Test Equipment Anonymous (TEA) group therapy thread

[bd139]

Got my delivery email from RS everything progressing OK. Can't till tomorrow to see what comes.

Yep same here. Don't think they noticed yet. I ordered a 4000 roll of 22k ones as well as I only had two left  .

[Specmaster]

Got my delivery email from RS everything progressing OK. Can't till tomorrow to see what comes.

Yep same here. Don't think they noticed yet. I ordered a 4000 roll of 22k ones as well as I only had two left  .

Tempted but didn't want to be greedy, left something for you

[tggzzz]

On a side note to keep this relevant, all of my meters agree to the second to least significant digit.

Some days I calibrate my Keithley 197 so that it keeps digit perfect step with my Vishay 1-99,999 ohm resistance standard just because I can. There's no practical point in it, but I get a very satisfying feeling from dialling in any random 5 digits and watching them magically appear on the display. Of course it drifts off within a day, but just for a few hours the world does exactly what I tell it to - metrological bliss!

Dammit. You're making me want to get out my Solartron 7081 and Julie Research 7-digit KVD - and I've got other things I need to do.

Let's all go back to 3.5 digits and stop all this one up manship  nonsense.[emoji54]

Youngsters. We had to make our[1] 3-digit meters. Seriously: the only alternatives were the usual 1%/2% panel meters.

We used a NiFe cell, some resistance wire, a Weston standard cell, and the meter's scale was simply a 1 metre scale (oh, the joy of homonyms!).

[1] schoolkids in physics lessons.

[tggzzz]

All others i didn't touch and they ALL agree to the second least significant digit to my 3456A, some to the least significant digit.

Ah. Someone in need of more digits.

I got a grand total combined of 40.5 digits...

My best is a HP 3456A 6.5 digit, and if you insist i need better than that then i am afraid i will need some small details from you. Don't worry, nothing major just financial details valid enough for an 8.5 digit meter 

Mine cost £65, plus £25 for a replacement Schaffner switch/filter. In ratio mode it agrees with the KVD to within ~2.5ppm, and my best estimate is that it reads 10V 20ppm too high.

(And I recently flogged 21 surplus digits, leaving me with 25 - unless I've forgotten some)

[bd139]

We used a NiFe cell, some resistance wire, a Weston standard cell, and the meter's scale was simply a 1 metre scale (oh, the joy of homonyms!).

I occasionally get the urge to play with stuff like that. I've got a big roll of eureka wire somewhere. That and the AD588K out of that dead HP 54602B could make a anachronistic measurement set up

[Specmaster]

All others i didn't touch and they ALL agree to the second least significant digit to my 3456A, some to the least significant digit.

Ah. Someone in need of more digits.

I got a grand total combined of 40.5 digits...

My best is a HP 3456A 6.5 digit, and if you insist i need better than that then i am afraid i will need some small details from you. Don't worry, nothing major just financial details valid enough for an 8.5 digit meter 

Mine cost £65, plus £25 for a replacement Schaffner switch/filter. In ratio mode it agrees with the KVD to within ~2.5ppm, and my best estimate is that it reads 10V 20ppm too high.

(And I recently flogged 21 surplus digits, leaving me with 25 - unless I've forgotten some)

Haha I got 58 digits and at least another 14 work in progress

[ChrisLX200]

Yes the PSU still works, and yes confirmed -50V on the '-' terminal. I feel so dumb, should have checked.

That damn cap nearly took my head off, I had to stand on steps to reach a spare switched socket on the top shelf, flicked the switch while it was about 24" directly below my face . Must have just missed!

Don't beat yourself over it, I reckon we have done similar things in our time and we all learned so much from them as well, chalk it up to experience.

Keep us updated on the Amazon order and if does what you want it to?

Well it arrived - a new DPS5015 for just £3.99 

Sadly not the comms version, and I'm assuming the difference is not just the missing USB interface (which should still be OK from the blown up one - it wasn't plugged in at the time) - but there is no header pins installed on the main board. Suggests there is a firmware difference too. Anyone know for sure? Can it be flashed with updated firmware?

[Specmaster]

Yes the PSU still works, and yes confirmed -50V on the '-' terminal. I feel so dumb, should have checked.

That damn cap nearly took my head off, I had to stand on steps to reach a spare switched socket on the top shelf, flicked the switch while it was about 24" directly below my face . Must have just missed!

Don't beat yourself over it, I reckon we have done similar things in our time and we all learned so much from them as well, chalk it up to experience.

