Test Equipment Anonymous (TEA) group therapy thread

[factory]

Thanks for showing your 321A with excessive brightness, looks quite different to mine, especially as you had to turn the lights out to show it.
I had a very very quick peak inside it last night, all the notorious OC170 transistors are still present, as are the original capacitors.
There are some old repairs to some diodes (with damage to the terminal strip), the end of the battery holder has gone where a mains cord has been soldered on.

David

You're welcome. My Type 321A is still loaded with the 2N2207 transistors too. I had one in the sweep section develop a tin whisker short. I replaced it with a vintage 2N2207 and so far no issues. I should have tried a 2N3906 but didn't realize at the time that in most cases a silicon transistor can just drop right in with no changes.

The recently restored Type 547 has two 2N2207's in the sweep mag circuit and both were bad. Again, I replaced them with vintage 2N2207 not realizing that in later production Tek changed them to silicon 2N4890 with no circuit changes.   

Pictures have been taken, will post them another day.

Have a look at the 321 manual, there are no 2N2207 transistors in the original version (no 'A'), my Mullard book gives AF118 for 2N2207, the AF118 has a higher voltage rating for VCB of -70V, whereas the OC170 used in the 321 has a lower spec of -20V.
Seems I could probably use something like a Russian GT322B for the OC170 when they fail, those seem readily available.
And possibly GT321V for the 2N2207/AF118 (note it has a slightly lower voltage rating).
Or increasing the value of the bias resistor*/adding extra diodes, has been mentioned for changing to silicon types.

*I wouldn't be surprised if they haven't already drifted up in value with age, as they are carbon comp types.

David

[Neomys Sapiens]

Oh, I nearly forgot: As I was doing the rounds at work today, picking up stuff delivered to the wrong desk (in spite of being clearly labeled with "KH-1-O", my grid reference.)  I happened to look down into an electronics scrap bin, and discovered a partially dismantled Oltronix triple voltage PSU. All parts were located, and it is in our lab at work now, waiting for transport home to my lab. Condition unknown, presumed magic smoke released. But, since it's designed in Sweden, originally in a suburb over the water from where I live (not far from where Philips Elektronikindustrier AB built frequency counters under Philips and Fluke brands), the risk of RIFA contamination is pretty high.

Borrowed pic (I did not have time to snap one of the actual item):

Congrats to you and best wishes for your patient! Contrary to the scathing review I hold mine (same model) in high regard. When it arrived, the output parallel protection diode had failed short. Instead of totally dismantling it, I managed to fit a new diode by merely releasing the front panel, so that I had an access from below. A lot of power supply functionality in a rather compact package.

[mnementh]

...I think I'm going to put the Roombas down, back slowly away and work on my daughter's Halloween costume. She's a witch without a broom to ride, and I need to fix that... 

mnem
'twas brillig and the slithy toves did gyre and gimbal in the wabe...

Now that is a proper young witch's broom. 

mnem
*runs away cackling into the distance*

[bitseeker]

We should all learn Welsh... 

My local weather forecast.   

That looks like a good password.

[bitseeker]

   ... and also had a lunch break at my favorite restaurant at the end of the universe.

Saskia, we get it. Stop the fishy posts - we clearly accept that there is an upside to living near the coast!   Grrr...not much decent fish to be had round here.

   
*raises a paw*

more please. 

mnem
*inhales deeply*

Me, three! (more fish 'n' chips, not just pics  )

[cyclin_al]

...I think I'm going to put the Roombas down, back slowly away and work on my daughter's Halloween costume. She's a witch without a broom to ride, and I need to fix that... 

mnem
'twas brillig and the slithy toves did gyre and gimbal in the wabe...

Now that is a proper young witch's broom. 

mnem
*runs away cackling into the distance*

Nicely done!  Will household implements be reassembled post-halloween?

On a similar note, we were ready to do final assembly of a Minecraft torch, when out of seemingly nowhere, the costume was changed to a ninja.
All proposed accessories were denied as school has rules against anything resembling a weapon...

[beanflying]

BodgiTEA for the win Samsung tablet wont take a charge and claims to be flat and most remedies need it to be turned on to fault find Was a touch under 3.3V at an apparent 0% now nearing 3.5V and doing well. Set to cut out at a nice safe 3.9V for reassembly and threats with a hammer if needed.

