Test Equipment Anonymous (TEA) group therapy thread

[Specmaster]

well it was not my proudest moment.

had been at the hamfest yesterday and picked up a modern iec power socket to replace the non standard one on a b&k counter.  it had flying leads and could be adapted to fit in place with out a lot of bodge.

drilled the rivets and removed the old one.  had the new one loosely fitted and got the brilliant idea to plug a cord in to make sure everything was aligned before tightening the screws and soldering the leads. 

that's when things took a turn.  see attached picture for the situation on the bench.  the intended cord is right there within easy reach.  so are some others.

was fiddling with it hot for about 5 seconds before getting jolted.  as I flung the mess down it shorted and the basement breaker left me sitting in the dark. 

do some of my best thinkin' in the dark.   and so it only took a couple of milliseconds to realize what had happened.

fortunately swmbo and the rotten kid were over at the outlet mall and were spared hearing my shout in the dark.

"STUPID MOTHER FUCKER!!!"

Yikes...I got but by a wall outlet with the cover plate off while painting once. 120Vac hurts.

You wouldn't want to try a kick by a UK wall socket then with double that voltage on tap, double the hurt, compared to ours 120vac is a mere tickle 

UK system really sorts the men from the boys, our 3 phase systems have 415Vac between phases and that can really put your lights out if you don't pay enough attention and respect it, over here we use 110 / 120Vac on building sites as a safe voltage 

[URI]

well it was not my proudest moment.
[..]
was fiddling with it hot for about 5 seconds before getting jolted.  as I flung the mess down it shorted and the basement breaker left me sitting in the dark. 

do some of my best thinkin' in the dark.   and so it only took a couple of milliseconds to realize what had happened.

fortunately swmbo and the rotten kid were over at the outlet mall and were spared hearing my shout in the dark.

"STUPID MOTHER FUCKER!!!"

Glad to hear you're ok.
120V AC do obviously hurt -so do 230V AC over here...   

[med6753]

You wouldn't want to try a kick by a UK wall socket then with double that voltage on tap, double the hurt, compared to ours 120vac is a mere tickle 

UK system really sorts the men from the boys, our 3 phase systems have 415Vac between phases and that can really put your lights out if you don't pay enough attention and respect it, over here we use 110 / 120Vac on building sites as a safe voltage 

Related to that been watching some You tube videos of English electricians because I was curious as to how you guys do wiring. To say "that shit won't fly" over here is an understatement. Freaking ring circuits with I'm pretty sure 32 amp breakers for general outlets and lighting? Are you kidding?  But on a positive note I do like the splice assemblies that can be used plus apparently your code allows plastic breaker boxes with the breakers arranged neatly in a horizontal configuration. I've never seen plastic breaker boxes here nor have I ever seen metal breaker boxes with the breakers horizontal across.   

[Specmaster]

You wouldn't want to try a kick by a UK wall socket then with double that voltage on tap, double the hurt, compared to ours 120vac is a mere tickle 

UK system really sorts the men from the boys, our 3 phase systems have 415Vac between phases and that can really put your lights out if you don't pay enough attention and respect it, over here we use 110 / 120Vac on building sites as a safe voltage 

Related to that been watching some You tube videos of English electricians because I was curious as to how you guys do wiring. To say "that shit won't fly" over here is an understatement. Freaking ring circuits with I'm pretty sure 32 amp breakers for general outlets and lighting? Are you kidding?  But on a positive note I do like the splice assemblies that can be used plus apparently your code allows plastic breaker boxes with the breakers arranged neatly in a horizontal configuration. I've never seen plastic breaker boxes here nor have I ever seen metal breaker boxes with the breakers horizontal across.   

We have had the ring system for many years over here and it does for the main part work really well, even with a 32A breaker. The plastic enclosures you describe are now banned over here, the wiring regulations demand metal enclosures but the breakers are always horizontal on single phase systems, certain for domestic installations but when it comes to 3 phase system the breakers vertically stacked.

[URI]

You wouldn't want to try a kick by a UK wall socket then with double that voltage on tap, double the hurt, compared to ours 120vac is a mere tickle 

UK system really sorts the men from the boys, our 3 phase systems have 415Vac between phases and that can really put your lights out if you don't pay enough attention and respect it, over here we use 110 / 120Vac on building sites as a safe voltage 

Related to that been watching some You tube videos of English electricians because I was curious as to how you guys do wiring. To say "that shit won't fly" over here is an understatement. Freaking ring circuits with I'm pretty sure 32 amp breakers for general outlets and lighting? Are you kidding?  But on a positive note I do like the splice assemblies that can be used plus apparently your code allows plastic breaker boxes with the breakers arranged neatly in a horizontal configuration. I've never seen plastic breaker boxes here nor have I ever seen metal breaker boxes with the breakers horizontal across.   