Keep us updated on the Amazon order and if does what you want it to?

Well it arrived - a new DPS5015 for just £3.99 

Sadly not the comms version, and I'm assuming the difference is not just the missing USB interface (which should still be OK from the blown up one - it wasn't plugged in at the time) - but there is no header pins installed on the main board. Suggests there is a firmware difference too. Anyone know for sure? Can it be flashed with updated firmware?

Yep, that's good, hope purchase turns up tomorrow, another pricing error being taken advantage of.

[bd139]

Mine have all been dispatched now

[Specmaster]

Mine have all been dispatched now

Same here 🤣

[bd139]

I'm intrigued to see what turns up.

Occasionally when I order something from RS I get something more valuable delivered! I ordered a rocker switch for a TTi power supply once and got a 20m BNC patch instead. Shame it was 75 ohm

[Brumby]

Everything is more expensive here. Annoys the hell out of me.

Come Down Under for a few weeks' T&M bargain shopping, if you dare.

You'll soon find out that we are still a penal colony in that space.

[Specmaster]

Everything is more expensive here. Annoys the hell out of me.

Come Down Under for a few weeks' T&M bargain shopping, if you dare.

You'll soon find out that we are still a penal colony in that space.

You say that but when Dave goes to the warehouse sales he gets far better deals then we ever get here so it's not all bad there.

[bd139]

Depends what really. My wife's uncle got diagnosed with bowel cancer while out there. Said he'll be fucked if he's dying there, it's too expensive, got the first flight back.

He is still not dead and that was 20 years ago 

[ChrisLX200]

Had to jury rig the thing to see if it worked - bit risky as the big heatsinks are hot - 240v - so needed to keep reminding myself    . For safety I will need to make a plastic cover to isolate from the casing. The two smaller boards will be mounted on a vertical divider which I haven't made yet, perforated with the fan at the front. Other than that it all seems to work

[Specmaster]

Depends what really. My wife's uncle got diagnosed with bowel cancer while out there. Said he'll be fucked if he's dying there, it's too expensive, got the first flight back.

He is still not dead and that was 20 years ago 

He wouldn't have to pay, he'd be a live if he paid[emoji38]

[Brumby]

Everything is more expensive here. Annoys the hell out of me.

Come Down Under for a few weeks' T&M bargain shopping, if you dare.

You'll soon find out that we are still a penal colony in that space.

You say that but when Dave goes to the warehouse sales he gets far better deals then we ever get here so it's not all bad there.

But ... How often does that happen?

I've been to 2 Jaycar ones over the last couple of years.  The first one wasn't too bad for consumer stuff - but only if you came early on the last day when they cut the prices.  The second one was an absolute waste of time - unless you were into a 2 channel 25MHz no-name DSO for $199.

Haven't seen much else.

[mnementh]

It would be really childish of me to make a post purely on the chance that it would be the first on the 300th page, wouldn't it?

No not at all.

On a side note to keep this relevant, all of my meters agree to the second to least significant digit.

I only have 6 meters, and they all agree with my 'scopes: I'm an arsehat. No, seriously. I get that "Don't touch me there, you arse!" screech from one or the other of them at least once a day...


On to my T12 project...


Been doing some tidying up inside my station; I wanted to have the PS section fully sorted by the time my new controller from KSGER gets here, as I'm considering swapping it in place of the Blue Hakk0 board. Made a mounting bracket with actual standoffs  from the tin off a duff DVD drive; now it sits right under the vents in the case like it ought and isn't just zip-tied to the side of the transformer. New wiring to the regulator & put spades on at the switch instead of welded pigtail wires & wirenuts. I know I should replace the bridge cuz it's probably been overheated from soldering to those short legs, but I don't feel like unearthing that corner of the parts closet right now.

I know; why am I spending so much time on this Radio Schlock junk?

Well, it's actually not junk, it's a rebrand of a model Atten made for Weller; the stupid thing sold for crazy money before T-RS went belly up. When they disco-ed it due to not selling, I found the last one in captivity at 90% off in a store in New York, and my dad took a bus over to the store and got it for me for a birthday present. It served me well for several years, even through some contract work, so when it died I just put it on the shelf planning to troubleshoot it, because sentiment and I prefer the form-factor. After 25 years with the same WTCPN station, I guess I'm set in my ways.

