Test Equipment Anonymous (TEA) group therapy thread

[bd139]

@factory: great post. Really enjoying this older HP kit 

[vk6zgo]

If I really wanted to attack... there would be a much easier target ..... The MARMITE !!!   Just the smell of it had me puke ! Seeing people actually not only EATING the stuff,  but even seemingly highly ENJOYING IT..... has me baffled !!

Yeah.  I tried Marmite once .... bleeeaaaggghhh.

Do it right - go for the Vegemite!!   

(No, they are NOT the same thing - not by a long chalk!)

Nothing at all wrong with Marmite, it's lovely really, trust me, just not at breakfast though.

Time of day has nothing to do with it.  To me, Marmite just tastes "off" once you've had Vegemite.

Where most Non-Oz folk fail, is that they layer the Vegemite on thickly-------sparingly is the whole soul of Vegemite eating.

That said, I like Promite better, but it's a close run thing!

[vk6zgo]

So how come every time there is a spike in the cases you Aussies clean out all the toilet paper? 

Surprisingly last short break TP only became reduced stock not wiped out. I am hoping around the country there is some idiots unable to put cars in Garages for years to come and have to look over their shoulders to make sure no one is watching their embarrassment every time they open the door 

At my old job, many years ago, it looks like someone ordered "A couple of packets of toilet rolls" for the transmitter site, but it got mixed up, & "A couple of cartons" were delivered.

There was one locker "choc full" of  dunny rolls, plus an unused carton in the basement!

I was there 10 years, & we had just used up the last couple of rolls when I left.

[vk6zgo]

As I whip up the eggs for "French Toast/Eggy Bread/Pain Perdu" for Lunch here, there is only one 'correct' method to make it and that is my way, yes it will involve butter in the pan and eggs from a chook from yesterdays lay and a good fat slabs of crusty bread 

Oh, you mean "Brautenbrot"?

And Lets discuss the topic of Bacon Fat hardening arteries coming from a French man whos cuisine tends in a lot of cases to be clogged with butter while we are at it ..... 

[vk6zgo]

Went to a provincial hamfest today, the first one for years.

Lots of stuff that should be put in recycling waste bins, lots of beer bellies, too few masks, fortunately most stalls were outside.

Was about to look a brass and mahogany box with many an in resistors, but the bloke in front of me nabbed it. Got something else that I don't need, condition unknown. If it works I'll flip it, if not then it cost less than the petrol any way.

We've got one coming up.
I've  grabbed some bargains over the years.

One time I noticed a nice leather case, & thought "that might be useful!"------at $A4.00, what was there to lose?

The guy popped it open, & there was a Levell audio oscillator in there ---a non- functional one!

I took it home, & it just turned out to be the FOUR 276  9v batteries dead.

These are "unobtainium" in Oz, (always were, our 276P batteries had a phenolic plug, instead of the press stud connectors).
Some appropriate AA battery holders fixed that problem, & away it went.

It's still going strong, & I must say, for something that looks "El Cheapo", it "punches well above its weight" when it comes to both specs & usability.

[vk6zgo]

Good luck.

My tek 475 and solartron are apparently sitting in a ParcelFarts van somewhere waiting to be delivered tomorrow too 

Hopefully the van is parked in a secure area. 

If not, they are probably sitting in the river, after the miscreants realise they are hard to sell!

[cyclin_al]

Lots of interesting TE today. 

The TEA closet has been cleaned out. On the left is a now blank area which will accept a scope cart once built. The assorted boxes containing Tek circuit boards and other parts are now in the garage in snap lid totes which should keep the majority of the moisture out. All the parts scopes except one are stacked neatly on the right along with two on the upper shelf with the parts only plug-ins. I had to sacrifice one scope unprotected in the garage. It's the Type 561B I got in PA when I visited nixiefreq. That scope was already full of corrosion and mildew so it won't make much difference. And it gave up it's CRT for the functional Type 561B. But I may at least cover it plastic.

Have you added some silica-gel packets to the boxes? I'd recommend this to get rid of the inital moisture in the boxes and absorb the moisture which will come in newly.
Those boxes are also prone to deforming under load, so they are not as sealed as you may think.

Beat me to it!

Sometimes you can get a bucket of slicia-gel packets from a footwear shop for free.  A packet in each shoe box adds up quickly...

Tip:  you can bake these packets in the oven to recharge (dry) them, to be used again or after a humid period.  Just not too hot to burn the paper packet.