I blame the 'upgrades' of yesterday for borking it 

Still need to find a cleaner for the shack too..........

[beanflying]

The temptation to add a Beer to the mix in the Sun is high  All the 8mm reamed to a nice 20mm and the chamfering is a WIP that may or may not include a safety beverage 

The lightweight Bosch is rocking the 300RPM Reaming and Chamfering with ease too.

EDIT - cleanup Beer in the sun 

[vk6zgo]

Well despite all the discussion here about raising the low 11ft 8" bridge to 12ft 4" it seems it wasn't enough OR they never raised bar just before bridge, this lorry managed to hit the bar just 8 days ago 


 

Lorry? I don't see no stinkin lorry. I see a truck, but not a lorry. 

Laurie is driving it!

[Andrew_Debbie]

That looks like a good password.

Exactly 

https://youtu.be/s5GMB-IYQ8Q

[mansaxel]

Chipageddon is real, and has been for some time. I have two outstanding orders;

• One from Elfa Distrelec, for some pretty specific 4K7Ω potentiometers to fit my Studer mixing desk. No news there, except "more delays" and that's been so for approaching ONE YEAR now... Order date 2020-12-08 I did manage to revive the original potentiometers so am not stranded. See below for reviving information...
• One from Mouser, for some capacitors. Luckily enough, I'd ordered some variants with similar values and differing form factors (again, I had space constraints that -- still with the insane space reduction available in modern caps -- were somewhat impractical to solve), and the original shipment contained enough parts to remedy the situation, and literally, the last one of that cap model they had in stock.  I just got word that there's a package with the 9 remaining ones on the way, and it's in Memphis. Original order date 2021-07-14...

On reviving pots and switches, I can not enough praise this product:



"Kontakt PRF 7-78" and it's made in Finland. Every bit as good as Deoxit and similar haussed brands. 165ml cost SEK 106, which as of yesterday was 10€60. It turned my C&K vintage toggles on the Studer from being intermittent horror shows into dependable switches.

[duckduck]

New acquisition:

Fluke 325 true RMS clamp meter
Up to 400A AC and DC
https://www.fluke.com/en-us/product/electrical-testing/clamp-meters/fluke-325

It cost me USD215 (free shipping in the USA, Ebay adds sales tax): https://www.ebay.com/itm/154515341850 - no relation to the seller. It was packaged well, delivered quickly, and appeared completely new and unused (including the vinyl screen protector). It came with the Chinese-language 2D barcode sticker on the front, like in the ad. Clearly the seller has found himself a nice arbitrage opportunity. I tested all of the functions and it works flawlessly. The readings are dead nuts on. It came with an illustrated quick-reference card that shows all regular usage, "secret" boot-up buttons, and also the specifications (in English).

The 325 has several tricks that the 323 and 324 can't match: frequency via clamp, an extra 40kR range, and (most importantly) DC current via clamp. The supplied test leads are a step down in quality vs the ones that come with Fluke's fancier multimeters, but are significantly better than the tat that you'll find the usual scumbags flogging. Also included is the regulation Fluke K-type thermocouple. It uses a single tiny white LED for a light on the right side of the display. This is an adequate solution, but only just. I imagine that they were trying to hit certain overall dimensions, which limited them to a few small batteries, which gave them a small power budget, that chased the rat that ate the cheese, that lay in the house that Jack built. And now the backlight sucks. See how that works?

I bought this meter to help me gather startup and running loads from several circuits in order to size a backup generator for the nest. It came with a set of two "Energizer MAX" AAA batteries installed that I promptly removed. I'm going to see how well NiMHs work in it.

<rant subject="leaky alkaline batteries and other things that piss me off" tone="get off my lawn">
I've got a Garmin color-screen GPS with a PCB with corroded traces and an SD card that is corroded in place due to a pair of AA batteries that leaked, and a second set that leaked    I'm slow, but I eventually learn my lesson. Also, my love affair* with chlorinated brake cleaner has officially ended since it made the plastic of the battery door (of the same GPS) as brittle as a sheet of 1mm-thick ice. May the Great Duck bless the fine Ebay seller in Russia that sells new replacement Garmin plastics for just a few dollars apiece, replies to messages, and combines shipping.
</rant>

* https://www.eevblog.com/forum/chat/brake-cleaner-is-cheap-and-cleans-pcbs-really-well/

EDIT:

Added a family photo


EDIT EDIT:

I put in NiMHs and ran it for a while. It seems to like them just fine.

