Test Equipment Anonymous (TEA) group therapy thread

[tggzzz]

Going to scam some cash out of this shit show for a couple of years, switch to full “end user” mode and do something utterly different with my life. Currently working this out now.

I was under the impression the default option in the financial world was to laze in the sun in Provence, slowly becoming sozzled with a bottle of plonk.

[AVGresponding]

Ah you got the DMM912. I was considering that. Glad to hear it went to a good home.

It's in very good condition. There are some oddities in its construction, but it seems a decent meter. The heritage shows in some predictable places; it has a much wider AC bandwidth than the Fluke 289 for instance (~4MHz for the Tek and 600kHz or so for the Fluke).

The blue rubber-baby-buggy-bumper is a pleasant change from the usual yellow/orange/red from Fluke and clones etc.

[bd139]

Going to scam some cash out of this shit show for a couple of years, switch to full “end user” mode and do something utterly different with my life. Currently working this out now.

I was under the impression the default option in the financial world was to laze in the sun in Provence, slowly becoming sozzled with a bottle of plonk.

That's in the marketing.

I've met some random people and they always appear to have a risk taking mentality which doesn't pay off in the end or burn out, hence why their CV looks like "10 years UBS, 10 years Zurich, 2 years travelling, 3 years Greggs, currently looking for work"

[bd139]

Ah you got the DMM912. I was considering that. Glad to hear it went to a good home.

It's in very good condition. There are some oddities in its construction, but it seems a decent meter. The heritage shows in some predictable places; it has a much wider AC bandwidth than the Fluke 289 for instance (~4MHz for the Tek and 600kHz or so for the Fluke).

The blue rubber-baby-buggy-bumper is a pleasant change from the usual yellow/orange/red from Fluke and clones etc.

Interesting. Someone mentioned somewhere (I can't find it now) that they were possibly made by Brymen. Not sure if that is true or not.

[mansaxel]

*shudders from PTSD flashback aboot a time the high beam fuse fell out of the dash from going over a bump and resultant drive into a ditch*

Reminds me of the day I put my foot on the clutch of a Renault 4 and the pedal fell off. Cars are no longer the fun they used to be.

Ralf

Now I want a R4. Probably I don't actually, but I can't stop thinking of it.

[dl6lr]

Here are the two schematics (Ain't the MX-500 one a perfect example of how NOT to draw a schematic).

Wow, is there a schematic obfuscator tool available? I suspect the goal was to have a uniform grey level across the page when observed from 2m distance...

[AVGresponding]

Ah you got the DMM912. I was considering that. Glad to hear it went to a good home.

It's in very good condition. There are some oddities in its construction, but it seems a decent meter. The heritage shows in some predictable places; it has a much wider AC bandwidth than the Fluke 289 for instance (~4MHz for the Tek and 600kHz or so for the Fluke).

The blue rubber-baby-buggy-bumper is a pleasant change from the usual yellow/orange/red from Fluke and clones etc.

Interesting. Someone mentioned somewhere (I can't find it now) that they were possibly made by Brymen. Not sure if that is true or not.

Can't tell anything like that from the pics I took. Looks like I'll have to do a more detailed teardown...

[dl6lr]

I'm hoping that by the time I truly give up on computers I have one with a "Halt and Detonate" instruction.

Wait, is this one missing on the mnemonic table? https://paws.kettering.edu/~jhuggins/humor/opcodes.html
You should definitely use the CAIL instruction...

[BU508A]

Today I sniped a lot of six devices (three of them are R&S), plus some manuals / schematics and a R&S promotional glass hanger.
I got all of this for ca. 420 Euro.

The lot consists of:
- R&S lab PSU, type NGU (description in german can be found here)
- R&S NF millivoltmeter, type UVN BN 12001(description here at radiomuseum.org)
- R&S multimeter URI BN1050 (description in german can be found here)
- a PHYWE variable transformer with rectifier, type 07475
- Siemens test transmitter, type Rel. send. 22b (description in german can be found here)
- an adjustable isolating transformer of unknown brand / type
- and a R&S promotional glass hanger   

One of the nice things is: the URI comes with all the probes, even with this useful HV probe.
All the devices seems to be in a very good shape.

I will do a teardown of the units and take photos as soon as I have them here at home. 

