ass to everyone around him, he spent his life dealing with political hacks and fools, and his contributions to transmission line theory, field theory, and calculus were long glossed over.  It is worth reading his biography.

[Brumby]

There you go, fixed it for @med.



David

Your ticket to hell just got upgraded to Business class.