We have had the ring system for many years over here and it does for the main part work really well, even with a 32A breaker. The plastic enclosures you describe are now banned over here, the wiring regulations demand metal enclosures but the breakers are always horizontal on single phase systems, certain for domestic installations but when it comes to 3 phase system the breakers vertically stacked.

Yep, you Brits have that ring system, the rest of the continent doesn't. It's a different approach.

In Germany it's standard to have a 3 phase 230V/400V 50Hz coming in your house/apartment. Inside it's normally used 3phase for oven/cooking plates and -if installed- e.g. flow heater. Circuits for light and wall sockets are single phase, with RCD (in new installations) and 16A breakers normally. Old installations can differ.

Another detail:
With the Schuko-plug system used in Germany neutral and phase is interchangeable -that can be fun e.g. when you're repairing a live HP boat anchor where someone had thought that only the phase contact (in AC systems with fixed phase definition) on a fan assembly is to be isolated..   *ouch*
All my Test Gear is now connected to AC with neutral on neutral pin and phase on phase pin at the inlet.   

[Specmaster]

With the Schuko-plug system used in Germany neutral and phase is interchangeable -that can be fun e.g. when you're repairing a live HP boat anchor where someone had thought that only the phase contact (in AC systems with fixed phase definition) on a fan assembly is to be isolated..   *ouch*
All my Test Gear is now connected to AC with neutral on neutral pin and phase on phase pin at the inlet.   

And that is precisely how it should be, any decent system should have pins so arranged that neutral goes to neutral and live to live and PE to PE, anything else is just an accident waiting to happen and certainly does not meet either UK or European standards which known to the best there is. 

[URI]

With the Schuko-plug system used in Germany neutral and phase is interchangeable -that can be fun e.g. when you're repairing a live HP boat anchor where someone had thought that only the phase contact (in AC systems with fixed phase definition) on a fan assembly is to be isolated..   *ouch*
All my Test Gear is now connected to AC with neutral on neutral pin and phase on phase pin at the inlet.   

And that is precisely how it should be, any decent system should have pins so arranged that neutral goes to neutral and live to live and PE to PE, anything else is just an accident waiting to happen and certainly does not meet either UK or European standards which known to the best there is.

Ahemm.. The Schuko Plug System conforms to European standards.   
Moreover it brings in an additional requirement for builder of electrical devices: to isolate both live circuit parts because you can't rely on one side being neutral under all circumstances.   

[worsthorse]

My problem with Radio, HAM or CB is, I enjoy how it works more than talking to the people you often find there.  Been licensed as an Extra since I was 13, 30 years ago now, but not been very active for the last 10.  I miss the technical discussion and could not care less for the arguing and mindless banter.

Same situation. I mistook this for wanting to do something else a few months ago and shifted a lot of my stuff. This left me with a bare bones CW setup in the end. This turned out to be the glove that fits. If you stay out of the contests, down on CW QRP there are a lot of real decent people out there who still want to make stuff and talk about it rather than ailments or politics. Most of what is done is cheap and achievable as well, pushing the boundary of "less is more". I have made a few contacts to totally homebrew stations in the last year.

There's also FT8 but that is so utterly boring. I like to use this graphic to describe it:



Edit: mini FT8 rant. You can't really say you got an award for working all states / countries on FT8 as you could easily be replaced by a three line python script that could have done it for you.

 

And, in fact, there is software available that runs FT8 without an operator, allowing one to collect as many certificates as one wishes, even while sleeping. Pair it with a 500W amp, a tower and a rotating beam and you can probably get them all in a month or less.  meh!

[URI]

As a bonus and because this subject was brought in yesterday (I think. -This thread is evolving sooo fast..) here are two photos of my power distribution under and above my bench.