Here are some pictures:

overview of the lot:


the probes of the URI:


the unknown isolating transformer:


the Siemens test transmitter:


the PHYWE device:


and, most important, the promotional glass hanger:   

[med6753]

Going to scam some cash out of this shit show for a couple of years, switch to full “end user” mode and do something utterly different with my life. Currently working this out now.

I was under the impression the default option in the financial world was to laze in the sun in Provence, slowly becoming sozzled with a bottle of plonk.

That's in the marketing.

I've met some random people and they always appear to have a risk taking mentality which doesn't pay off in the end or burn out, hence why their CV looks like "10 years UBS, 10 years Zurich, 2 years travelling, 3 years Greggs, currently looking for work"

I thought of EVER going back to work is absolutely abhorrent to me. I'd rather slit my throat. Even the thought of part time like working at Mickey D's waiting on fatties ordering Big Mac's is no go. 

As you might have guessed, I hate people.   

[med6753]

Today I sniped a lot of six devices (three of them are R&S), plus some manuals / schematics and a R&S promotional glass hanger.
I got all of this for ca. 420 Euro.

The lot consists of:
- R&S lab PSU, type NGU (description in german can be found here)
- R&S NF milivoltmeter, type UVN BN 12001(description here at radiomuseum.org)
- R&S multimeter URI BN1050 (description in german can be found here)
- a PHYWE variable transformer with rectifier, type 07475
- Siemens test transmitter, type Rel. send. 22b (description in german can be found here)
- an adjustable isolating transformer of unknown brand / type
- and a R&S promotional glass hanger   

One of the nice things is: the URI comes with all the probes, even with this useful HV probe.
All the devices seems to be in a very good shape.

I will do a teardown of the units and take photos as soon as I have them here at home. 

Here are some pictures:

overview of the lot:


the probes of the URI:


the unknown isolating transformer:


the Siemens test transmitter:


the PHYWE device:


and, most important, the promotional glass hanger:   

Nice haul! 

[cyclin_al]

   Well fuck. The first day I used it, this mower managed to find a piece of steel rebar driven into the ground that I have missed with the other mower ever since I got here a year ago.   Now... does this mean I need to keep the other mower, cuz this one is jinxed and wants to stay dead...?

mnem
You got me again, Murphy...

Ah nice and if you know much about blade impacts there might be a couple of issues in front of you. Very very likely the flywheel key is now shorn or at best partially but enough to put the timing out for it now not to run properly.  At worst you could also have a bent crank and somewhat harder to remedy unless you have access to a B&S crankshaft straightening jig. Here's one similar to what we used some decades back: https://www.amazon.com/Stens-751-032-Crankshaft-Straightener-crankshafts/dp/B008N3K542   Fingers X'ed for you.

One would hope that in a mechanism where this kind of impact is highly likely to happen, inevitable even, that someone has built in a sacrificial component, like a shear pin, that is designed to break under these circumstances and be easy to replace.

More modern mowers have a mechanism consisting of a cup washer under the bolt and dowel pins which are supposed to override and prevent such damage, but they have a habit of wearing in normal use. They also place the blade higher up inside the deck as this benefits the mulching effect, and as a side benefit, you usually hit obstacles with the outer hull of the mower rather than the blade.

There is a shear key in the blade holder on these, but at least with this (possibly cheap aftermarket) blade, it was stronger. This machine is, as I mentioned earlier, mid-1900s engineering. They rely on over-engineered moving parts to keep shit from just exploding.

mnem
 

Don't forget the flywheel key is an integral part of the damage protection mechanism in that it's made of alloy to permit them to shear when the whole lot is brought to an abrupt stop....fair bit of inertia in a flywheel doing 3600rpm. 
Yet the blade holder is steel keyed otherwise you'd be replacing it all the time. 

Flywheel nut = 65ft/lbs which for a sideways start motor is also the rewind starter clutch and unless you have the proper tool to fit it just wing it with a set of Stilsons or polygrips  but don't ring it up too tight otherwise the taper won't slip and shear the key next time you use it a Ree-bar cutter. 

Sounds complex but it's a simple and well proven protection system.

