Test Equipment Anonymous (TEA) group therapy thread

[tggzzz]

Page 5111 AT LAST !
Almost 2AM, geez I can go to bed now 
So here it is, my Tek scope type 5111.

There are two reasonable responses to the preceeding posts:

• somebody please go back and delete one of their messages. I'd volunteer, but all my posts are worth preserving in a museum
• this group is going to get really repetitive for a while...
  
  

Tggzzz, your page counter is broken, you need to do something about it...maybe call your HA that will try to contact the IT guy who sold you your computer...

He is the IT guy

By modifying settings in your profile, you can change the number of messages per page

Yes I know, was just poking him 

Meh. Have to try harder than that! I've got a daughter, and am currently babysitting her dog.

[tggzzz]

• somebody please go back and delete one of their messages. I'd volunteer, but all my posts are worth preserving in a museum

If the posts are worthy of putting in a museum, does that imply that the poster's proper place is in a museum too? Asking for a friend...

No, that doesn't follow; you've just failed the critical thinking test.

Nonetheless, with bits becoming less functional and fit for purpose, it is beginning to feel that way

When daughter asks what I want her to do with my body after death, I tell her I'd be more than happy if she fed me to her dog. We are unconvinced we can find a way to make that legal

[Cerebus]

Ah, but I passed the test for thinking critically.

[Specmaster]

• somebody please go back and delete one of their messages. I'd volunteer, but all my posts are worth preserving in a museum

If the posts are worthy of putting in a museum, does that imply that the poster's proper place is in a museum too? Asking for a friend...

No, that doesn't follow; you've just failed the critical thinking test.

Nonetheless, with bits becoming less functional and fit for purpose, it is beginning to feel that way

When daughter asks what I want her to do with my body after death, I tell her I'd be more than happy if she fed me to her dog. We are unconvinced we can find a way to make that legal

It looks as if someone has done your bidding for you, it must be the museum quality of your posts that persuaded them I reckon.

[ch_scr]

Fitting to the page number, todays star is the EG&G / PAR / Ametek Model 5113 Low-Noise Preamplifier

After the incident the two input dual-gate FET 2N5564 were replaced with parts from Linear Systems and it would amplify small signal AC again - but the overload light was still always lit. Recently a fresh look revealed an huge DC offset and the AD744 opamp as it's likely source.

Today, (how nice!) the replacement arrived and was promptly soldered in place. To my delight, the overload light turned offf! I will have to take a closer look at it to check, if it truly is "like a bought one" now, but I'll sleep good tonight nonetheless

Over the PCB sits a small shield (look closely, it complains!) and a full size metal tray with two flat 12v lead acid batterys for floating use.

Edit: Now to check, if I can find all the case parts again   

[Zenith]

When daughter asks what I want her to do with my body after death, I tell her I'd be more than happy if she fed me to her dog. We are unconvinced we can find a way to make that legal

There must be a way to do it. Gunther von Hagens made a name for himself by turning corpses into art.

https://bodyworlds.com/plastination/gunther-von-hagens/

She could argue that the dog devouring your mortal remains was an installation.

[Cubdriver]

DEEP in the repair queue...

but it fits the page

-Pat

[factory]

No, no they are 3 Pin plugs, in Germany they're called "TF Stecker".

https://www.ebay.at/itm/Varianten-Siemens-Halske-TF-Stecker-3-Pol-DIN-41268-9REL-kli-6-V01-SuH-TF/303134412781

I think TF is derived from "Trägerfrequenz", carrier frequency in english. They were (maybe still are?) extensively used in POTS applications.

That is a nice one: TF-to-BNC connector:
https://www.ebay.de/itm/234337742989

That's horrible.



David

[mnementh]

Ah, but I passed the test for thinking critically.

Yes, but you aren't Turing-complete unless you're at least half-drunk. 

mnem
I, OTOH, need to be considerably more inebriated...

[factory]

Random question. Does anyone know what these HP trimmers are? I know they are made by CTS that is all.

Some of the ones in this HP427A are rusty so I’m intending replacing them with something a little more modern. Plan is to find the data sheet and make a mini adapter PCB for a modern Bourns trimmer.

Edit: after much googling I found a datasheet eventually (attached)

The datasheet is saying something about "RoHS compliant". Are those trimpots in your 427A that young?

I think they just got lucky with whatever they made them out of 

They are pre 1970 

Probably wouldn't have rusted if they were plated with a tin/lead mix. 

David

[mnementh]

No, no they are 3 Pin plugs, in Germany they're called "TF Stecker".

https://www.ebay.at/itm/Varianten-Siemens-Halske-TF-Stecker-3-Pol-DIN-41268-9REL-kli-6-V01-SuH-TF/303134412781

I think TF is derived from "Trägerfrequenz", carrier frequency in english. They were (maybe still are?) extensively used in POTS applications.

That is a nice one: TF-to-BNC connector:      https://www.ebay.de/itm/234337742989

That's horrible.    

David

Meh... add a little 3DP, you can sell it to AudioPhools for gigabux.

mnem
or glue it to a pile of gears and call it SteamPunk...   

[BU508A]

Q: what's 2+2?
Politician: 10 or 1, depending on what I want you to hear.
Poor accountant: 3.99999999
Average accountant: 4
Good accountant: "what do you want it to be?"

So... Pick a number. Any number[1]

[1] for number = 5, 10, 20, 50

Two plus two is five for large values of two.
Everybody knows that.
 

