List your test equipment "scores" here!

[Fungus]

27kg freq. gen? WTF is inside it?

[neo]

27kg freq. gen? WTF is inside it?

I have a 50 kg VHF gen, it is of course tube based. So when it comes to the weight of somethings my guess is transformers and the like.

[Cubdriver]

27kg freq. gen? WTF is inside it?

A little tiny black hole.     Seriously, it's mid 80s HP gear - there's a whole bunch of stuff in there.  They didn't leave a whole lot of open space inside of things from that era, and what we now do with a single IC took a buttload of discrete parts.

I have a 5360A Computing Counter in the repair queue, and it weighs in at about 25 kilos.  Granted it's a generation or two older, but it's stuffed full with something like 300 (yes, that's HUNDRED) ICs.  It has a 5V power supply that puts out 10 amps.



One of about 21 boards in the logic section:


-Pat

[neo]

27kg freq. gen? WTF is inside it?

A little tiny black hole.     Seriously, it's mid 80s HP gear - there's a whole bunch of stuff in there.  They didn't leave a whole lot of open space inside of things from that era, and what we now do with a single IC took a buttload of discrete parts.

I have a 5360A Computing Counter in the repair queue, and it weighs in at about 25 kilos.  Granted it's a generation or two older, but it's stuffed full with something like 300 (yes, that's HUNDRED) ICs.  It has a 5V power supply that puts out 10 amps.



One of about 21 boards in the logic section:


-Pat

That is candy for nerds like me,  so many pretty ICs...

Anyways, on an unrelated side note my 8800A is due to come today.

[bsudbrink]

Anyways, on an unrelated side note my 8800A is due to come today.

As in MITS Altair?

[neo]

Anyways, on an unrelated side note my 8800A is due to come today.

As in MITS Altair?

As in fluke 8800A, i should have been more specific.

[bsudbrink]

As in fluke 8800A, i should have been more specific.

Ah, shows where my head is.  I have an Altair 8800a which (by production numbers) is a bit rarer than the original 8800 and much rarer than the 8800b.  I've only run into a few other collectors with 'a's.

[Cubdriver]

That is candy for nerds like me,  so many pretty ICs...

Yeah - and a wire wrapped backplane!!   





-Pat

[hendorog]

Anyways, on an unrelated side note my 8800A is due to come today.

Just a random thought - was it this one? Really great deal if so.
http://www.ebay.com/itm/FLUKE-8800A-DIGITAL-MULTIMETER-/253052087084?hash=item3aeb146b2c:g:x~4AAOSwhMFZbnRQ

I had that on my watchlist but completely forgot to bid.

[neo]

Anyways, on an unrelated side note my 8800A is due to come today.

Just a random thought - was it this one? Really great deal if so.
http://www.ebay.com/itm/FLUKE-8800A-DIGITAL-MULTIMETER-/253052087084?hash=item3aeb146b2c:g:x~4AAOSwhMFZbnRQ

I had that on my watchlist but completely forgot to bid.

I missed that one, but mine was only 8 dollars more.

[hendorog]

Nice.

In case it is useful - I got two recently and both needed these filter caps replaced:

http://nz.rs-online.com/web/p/aluminium-capacitors/8506058/?searchTerm=850-6058

[bsudbrink]

Yeah - and a wire wrapped backplane!!   

Beautiful.

[neo]

Nice.

In case it is useful - I got two recently and both needed these filter caps replaced:

http://nz.rs-online.com/web/p/aluminium-capacitors/8506058/?searchTerm=850-6058

Mine seems to work fine though thanks for mentioning.

[dos]

Picked this Fluke 45 up from craigslist yesterday, $72. In great shape with a bright VFD and a cal sticker from 2016, only missing the stand/front brackets (which I'm looking for if anyone wants to sell theirs). Replacing an older Instek bench meter that I'm probably going to sell for more than I paid for this, it's my first piece of non-Chinese gear and I'm really happy with it. I know it's not super great these days but it's the best I can afford and works for my needs apart from missing capacitance, which I have a UT61E for now and plan to get an LCR meter for sometime anyway.

[TheSteve]

Fluke 45 is great, especially the dual measurement DC+AC.

[AF6LJ]

That is candy for nerds like me,  so many pretty ICs...

Yeah - and a wire wrapped backplane!!   





-Pat

There is something that will scare the crap out of the new players.

[alm]

The good thing is that most equipment from that age will have component level schematics to help you troubleshoot, I guess.

[bitseeker]

Yeah - and a wire wrapped backplane!!   



-Pat

There is something that will scare the crap out of the new players.

I dunno. I'm not a new player, but I'd think more than twice about diving into all that wire wrapping.

[Cubdriver]

Yes, I'd certainty prefer to admire it for the abstract art that it is ( I'm tempted to try to get a better framed and focused closeup of it and print it to hang on the wall) rather than to have to delve deeply into it for troubleshooting purposes.

The good thing is that properly wrapped joints (which I'm confident that these are) form gas tight connections where the post corners dig into the wire, so they seem as if they should be pretty reliable as long as no one monkeys with the,pm.

-Pat

[xwarp]

That is a good picture, but I'd straighten those bent pins and then take another picture.

[basinstreetdesign]

THIS brings back memories from working for my university making custom modules for a PDP-11 in the Math faculty building.

1974.

Late nights with a scope and a wire-wrap gun ...

'nuff said.

I  didn't design that stuff but I had to build and debug it!  That was my first introduction into the belief that all engineers should "eat their own dog food" (build and debug what they design)

[GreyWoolfe]

I  didn't design that stuff but I had to build and debug it!  That was my first introduction into the belief that all engineers should "eat their own dog food" (build and debug what they design)

That's pretty funny.  As a field service tech, I regularly say the same exact thing.

[Berni]

I  didn't design that stuff but I had to build and debug it!  That was my first introduction into the belief that all engineers should "eat their own dog food" (build and debug what they design)

At work we have sort of a unwritten rule that any PCBs you design, you also have to assemble and test yourself. That way it comes back to bite you when the thing is a nightmare to assemble because of closely creaming together ridiculously tiny SMD parts. Or that there are no easy ways to test basic functionality by simply applying power, or things blow up upon applying power due to design mistakes etc.

[tooki]

Picked up a nice Agilent U8001A lab power supply last week for about $125 shipped.

Some UV yellowing of the front panel and a little nick on it, otherwise looks like new after a thorough dusting inside and out. Date codes place it at the very end of 2011.

Really impressed by the high update rate of the display; the lag on many units, with their 3 updates per second, really annoys me.

The fan is really loud though; anyone got any experience with replacing the fan in one of these puppies? It looks to be a 60mm fan, with two speeds, controlled only by the current draw (switches to high speed at 2A). It's louder than all my other lab gear combined...

[HighPrecision]

Yeah - and a wire wrapped backplane!!   



-Pat

There is something that will scare the crap out of the new players.

I dunno. I'm not a new player, but I'd think more than twice about diving into all that wire wrapping.

I worked 37 years ago, to repair more complex wire-wrapped big boards of Nicolet 660x, was a real nightmare!

see here as well...
http://www.amplifier.cd/Test_Equipment/other/660b.htm