I had an old early 90s Sears Craftsman (back when Sears still made good tools and power equipment) high-wheel push mower.  There are some rather rocky areas in my yard, and I got really good at finding them in the grass using the mower like a divining rod.  I regularly sheared the flywheel key, and would be down for a day or three until I got to the local power equipment place and bought another one.  After about the fourth or fifth trip I got smart and bought four of them so there'd be spares at hand to fix it right away.  Never sheared another after that.  They're probably still buried in the miscellaneous drawer in my tool box.

That poor mower owed me nothing - welded the deck several times when it broke at the thin section under the rear discharge port, pounded the blade shroud back into shape (and occasionally welded it back into place), patched up the cover that held the recoil starter after it eventually started cracking...  Good old machine, though I don't miss pushing it and mowing the better part of an acre of grass despite the good exercise it gave me.  The 50" zero-turn is much more efficient time-wise.

-Pat

I still have one of those.  However, it has not been used this year.  Over time, the rear high-wheels crack at the base of the spokes, right next to the hubs.  The plastic is so old and brittle that replacements only lasted a year and a half.  I have not found replacement wheels this year.  The problem is also that the wheels are an unusual size.  They are 13-5/8" diameter, which appear to be unobtainium.   11 or 15 inch wheels are easy to come by, but the mower height adjuster does not have enough range to use those sizes.
It came from the farm, so owes nothing as well.  This one has side discharge and is would be used for trimming work.  Otherwise, the 48" lawn tractor takes care of most of the acre.

-- or, I could cut down some trees instead of looking for a mowing solution...

[dl6lr]

- R&S multimeter URI BN1050 (description in german can be found here)

I have one myself. Working condition but quite some cosmetic wear...

- and a R&S promotional glass hanger   

That one is cool. Consider illuminating it from the top with LEDs?

[cyclin_al]

Unrelated to TE but funny nevertheless. “Electronic failure”

Hot off the press..?

... about to burn a hole in your wallet (I assume it is printing a receipt)

[mnementh]

That’s me the day I retire 

I'm hoping that by the time I truly give up on computers I have one with a "Halt and Detonate" instruction.

They definitely need to include that in win12

I'm holding out for a [SMITE] button. 

mnem
The hardware and the software combined don't bother me nearly as much as most of the wetware at the other end.

[BU508A]

- and a R&S promotional glass hanger   

That one is cool. Consider illuminating it from the top with LEDs?

To be honest, I haven't thought about that yet.
I just thought it was a great piece. 

Let's see what I can come up with.
I'm sure it will be a stupid idea.

 

[mnementh]

That’s me the day I retire 

I'm hoping that by the time I truly give up on computers I have one with a "Halt and Detonate" instruction.

Think I’m actually done now. Technically I’m mismanagement now which is not where I want to be. Going to scam some cash out of this shit show for a couple of years, switch to full “end user” mode and do something utterly different with my life. Currently working this out now.

If you just want detonate I would ask Saska. Don’t think we need the halt micro instruction first

You misunderstood... we're all talking aboot detonating the waste of skin at the other end of the intardnet. 

mnem
I prepared Explosive Runes today...

[mnementh]

That’s me the day I retire 

I'm hoping that by the time I truly give up on computers I have one with a "Halt and Detonate" instruction.

They definitely need to include that in win12

They do, but it is a virtual software detonation. IIRC the result is no longer a blue screen.

MS calls that a screen saver. 

mnem
*poking the internet with a stick since nineteen-mumblety-mumble*

[tggzzz]

I'm hoping that by the time I truly give up on computers I have one with a "Halt and Detonate" instruction.

Wait, is this one missing on the mnemonic table? https://paws.kettering.edu/~jhuggins/humor/opcodes.html
You should definitely use the CAIL instruction...

One machine I used, the Reseach Machine Orion 1, actually had an operational CF (Come From) instruction at the microcode level.

[Specmaster]

<snip>
Neatly merging this with Specmaster's points about Harlow and Stevenage, both of which have very well structured cycle routes end to end and were designed with this in mind. But they are stinking shit holes - I worked in both  . Despite the places being fitted for public transport the local authority never looked after the cycling infrastructure, privatised the public transport which now charges extortionate amounts to keep afloat and punishes drivers with parking fees. The only viable and affordable transport in some of these areas are independent taxi firms which are low ball outfits running whatever piece of shit that still has wheels that hasn't fallen off.