I have eighteen sockets (3x6) on the backside of the shelve above my bench. After having an utterly chaotic and jungle type of cabling in the back of my TE I made a cut: I made eighteen individual cables to go from the outlets straight to the devices inlet. Should have done this earlier:


Under my bench there are eighteen more sockets (also 3x6) and you see the only two left unused. In fact I don't have enough sockets. But I helped me with hydra-style extension cords with one Schuko plug on one side and two or three IEC connectors that I came across when I searched for a solution to my problem:

[worsthorse]

I've acquired a long-desired piece of gear, the SDR-kits WVNA 3, along with a Rosenberger SMA cal kit.  My reach exceeds my grasp...  I am flummoxed by it.  I really need to do some basic reading/study/experimenting to learn how to use this gear properly. 

So.... anyone here know a good basic book or two I might buy (or borrow using inter-library loan) to guide me?  I am old-fashioned and don't have the attention span (or patience) to wade through a zillion youtube videos or websites to find a gem or two. 

I guess I should post something over in the TE forum directly, too.

[Cerebus]

Not totally happy with the fluke holster. There’s some permanent marker on the back where someone wrote their name. I got it down to light green though with some isopropyl alcohol.

Might be worth a try with one of the many percarbonate laundry bleaches like Vanish or the local supermarket equivalent.

[0culus]

I've acquired a long-desired piece of gear, the SDR-kits WVNA 3, along with a Rosenberger SMA cal kit.  My reach exceeds my grasp...  I am flummoxed by it.  I really need to do some basic reading/study/experimenting to learn how to use this gear properly. 

So.... anyone here know a good basic book or two I might buy (or borrow using inter-library loan) to guide me?  I am old-fashioned and don't have the attention span (or patience) to wade through a zillion youtube videos or websites to find a gem or two. 

I guess I should post something over in the TE forum directly, too.

I believe there are some relevant HP application notes...I'm using a number of them related to the 8405A VVM to learn how to use it. Try HP memory project.

[bd139]

Disclaimer: decided to drink the remaining bottles of Abbots Ale I have lying around this afternoon. This post may lack coherence.

Not totally happy with the fluke holster. There’s some permanent marker on the back where someone wrote their name. I got it down to light green though with some isopropyl alcohol.

Might be worth a try with one of the many percarbonate laundry bleaches like Vanish or the local supermarket equivalent.

Thanks for that suggestion - will have a go as I have a load of that in the cupboard!

If you do shop around for a SWL receiver stay away from this one. Heath SW-7800. It's a piece of shit.

Oh yea, DO NOT GET.

Here's some of mine. On the bottom we have Kenwood R-1000 and R-2000, and Yeasu FRG-7700. All good radios.

On the top a Drake SSR-1 (so-so) and a Realistic DX-160 (Meh).

Still waiting on the Drake SPR-4 to be delivered. 

I heard that the SW-7800 "wasn't that good". I wasn't aware that it attracted hatred at that level.

Really want a Drake R7 or a Racal RA1792 both of which are like as rare as rocking horse shit in decent working order. Most likely will end up with something around Heathkit GR-78 or Mohican. The latter is a good tinkerer's set and fairly ubiquitous here. The bandspread tuning is slightly painful but useable.

Can't wait to see the SPR-4.

And, in fact, there is software available that runs FT8 without an operator, allowing one to collect as many certificates as one wishes, even while sleeping. Pair it with a 500W amp, a tower and a rotating beam and you can probably get them all in a month or less.  meh!

Yep screw that. Everyone lies about power on that as well. 5W into dipole? Hahah no 400W into beam.

Built the K2 ATU. Quick photos ... sandwich board construction. No less than one metric shit ton of relays on this thing:



Installed, plus the rest of the gubbins. Noise blanker board installed. To go: audio filter, battery, SSB, Serial port.



So far it'll tune the piece of shit wire around my living room to a flat 1.0:1 SWR from 80-10m (!). When I keyed the TX my desk lamp turned off though 

Oh couple of alerts for UK people:

HP 410C: https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/264339258442

HP 8656B (please buy this so I don't  ): https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/264339185750

[Specmaster]

With the Schuko-plug system used in Germany neutral and phase is interchangeable -that can be fun e.g. when you're repairing a live HP boat anchor where someone had thought that only the phase contact (in AC systems with fixed phase definition) on a fan assembly is to be isolated..   *ouch*
All my Test Gear is now connected to AC with neutral on neutral pin and phase on phase pin at the inlet.   

And that is precisely how it should be, any decent system should have pins so arranged that neutral goes to neutral and live to live and PE to PE, anything else is just an accident waiting to happen and certainly does not meet either UK or European standards which known to the best there is.