[DC1MC]

....
On reviving pots and switches, I can not enough praise this product:



"Kontakt PRF 7-78" and it's made in Finland. Every bit as good as Deoxit and similar haussed brands. 165ml cost SEK 106, which as of yesterday was 10€60. It turned my C&K vintage toggles on the Studer from being intermittent horror shows into dependable switches.

This guy ?
https://www.ebay.de/itm/164197325279

Ordered one, it did not break the bank

Cheers,
DC1MC

[Robert763]

...The only break I had was yesterday afternoon, to take my car in for its MOT (yes my wheel speed sensor fix worked, and it passed with only 1 advisory), and the replacement ground crew managed to get his phone run over. Some people...   

Hey, at least he didn't run over your phone with a scissorlift... 

mnem
think (+). charge (-).

Of course not, I'm not a fuckwit that leaves his phone on the floor where a 2.5 tonne scissor lift is driving around.

Well yes, but we are talking aboot fuckwits here.  There is no doubt in my mind that given sufficient exposure to their presence, they can and will find a way to run over your phone too. 

mnem
it does seem that "the lowest common denominator" always resolves all over me.

To be clear, I'm calling the person replacing me as the ground crew a fuckwit, not the driver. The whole point One of the main reasons for the ground crew is to spot dangers that the driver might not reasonably be expected to see from 12 metres up in a dimly lit sports hall, while trying not to bang the MEWP into structural steels or 3 inch gas pipes (the other main reason being to operate emergency controls should the MEWP fail or the driver is decapitated).

Sorry... this is how I read that... having used them more than a few times, and never with benefit of any "workman's safety agency" making sure I had adequate assistance of that nature, I'll tell you they scare the ever-loving bejeezus outta me. 

Especially one time when due to narrow spaces between beams, I misjudged my most personal locational situation, and all-too-narrowly avoided rupturing a halide lamp with the back of my big ol' fuzzy haid. Literally got close enough to feel the static and heat and too much environmental noise to hear the buzz... 

mnem
"tongue-tied and twisted, just an earthbound misfit, I...."

In my first full time job at 16 there were no MEWPs. Some of the 8ft flourescent tubes about 25ft up in the high bay needed changing. The fixtures were on chains so nowhere to put the top of the ladder. Guess who got sent up  3 section extending ladder that was held vertically by a couple of blokes  The ladders moving, the fittings swinging around and I'm trying to get the pins aligned. Things you did when you didn't know any better  .
My main job was component level repairs on early electroinc amusement (arcade) machines. This was mostly video games and early electronic pintables. However there was not enough of tht to be full time. So you did what ever ws needed. So that was everything from old Jennings "Indian" mechanical fruit machines, refurbishing the cinema projection suite, acting as assistant projectonist, working on early electromechanical fruits with 240V mains on open leaf contacts on relays and sequencers. We also built machines including a video blackjack machine that used an Intel 4040 based board. Test equipment was basic. An AVO 8, Solartron 7040 DMM,  a Philips 10MHz dual trace 'scope (can't recall the model but had TV trigger etc) and a "Yaesu"  digital frequency counter with 7 seg filament display.
It taught me a lot. I now only go up ladders that are at the right angle on solid non-slip surfaces and if more the 6ft up they are "footed" and secured near the top. 

[mansaxel]

"Kontakt PRF 7-78" and it's made in Finland.

This guy ?
https://www.ebay.de/itm/164197325279

Ordered one, it did not break the bank

It is affordable, and it is readily available too, which you can't say about De-Oxit, not on this side of the pond anyway.