The only thing is the common denominator race to the bottom on inefficiency and revenue generation only. Solving real fucking problems is dead. And the grave is being pissed on by new problems and marketing solutions for them.

Talking about Harlow, its bloody miracle that anything there has any wheels left, honestly their roads must a serious contender for the worst in the UK. I always say that a blind person being driven would know almost instantly that they crossed the county border into Essex, most Essex road are really disgusting for cracks, poor surfaces and huge amounts of potholes. But Harlow council take that low level of maintenance to another level, zero 

Not if they're crossing the border from Newham. The last time I saw any road maintenance here was when magically just before the 2012 Olympics all the roads that would get used by any official Olympic traffic got repaired to first world standards. My road has a surface like a tank training ground, as do most roads in the borough. The next road along from me has a local councillor living in it, it's got a road surface like a snooker table.

Yes, I remember the roads being resurfaced for that, also when the Tour de France came through Chelmsford in 2014, all the roads used in the race were suddenly resurfaced as well, and I can assure you as well that many of our roads are also looking like a tank training ground and its about time these were sorted and repaired correctly. When they do come and patch them up, they fail to seal the bottom or the edges with liquid tar like they used to, and the end result is that a few short months later, patch has gone again and got bigger.

[Robert763]

Reminds me of the day I put my foot on the clutch of a Renault 4 and the pedal fell off. Cars are no longer the fun they used to be.

Ralf
[/quote]

My 11 Turbo used to eat clutch cables. It was of course RHD and unlke the base LHD design which had a short cable straght from clutch arm to pedal, it had  long one across the back of the engine with two 90 degree bends. The heat from the turbo didn't help and after a couple of broken cables I carried a spare cable and could change it at the side of the road with just my Leatherman.

[mnementh]

I'm hoping that by the time I truly give up on computers I have one with a "Halt and Detonate" instruction.

Wait, is this one missing on the mnemonic table? https://paws.kettering.edu/~jhuggins/humor/opcodes.html
You should definitely use the CAIL instruction...

Heh... I remember that from the dawn of time... sometime after when I started out hammering on a stone-age CP/M DEC and imagined myself a budding codemonkey. The reality adjustment which ensued was pretty brutal.

mnem
WTS - What's That Smell?

[cyclin_al]

Bought something similar but I can't work / solder with it, because the working distance is pretty much zero -->  in order to focus, get a neat image, I need to stick the glasses pretty much ON the board, or a inch away from it tops. Can't solder like that...
Plus, being so close to the board means the overhead lighting of the bench can't get to the board, so it's dark.. so I have to stick my nose to the board, hold the board with one hand to bring it to my nose, and with the other hand I grad a torch light to shine some light on the board so I can actually see something... So I can only use it to inspect a board : see where the problems are, rework an area  "blind"/ naked eye, then inspect again to check if what I did fixed it and if the quality of the job is good enough ! Rince and repeat as necessary.... 
A pain. But  still happy I bought them so I can at least inspect traces and joints, and tiny part numbers / markings on SMD stuff...

I've got one of the previous generation of these:



Details here at Ikea.

I've been meaning to get another. Makes a great task lamp as the flexible gooseneck lets you put the light exactly where you want it, like this:

Watch out for them.  That’s where I started. The LEDs go dim very quickly which you don’t notice until you next go to IKEA 

Edit: 6 days off now. Hopefully some TE time in there but got busy holiday schedule stuff 

I have the same one, except in the grey body.  I guess I need to go to IKEA to compare the brightness; I have been wishing lately for a couple more.  Maybe mine has dimmed.
The other thing to watch for is the plastic pads on the clamp eventually crack and spread little bits of plastic all over the place...

[mnementh]

- and a R&S promotional glass hanger   

That one is cool. Consider illuminating it from the top with LEDs?

To be honest, I haven't thought about that yet. I just thought it was a great piece. 

Let's see what I can come up with. I'm sure it will be a stupid idea. 

Did somebody say stupid idea...? 

I'll argue that placing LEDs across the top edge would destroy the classic "floating" look that is the soul of such hangers... *cringe*

...therefore the only acceptable solution will be to illuminate it with a remotely-located LASER pointer aimed at the top edge so it diffuses through the panel.   

mnem
What could possibly go wrong...?

[mnementh]

Oh, and congrats on the score, BU508A. Nice haul. 

mnem