[TheFire8472]

Alright... I think I have a problem. I have a Siglent SVA1015x. I think I want a SVA1032x. The only rational reason to do the upgrade is the ability to run the VNA below 10Mhz, and I could totally do this with other hardware I have around, but... 3.2 would be nice to have, right?

What are my odds of selling the 1015x at a decent enough price that the 1032x won't bankrupt me, you think?

[tautech]

Don't piss off French farmers: 

[beanflying]

Physical TEA additions. Guess I NEED a good quality Granite Surface plate next 

Eclipse 102 for those playing along at home. Also came with an 18" Bar which will make it useful for setting up my bigger router. Back to sorting out my bench 'pile'.....

[Robert763]

Alright... I think I have a problem. I have a Siglent SVA1015x. I think I want a SVA1032x. The only rational reason to do the upgrade is the ability to run the VNA below 10Mhz, and I could totally do this with other hardware I have around, but... 3.2 would be nice to have, right?

What are my odds of selling the 1015x at a decent enough price that the 1032x won't bankrupt me, you think?

You don't have a problem. Come back here when you decide to keep both and get a HP so you can tell which one is correct....
welcome to the nutTEAhouse

[Vince]

Don't piss off French farmers: 

Yes that's what they do usually, I love it ! At least they have some balls. They gotta fight with the arms they have a their disposal !
When the milk producers were  fighting for decent prices, they would spill tons of milk instead of manure.
When fruit producers were pissed, they would fill Paris with their tractors to block the traffic in key places, and install booths were they would give away their fruits to people in the street.. protesting that theyt were getting so low prices from the super market industry, literally losing money with, they are literally better off given their fruits away than selling them.. so they do just that !    At least the stuff is not wasted ! 
At other times, they organize a convoy of hundreds of big tractors and they block the traffic on the highway, driving on both lanes at snail pace.

You gotta love these people, at least they move their ass and freaking do something instead of just moaning all the time  but do nothing like most people.

However Tautech your intention was probably just to fuel an old fire which is not very charitable of you ! Bad Tautech, bad Tautech !! 

[bd139]

Went to a provincial hamfest today, the first one for years.

Lots of stuff that should be put in recycling waste bins, lots of beer bellies, too few masks, fortunately most stalls were outside.

Was about to look a brass and mahogany box with many an in resistors, but the bloke in front of me nabbed it. Got something else that I don't need, condition unknown. If it works I'll flip it, if not then it cost less than the petrol any way.

We've got one coming up.
I've  grabbed some bargains over the years.

One time I noticed a nice leather case, & thought "that might be useful!"------at $A4.00, what was there to lose?

The guy popped it open, & there was a Levell audio oscillator in there ---a non- functional one!

I took it home, & it just turned out to be the FOUR 276  9v batteries dead.

These are "unobtainium" in Oz, (always were, our 276P batteries had a phenolic plug, instead of the press stud connectors).
Some appropriate AA battery holders fixed that problem, & away it went.

It's still going strong, & I must say, for something that looks "El Cheapo", it "punches well above its weight" when it comes to both specs & usability.

Bugger all hamfest wise in this part of the country at the moment. The usual ones where I end up with half a car of stuff (easier for me than many  ) are postponed until 2022. The closest one is actually St Neots which is still a fair trek from me.

I should probably do that one and go for a walk somewhere around there in the afternoon.

[tautech]

Don't piss off French farmers: 

Yes that's what they do usually, I love it ! At least they have some balls. They gotta fight with the arms they have a their disposal !
When the milk producers were  fighting for decent prices, they would spill tons of milk instead of manure.
When fruit producers were pissed, they would fill Paris with their tractors to block the traffic in key places, and install booths were they would give away their fruits to people in the street.. protesting that theyt were getting so low prices from the super market industry, literally losing money with, they are literally better off given their fruits away than selling them.. so they do just that !    At least the stuff is not wasted ! 
At other times, they organize a convoy of hundreds of big tractors and they block the traffic on the highway, driving on both lanes at snail pace.

You gotta love these people, at least they move their ass and freaking do something instead of just moaning all the time  but do nothing like most people.

However Tautech your intention was probably just to fuel an old fire which is not very charitable of you ! Bad Tautech, bad Tautech !! 

Actually not this time Vince as this time I believe this ^ was addressing French Gubbermint plans to misguidedly ban Glyphosate the most widely used and most highly scrutinized herbicide ever produced with 40+ years of proven performance and safety..........which in turn gives the dwagon a chance to get on his soapbox for another anti Roundup rant. 
 