I've actually already drawn up a quick sketch of the front; need to get that into Sketchup so I can have a friend CNC me a whole front panel out of 40% smoke acrylic and then it'll be fully presentable.


mnem
*putter-putter*

[mnementh]

Everything is more expensive here. Annoys the hell out of me.

Come Down Under for a few weeks' T&M bargain shopping, if you dare.

You'll soon find out that we are still a penal colony in that space.

You say that but when Dave goes to the warehouse sales he gets far better deals then we ever get here so it's not all bad there.

Yeah, I remember that 1 gig 'scope he "found dumpster-diving" last All Fool's Day... 


mnem
*Typed on a PC that's 60% 40% dumpster-score*

[Specmaster]

Everything is more expensive here. Annoys the hell out of me.

Come Down Under for a few weeks' T&M bargain shopping, if you dare.

You'll soon find out that we are still a penal colony in that space.

You say that but when Dave goes to the warehouse sales he gets far better deals then we ever get here so it's not all bad there.

Yeah, I remember that 1 gig 'scope he "found dumpster-diving" last All Fool's Day... 


mnem
*Typed on a PC that's 60% 40% dumpster-score*

Yeh, I remember that one too, but then there was the HP 1740A, the TV etc that clearly were real. 

[Specmaster]

Wow, we're 302 pages now, I've been out at two USAF bases in Suffolk all day today and only able to access the forum via my mobile and Tapatalk, not the best method I can think of so was unaware that we had passed yet another milestone.

Feeling a bit fed up as have only just a few minutes ago got back home after sitting in a jam on the M11 due to a 3 car pile blocking the road some 5 miles in front and the next exit is 6 miles in front, for almost 2 hours. Freezing cold day, pitch black and running out of fuel rapidly. No information on the radio, or the sat nav as to what the problem was, and then after 30 minutes, well it seemed that long  a fire engine came by on the hard shoulder, another 10 mins or so later, followed by another came along and yet another a few more minutes later. About 20 minutes later a police car came along followed a short while later followed a string of highways agency vehicles.

Switching the engine off to conserve fuel and then starting it every now end then to get some heat. About an hour later we started moving a couple lorry lengths and grinding to a halt again. When we did reach the scene, all cars were on the hard shoulder and the police were there taking statements and there was a elderly person in a wheelchair at the kerbside, wrapped up in one of those aluminium sheets to protect them from the cold presumably awaiting the arrival of an ambulance, and that was something that had not passed me in all the time I was caught up in the aftermath.

Anyhow, got home now, knackered and starving, now to eat and later I'll take a look at my photos of F15's and an Osprey and if anyone is interested I'll post a link later to a couple of them.

[Brumby]

Everything is more expensive here. Annoys the hell out of me.

Come Down Under for a few weeks' T&M bargain shopping, if you dare.

You'll soon find out that we are still a penal colony in that space.

You say that but when Dave goes to the warehouse sales he gets far better deals then we ever get here so it's not all bad there.

Yeah, I remember that 1 gig 'scope he "found dumpster-diving" last All Fool's Day... 


mnem
*Typed on a PC that's 60% 40% dumpster-score*

Yeh, I remember that one too, but then there was the HP 1740A, the TV etc that clearly were real. 

These things are Dave's "dumpster dives".

As he has said (more than once) access to these dumpsters absolutely excludes the public.  The dumpsters are located within secure premises.  The scroungers among us have dreams of such resources, but they just do not happen.

For the average Joe, Australia is a wasteland for second hand T&M.

This sums up my experience as well:

104 results for (oscilloscope, cro)  Used in Australia Only - includes probes accessories manual and about 60 Oscilloscopes total. Most of which are beyond salvation or overpriced to the 

Over 5000 in the USA evilbay by example. Cheaper to pay stupid amounts of freight to get a good price and range.

[Specmaster]

Slightly worried, I ordered 6 HRC cartridge fuses for my Fluke meter and 1,000 resistors, Just checked the delivery advise email telling me that they will be delivered tomorrow, which is great but, it says that the fuses weighing in at 84Gms and 1,000 resistors in a seperate parcel and weighing, wait ..wait for it   .... .... 1Gm 

[Brumby]

Is that 1 gram - or 1 Giga metre?

[neo]

Wow, we're 302 pages now, I've been out at two USAF bases in Suffolk all day today and only able to access the forum via my mobile and Tapatalk, not the best method I can think of so was unaware that we had passed yet another milestone.

Not only have we passed paged 300, but i was the one to post first on that page.