[BU508A]

No, no they are 3 Pin plugs, in Germany they're called "TF Stecker".

https://www.ebay.at/itm/Varianten-Siemens-Halske-TF-Stecker-3-Pol-DIN-41268-9REL-kli-6-V01-SuH-TF/303134412781

I think TF is derived from "Trägerfrequenz", carrier frequency in english. They were (maybe still are?) extensively used in POTS applications.

That is a nice one: TF-to-BNC connector:
https://www.ebay.de/itm/234337742989

That's horrible.



David

Those who find irony or sarcasm may keep it.   

[factory]

OK who deleted a post?



Edit: I agree it, makes no sense whatsoever.  Screenshot from preloaded pages I read offline at work.



David

[mansaxel]

If you want to assemble something by yourself, those Stäubli (MultiContact) 4mm banana plugs may be useful:

Yes, the idea has occurred to me. Thanks for pointing out a quality alternative!

[bd139]

Fairly large Marconi 2022E update here: https://www.eevblog.com/forum/testgear/marconi-2022e-repair-and-refurb/msg4326460/#msg4326460

[mansaxel]

Much prefer trying to get Ethernet to work though, sounds a lot cooler to me    Plus, I need to figure this stuff out anyway, once I get to buy a second PC to computerize the lab. I will want both computers to access the internet, and be able to share files and resources.

The easiest way is to get a network card with DOS drivers and install it. Then you can set up a FTP server on your Real Computer and install a TCP/IP suite on the DOS machine; those tend to include a FTP client, which is just fine on a LAN like so. Not anywhere else.

This is untested by me, but looks the part, at a very quick glance: mTCP is a set of TCP/IP applications for personal computers running PC-DOS, MS-DOS, FreeDOS, and other flavors of DOS

The DSL modem / broadband gw thingy usually does DHCP, so that needs to be accomodated on the client, unless you want to play rogue.

[Vince]

Wow that's for really ancient computers.... says it runs on MS-DOS2 2.x 

Even my Bull Micral 30, mt first computer 30 years ago, with no HDD and a couple 5 1/4" drives was running IIRC, DOS 3.3.

Nope, my GPIB computer is much more recent that this.... Pentium running Win95. So hopefully Win95 will be able to do most of the network stuff on its own, out of the box, and for the stuff it can't do, hopefully there is somewhere some Win95 based, user friendly, easy to use/configure program....

[factory]

They aren't completely useless, I've bought a couple over the years to provide the HP logo, feet and the plastic meter case parts for repairing other HP TE, eg 3400A. I'm sure I've used other bits but can't remember.

The sensors are usually missing because the last user fooked them, they are very easy to ruin.

Trouble is most of the the 435A/Bs listed at the moment, are too expensive to consider as part donors.

David

The HP432A cost a tenner. I didn't know anything about them - but for a tenner. It would be interesting to find out about. There was a meter movement which might do for one of the 3400As if their meter failed (I think HP used the same 1mA movement in lots of things), screws, there might be other interesting bits.

I had a girlfriend who used to go shopping with her friends and if she hadn't bought anything she felt guilty, so she'd buy a packet of chewing gum or something very cheap, to satisfy the urge. I laughed.

I was at a rally and I hadn't bought anything, so I came away with the HP432A. Maybe I shouldn't have laughed at her.

£10 to £15, unless they came with the sensors, and then you couldn't be sure they were any good.

No the meter parts I meant were the plastic casing, zero adjustor & glass (not the movement), I've had a few delivery victims that got smashed, or were missing parts, the 3400A was just an example of one I used the parts for. The movements in those are individually calibrated to the scale plate, need to carefully clean or mend the flaking scale and scan it at high resolution while it's out.


Meters with a logarithmic meter movement use different case parts & have no mechanical zero adjustment, eg this option H57 3400A, which was one of the worst victims of shit packing by the seller, the 435A/B would be an unsuitable donor in this case.


Forgot to mention you can salvage the power reference from the 435 too. Oh and it's difficult to find these meters for under £20 on ePay, maybe better luck at a Ham sale, but it's rare to find HP stuff at my local ones.

David

[Vince]

OK who deleted a post?

David

Bastards !! 

[mansaxel]

DEEP in the repair queue...

but it fits the page

-Pat

I especially like the "/div" Sharpie note!  Some more pages before my 5440 is due. Also in the repair queue.

[pcprogrammer]

When daughter asks what I want her to do with my body after death, I tell her I'd be more than happy if she fed me to her dog. We are unconvinced we can find a way to make that legal

I always tell the wife that the waste bin is good enough for me. No need to waste money on it.

[bd139]

Wow that's for really ancient computers.... says it runs on MS-DOS2 2.x 

Even my Bull Micral 30, mt first computer 30 years ago, with no HDD and a couple 5 1/4" drives was running IIRC, DOS 3.3.

Nope, my GPIB computer is much more recent that this.... Pentium running Win95. So hopefully Win95 will be able to do most of the network stuff on its own, out of the box, and for the stuff it can't do, hopefully there is somewhere some Win95 based, user friendly, easy to use/configure program....

I want one of these interfaces:

http://chrisacorns.computinghistory.org.uk/8bit_Upgrades/Acorn_ANK01_IEEE488IF.html

And then stick one of these in as the host processor:

https://github.com/hoglet67/PiTubeDirect/wiki

That gives me a 274MHz 6502 programmable GPIB host 

With respect to practicality I’ve designed on paper an 8085 based lab computer based on my old Z80 design and the Intel SDK-85. I’ll probably never get around to building it.

[pcprogrammer]

OK who deleted a post?

David

Bastards !! 

Wasn't me, but that is what you get: "play with the bull, you get the horns"

[med6753]

The trimming and joinery for the additional TE equipment display cabinet shelf is done. Coat of stain applied and drying. After that 2 coats of poly then install.