[Saskia]

just use Lithium Deuteride as herbicide. If you apply it correctly there will not be any need for any other chemicals ...

[tggzzz]

Bugger all hamfest wise in this part of the country at the moment. The usual ones where I end up with half a car of stuff (easier for me than many  ) are postponed until 2022. The closest one is actually St Neots which is still a fair trek from me.

I should probably do that one and go for a walk somewhere around there in the afternoon.

TNMoC?

[Vince]

Ah, don't want a round-up war on TEA for sure ! LOL

I am all against it of course... like any chemical having anything to do with food.
Many farmers over here do without it just fine, it's just a matter of principles, values, and will.
More and more are willing to do well, so that's encouraging.

However banning it abruptly is nonsensical if the government does not compensate / help farmers to engage into a round-up (and any other chemical) free, "organic" culture instead.

If some old beards insist on pouring tons of chemicals on food others than him will eat and make money from it... it's a dying breed so let them die.
The others willing to do better, let's help them convert into better and cleaner practices.

It's hard to justify that eating chemicals is better than not eating chemicals. If it was that good there would not be a "danger" sign on the round-up containers and the health ministry would encourage people to drink a pint of the stuff every morning to live well and long. But they don't.. how surprising .... 

But people on TEA tend to be older guys I feel, who are therefore unlikely to change their minds and be very stubborn , so it's a great recipe for endless and totally unproductive wars, which will be fun to watch ! 

I won't participate though, will just watch for entertainment ! ... or maybe if that leads to too much traffic, might stay away from TEA for 2 or 3 days, the time for the dust to settle ! 

[Saskia]

fact is that it is quite difficult to feed everyone on this planet by not using mass production of food.
Cut down the population by 5 billion and enact strict "breeding" controls (1 child per family or so) and prohibit the religions that say that you must outpopulate your rivals and you have a more natural solution which goes against about anything we call "human rights".

Other option: infest other planets to counter the population pressure we see here.
Or just don't provide vaccines and make CoVid just a wee bit more deadly ...

[med6753]

Geez, nothing like tossing a red cape in front of the dragon and daring him not to go through it.    I just might avoid this thread for the next few days. 

Anyway, action packed day here. First covid shot at 09:30 hours. Should be fun. I hate needles. 

Parts for the Type 547 should finally get delivered. I hope by the end of today having it 99% functional. 

[bd139]

Bugger all hamfest wise in this part of the country at the moment. The usual ones where I end up with half a car of stuff (easier for me than many  ) are postponed until 2022. The closest one is actually St Neots which is still a fair trek from me.

I should probably do that one and go for a walk somewhere around there in the afternoon.

TNMoC?

Good idea!

 

[Vince]

Geez, nothing like tossing a red cape in front of the dragon and daring him not to go through it.    I just might avoid this thread for the next few days. 

Let's see ! Maybe he will want to behave, just for the sake of proving us wrong ! 

Dragon, be strong... resist the temptation... you can  resist sugar for your diet, I am sure you can resist your natural instinct for wars as well ! Give it a try ! 

Parts for the Type 547 should finally get delivered. I hope by the end of today having it 99% functional. 

That definitely excites me more than drinking round-up...

[tautech]

I'll close out by asking you all if you are prepared to pay more for your food when the cheapest, safest, lowest toxicity herbicide in 2 century's is removed from use in food production on the misguided belief that if it kills plants it's a poison and therefore bad for mankind ?
Statistics don't back such claims up when the official LD50 is less than that of common salt !

50+ year old toxic substitutes like Paraquat are not an alternative ! 

[bd139]

Similarly I fucking love roundup as it absolves me of doing gardening 

Tek 475 and solartron out for delivery. I am praying to the packaging gods 

[beanflying]

Damage to humans is only a tiny bit of the problem with Monsanto/Roundup. Monoculture and 'pest'/insect control is already biting us on the ass so don't dismiss the negatives or swallow corporate science as fact. You only need to look at some of the Ag chemicals currently in use and see what devastation they can do to local Bee populations then figure out the downside to that. Locally (10-15km away) some of the small Bee Keepers lost a total of over 60 hives due to one local Potato farmer doing the wrong thing.

Anyone need bits for one and or want to do battle with the seller to ship it its a cheap parts donor maybe eBay auction: #184975440512 Hp 432A Analog Power Meter

[Peter_O]

As a first step we could try to stop dumping 1.300.000.000 metric tons of food every year.