Ahemm.. The Schuko Plug System conforms to European standards.   
Moreover it brings in an additional requirement for builder of electrical devices: to isolate both live circuit parts because you can't rely on one side being neutral under all circumstances.   

Thats where the UK 13A plug / socket system comes into play, if the electrician wired the sockets up correctly then the neutral was always neutral, then the government let standards drop because of a skill shortage so to minimise danger from the live and neutral being swapped over the manufacturers of wiring accessories had to resort to making all switches on sockets to be double pole because the electricians could be relied upon to wire then correctly and or test them for correct polarity and then rectify any that were wrong, and that was meant to be progress   

[Cerebus]

HP 8656B (please buy this so I don't  ): https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/264339185750

I'd love to oblige you but SWMBO is back and hasn't yet spotted the 3325A, sneaking in an additional full rack width, 3 or 4U sig gen might be chancing it. Ditto for that tempting Marconi 2019A that's on ebay for £300.

[GregDunn]

Under my bench there are eighteen more sockets (also 3x6) and you see the only two left unused. In fact I don't have enough sockets. But I helped me with hydra-style extension cords with one Schuko plug on one side and two or three IEC connectors that I came across when I searched for a solution to my problem:

I can't believe it took me so long to think of searching for multi-output power cables.  Most of the stuff on my bench is very low power, like my DMMs.  I just ordered a few cables from Amazon which will approximately cut the wire mess in half and free up a few outlets for DUTs.

[URI]

Under my bench there are eighteen more sockets (also 3x6) and you see the only two left unused. In fact I don't have enough sockets. But I helped me with hydra-style extension cords with one Schuko plug on one side and two or three IEC connectors that I came across when I searched for a solution to my problem:

I can't believe it took me so long to think of searching for multi-output power cables.  Most of the stuff on my bench is very low power, like my DMMs.  I just ordered a few cables from Amazon which will approximately cut the wire mess in half and free up a few outlets for DUTs.

You're welcome!   

[mnementh]

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/SS-TEKTRONIX-1502-METALLIC-TDR-CABLE-TESTER-HB2/192902737588 Don't you just love fleabay condition statements, e.g. "Acquired from a reliable source" in auction

Ah, yes, one of my favourite ebay-sellers. NOT
Almost everything is offered as being from a reliable source, no matter how badly beaten up it is. 
Combined with fairly high prices with the opportunity to make an offer and counter offers going $3-$5 down from their originally offered price I've decided to just ignore those. Can't expect anything else from this seller. 

   Meanwhile, back in the real world...
https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Tektronic-1502-TDR-Cable-Tester/254241409964

well it was not my proudest moment.

had been at the hamfest yesterday and picked up a modern iec power socket to replace the non standard one on a b&k counter.  it had flying leads and could be adapted to fit in place with out a lot of bodge.

drilled the rivets and removed the old one.  had the new one loosely fitted and got the brilliant idea to plug a cord in to make sure everything was aligned before tightening the screws and soldering the leads. 

that's when things took a turn.  see attached picture for the situation on the bench.  the intended cord is right there within easy reach.  so are some others.

was fiddling with it hot for about 5 seconds before getting jolted.  as I flung the mess down it shorted and the basement breaker left me sitting in the dark. 

do some of my best thinkin' in the dark.   and so it only took a couple of milliseconds to realize what had happened.

fortunately swmbo and the rotten kid were over at the outlet mall and were spared hearing my shout in the dark.

"STUPID MOTHER FUCKER!!!"

Been dere. Dunnat. Burned the shirt.

Glad we made it back to tell the tale. 

Ouch!  I'm glad you're OK. 

thanks. but the important thing is that the counter is ok.

maybe it is time to check myself into someplace safe and spend my time listening to talk radio while drooling facedown in the oatmeal?

Wait... WHAT? There's a place for that? I don't have to do it in my own bathtub anymore? 

meh. I’ve bought and got rid of dozens just like it; the whole design is a recycled clusterfuck from years gone by.

Black & Decker tried the flip-out grip decades ago; they abandoned it because they got reamed by the customers over the built-in pinch points that make the design a blood-blister factory.

The rocker paddle on the side means it’s only really good in screwdriver mode; in pistol mode for righties it’s inconvenient, for lefties it’s unusable.