[AVGresponding]

Chipageddon is real, and has been for some time. I have two outstanding orders

There have been some delays for us getting some fire alarm gear on our current job, though the claim is a shortage of plastic rather than silicon. Not sure how much credence to give that...
Notifier products are made in Italy (though obviously the silicon will be spun in the usual places), so   




On the RFL/Clarke-Hess Model 828 AC/DC V-A Source, the news is good. Found an operators manual without any difficulty, had to break out the variac as it's set to run at 220VAC internally (will change it to 250VAC when I open it up), works pretty well perfectly. Some minor noise on the lower volt/current ranges, and the output frequency is a bit off (imo) on the 50 and 60Hz settings, so will probably benefit from some degree of re-capping. Oh, and the run-up function may not be working, but meh, that's only really for checking analogue meter movements, so idc about that.

So in short, I now have myself a nice tool for cross-checking the the accuracy of meters all the way up to 1kV AC/DC, and 5A AC/DC.

[mansaxel]

Chipageddon ....

There have been some delays for us getting some fire alarm gear on our current job,

Oh, and at work; Vendor quotes 182 days delivery for network gear that used to be two weeks, tops, last year.

[Robert763]

   ... and also had a lunch break at my favorite restaurant at the end of the universe.

Saskia, we get it. Stop the fishy posts - we clearly accept that there is an upside to living near the coast!   Grrr...not much decent fish to be had round here.

   
*raises a paw*

more please. 

mnem
*inhales deeply*

Me, three! (more fish 'n' chips, not just pics  )

Sorry I wan't going to let mine sit uneaten while I took a photo. Maybe next time.
 

[mansaxel]

New acquisition:


Fluke 325 true RMS clamp meter
Up to 400A AC and DC

I suppose I need to thank you.

You made me pull the trigger on an UT-210E AC/DC clamp. Not that it competes with the Fluke, it surpasses it in DC resolution, and that's more aligned with my needs. Also, the "lead" modes like V, Ω, C, et al on the Fluke are a bit meh, very aligned to sparky use. We all have quality meters that makes those functions redundant, I hope. Sort of the entry requirement to TEA; have more precision than actually needed.

I think we need to build ourselves an enabler award. So far, I think Fall Out Boy will do:

[Robert763]

For AC/DC clamp meter bargains it's hard to beat the HEME 1000 in the UK.

www.ebay.co.uk/itm/294024178306
www.ebay.co.uk/itm/154671558437

There is also a 100A version, HEME 100.
They have peak or reading hold, Two analog outputs (on mini XLR) one is the actual waveform the other DC representation of RMS. Also automatic AC/DC selection. AC is true RMS. The only real downside is they are a bit chunky. It also has a built in puzzle, where does the battery go? Don't take all the screws out (some should be sealed). The 9V battery is under the clamp opening lever. Just take out the pivot screw. Don't buy the explosion proof version, it has a potted 9V rechargable and no analog output.
These were expensive when new, £330 in 1990. A lot on ebay are ex military.
Edit I have 3 1000s and a 100 

[capt bullshot]

Totally bust my diet, did not make my 10 kms yesterday and today and also had a lunch break at my favorite restaurant at the end of the universe.

This place looks familiar to me, I've been there but can't remember where. Greetsiel?

[med6753]

That fish and chips looks damn good. Even though I'm 70 miles inland from the coast there are places nearby where can get a decent sample.

According to USPS the Fluke 8060A will show up today rather than Monday. It's currently at local Newburgh distribution. If it gets to local PO soon it should be delivered.

The "British Invasion" started early today. She got herself caught up on "East Enders" now we have "Doc Martin". BTW, what town is that show recorded at? Interesting little village with it's own sheltered harbor (harbour). I suppose I could Google it.

Not sure if I'll be on Discord later today.   

[Brumby]

Today, I picked up my two TDR candidates.  Haven't had a chance to dive in, but I did take a couple of external photos of the Tek.  Seems it has some provenance .... in the USAF.


... and, yes, it's missing the battery pack:



But I was impressed with how smoothly the dial adjuster felt.

[med6753]

Today, I picked up my two TDR candidates.  Haven't had a chance to dive in, but I did take a couple of external photos of the Tek.  Seems it has some provenance .... in the USAF.

Must be an interesting story on how it got from Tinker AFB in Oklahoma to Oz. 

[Brumby]

The HP was heavy (not unexpected) and didn't have the HP power lead (stated in the listing).  This is also going to be my first encounter with the hermaphroditic connectors.  Not sure I'm too enthusiastic about that.

All the switches and controls have a good feel - but (in true EEVblog fashion) I will be having a look inside before firing it up.