Proprietary single-cell packs in this day & age? 18650 cells and chargers are cheap and more common than D cells anymore.

And single-cell means slow as flurp; probably 450-550 RPM.

That pregnant motor/gearbox section tells me that even though they’re charging “real tool” prices, they couldn’t be arsed to actually design a new tool; they just made a flip-out shell for some discontinued drill gearbox and 1S-voltage motor.

That thing is no more than a Versa-Pack B&D electric screwdriver in Hitachi green.   

mnem
meh and a half.

OK, so I have to disagree with you, because I didn't buy it to replace my other tools. I bought this specifically because it IS slower and has a lot of control over torque, compared to my Makita cordless impact driver. That thing will hammer screws in for days, but it's way overkill for delicate stuff. The power screwdriver is specifically for dealing with test equipment that has a lot of screws (e.g. my 8664A with it's optional low leakage case...don't ask how many screws it takes to get into it).

That is precisely what the 6019D is for, and why I keep coming back to it. I've been taking small machinery of every kind imaginable apart for a living for decades. Zipping out a zillion screws and putting them back in is my bread and butter. That thing is a toy. I've bought dozens just like it, all promising the same thing. Every one has failed to hold a candle to, much less beat my poor beat-up old Makita. It is the right tool for the job.

You need to be able to set torque down in the teens and single digits for plastic. You need 500-700 RPM top speed for zipping out a zillion screws and zipping them back in. You need fine-resolution variable speed control and a reliable, single-finger-convenient reversing mechanism, and you need to be able to "feel" the edge of the first thread so you can start the screw without cross-threading it, so you need a solid pistol-grip while at the same time being light enough to have "a light touch" yourself. And sometimes, you need the control that only chucking up a bit tight can give you.

   I have all the drills and impact drivers, and a slew of old ones as backups. This is just the latest crop. Of CORDLESS ones. But the 6019D still endures.


mnem
Dumber than advertised.

[0culus]

Like I said, it's not the only tool I have, and it was pretty cheap. I reckon it will do for what I want it for. 

[Brumby]

So far it'll tune the piece of shit wire around my living room to a flat 1.0:1 SWR from 80-10m (!). When I keyed the TX my desk lamp turned off though 

Thank you for that.  Made me laugh - which I needed this morning.   

[0culus]

Thanks to a kind member of the HPAK mailing list, I received a spare -hp- badge to install on the 1727A storage 'scope. Got it on with a tiny drop of epoxy after cleaning the old glue off. She stacks nicely with my 7904A. 

[xrunner]

Thanks to a kind member of the HPAK mailing list, I received a spare -hp- badge to install on the 1727A storage 'scope. Got it on with a tiny drop of epoxy after cleaning the old glue off. She stacks nicely with my 7904A. 

Good stack - we're lucky to have you in the TEA group. 

[xrunner]

Can't wait to see the SPR-4.

Neither can I. 

I will post a pic here for the TEA group of course, and then post the rest of the work I do in this thread -

Drake SPR-4

It's going to be scary going outside of the TEA group but I'm not afraid. 

[bitseeker]

well it was not my proudest moment.

had been at the hamfest yesterday and picked up a modern iec power socket to replace the non standard one on a b&k counter.  it had flying leads and could be adapted to fit in place with out a lot of bodge.

drilled the rivets and removed the old one.  had the new one loosely fitted and got the brilliant idea to plug a cord in to make sure everything was aligned before tightening the screws and soldering the leads. 

that's when things took a turn.  see attached picture for the situation on the bench.  the intended cord is right there within easy reach.  so are some others.

Yep, I looked just as I got to this point in the post and went, "oh, no!"

was fiddling with it hot for about 5 seconds before getting jolted.  as I flung the mess down it shorted and the basement breaker left me sitting in the dark. 

do some of my best thinkin' in the dark.   and so it only took a couple of milliseconds to realize what had happened.

fortunately swmbo and the rotten kid were over at the outlet mall and were spared hearing my shout in the dark.

"STUPID MOTHER FUCKER!!!"

Almost turned yourself into a Nixie tube there, nixiefreqq. Yikes!

Glad to hear that it was just the house lights that went out.

[bitseeker]

Thanks to a kind member of the HPAK mailing list, I received a spare -hp- badge to install on the 1727A storage 'scope. Got it on with a tiny drop of epoxy after cleaning the old glue off. She stacks nicely with my 7904A. 

Congrats! It's the details that count.