Test Equipment Anonymous (TEA) group therapy thread

[mnementh]

...Maybe, I'll try my luck with some TTi bench power supplies, when I get my double unit, I don't really need it and 3 single TTi units do I 

   

In all seriousness, I consider this a bare minimum.

There are also 2 other PSUs in the drawer under that stack. 

mnem
*juicy*

[mnementh]

In other news... I think I'm coming down with a cold. Or whatever respiratory eeevil is making the rounds right now. 



mnem
maybe it's radon poisoning from all the time I've spent in the basement/dwagon-cave lately...

[Specmaster]

...Maybe, I'll try my luck with some TTi bench power supplies, when I get my double unit, I don't really need it and 3 single TTi units do I 

   

In all seriousness, I consider this a bare minimum.

There are also 2 other PSUs in the drawer under that stack. 

mnem
*juicy*

Well I currently have 4, and was planning on remaining at 4, I really think 4 is overkill for my kind of usage, most gear is going to be at best +15, -15, +5 and -5 and I can't remember the last time I needed more than 2 apart from when I needed 100V at more than 1A. Any time I need more than that would be for a sanity check on a meter, when in conjunction with my scope calibrator, I can muster upto 200V.

[med6753]

Well that was a pain in the ass. Not much clearance between the shield and the pot above it. But it's out. The other shield doesn't seem to be as tight so I should have more clearance. And here's where the cost cutting to meet a price point reveals itself. Look at those wafer decks. Totally black with corrosion. I'm surprised they worked at all. Hopefully the Deoxit D5 cleans them up. But I suspect the results may be temporary at best. We'll see.

In my haste to order the replacement capacitors I forgot to order sufficient to re-cap this board. I'll take my chances here. Those low value capacitors rarely puke their guts anyway.


 

[tggzzz]

For those that like making clocks nixies, there are some more up for sale
https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/165617170763
That seller sold another batch recently, if you want to get an idea of the selling price

Oh great I'd forgotten about that seller. I now have two other things on my bloody watch list 

I wondered about the chest of trannies and the electrometer, but decided I've (indirectly) got too many insurance hassles ATM. And I've got sufficient 60/40 solder.

[bd139]

Yeah I persuaded myself to skip the solder 

[Saskia]

well, if a turbine on a 30m mast came crashing into the neighbors there would certainly be some hubbub. Understandably.
Rooftop turbines are just a waste of money, and vibrations will ruin your roof, so that's a definite no go.

As for PV, the problem is that I am getting to old to crawl onto a roof and that I am not legally qualified to do the electrical work.
So I have to find a company which is willing to do both - over here in this area of the swamp you don't find contractors who just throw the panels onto the roof, or do the electrical work, or do battery installation. The contractors in this area want to provide a turn key installation (do it all or do nothing) and do not even answer the phone if you don't buy into that. So it's shell out or be naked.

[Zenith]

I suspect you already have enough things going on in your life which absorb your energies, most of which are fun. You really don't need to take on something else of dubious benefit, and with a host of potential problems.

[bd139]

You really don't need to take on something else of dubious benefit, and with a host of potential problems.

Hey stop insulting my oscilloscopes 

[mnementh]

...Maybe, I'll try my luck with some TTi bench power supplies, when I get my double unit, I don't really need it and 3 single TTi units do I 

   In all seriousness, I consider this a bare minimum.

There are also 2 other PSUs in the drawer under that stack. 

mnem
*juicy*

Well I currently have 4, and was planning on remaining at 4, I really think 4 is overkill for my kind of usage, most gear is going to be at best +15, -15, +5 and -5 and I can't remember the last time I needed more than 2 apart from when I needed 100V at more than 1A. Any time I need more than that would be for a sanity check on a meter, when in conjunction with my scope calibrator, I can muster upto 200V.

2 op-amps in two interconnected comms projects plus CPU/TTL supply is minimum 6 PSU channels. I've run up against that one enough times that I used to keep 4 of those commodity 3-ch adjustable PSUs handy in a drawer. Well, that and I picked 'em up cheap at a flea market.

mnem
 

[Saskia]

so true, except that most of the stuff is no fun at all ...

[mnementh]

You really don't need to take on something else of dubious benefit, and with a host of potential problems.

Hey stop insulting my oscilloscopes 

I thought he was talking aboot your dating history. 

mnem

*currently watching the property manager's handyman kill himself
trying to replace a bathroom faucet that just needed new cartridges*

[bd139]

You really don't need to take on something else of dubious benefit, and with a host of potential problems.

Hey stop insulting my oscilloscopes 

I thought he was talking aboot your dating history. 

Well that would be very accurate 

[Zenith]

You really don't need to take on something else of dubious benefit, and with a host of potential problems.

Hey stop insulting my oscilloscopes 

Yes but when it comes down to it you can sell the oscilloscopes for next to nothing, or give them away, or just take them to the dump - if you had to get rid of them quickly. How much did you pay for them in the first place? Knowing you a bit on here - not much.

A 15m wind turbine, with planning permission and maintenance, affecting property values, annoying neighbours, and a lot of money wrapped up in it, is a different scale of hassle and worries.

[mnementh]

...And here's where the cost cutting to meet a price point reveals itself. Look at those wafer decks. Totally black with corrosion. I'm surprised they worked at all. Hopefully the Deoxit D5 cleans them up. But I suspect the results may be temporary at best. We'll see.

Appears pretty normal for silver-plated bronze wafer switches of the era. The regions which actually wipe against each other generally keep themselves clean if the device is used regularly; not sure if that one is new enough that it has the silicone lube which tends to mediate the tarnish build-up.

On egregiously neglected examples, dismantling and dipping in Tarn-X makes 'em look like new again; but you'll want to wash with distilled water then alcohol before reassembling. Follow that with your favorite synthetic contact lube and she love you long time. 

mnem
 

[bd139]

You really don't need to take on something else of dubious benefit, and with a host of potential problems.

Hey stop insulting my oscilloscopes 

Yes but when it comes down to it you can sell the oscilloscopes for next to nothing, or give them away, or just take them to the dump - if you had to get rid of them quickly. How much did you pay for them in the first place? Knowing you a bit on here - not much.

A 15m wind turbine, with planning permission and maintenance, affecting property values, annoying neighbours, and a lot of money wrapped up in it, is a different scale of hassle and worries.

Fair point. TBH I usually buy for fuck all and sell for lots of money. I am of Ferengi heritage 

[Specmaster]

Yeah I persuaded myself to skip the solder 

I still about 10 rolls of it left, it'll see me off, thats for dammed sure.

[Specmaster]

well, if a turbine on a 30m mast came crashing into the neighbors there would certainly be some hubbub. Understandably.
Rooftop turbines are just a waste of money, and vibrations will ruin your roof, so that's a definite no go.

As for PV, the problem is that I am getting to old to crawl onto a roof and that I am not legally qualified to do the electrical work.
So I have to find a company which is willing to do both - over here in this area of the swamp you don't find contractors who just throw the panels onto the roof, or do the electrical work, or do battery installation. The contractors in this area want to provide a turn key installation (do it all or do nothing) and do not even answer the phone if you don't buy into that. So it's shell out or be naked.

I thought that ferengi women are meant to be naked  Oh I see you were talking about your roof being naked 

[med6753]

Both channel attenuator switch decks cleaned with Deoxit D5 followed up with Deoxit D100 which has some additional anti-corrosion properties plus some lube. Shields re-installed. Switch rods re-installed. Now ready for top board installation and then magic smoke test. Stay tuned.

[mnementh]

mnem
current mood: smurfy

[mnementh]

*currently watching the property manager's handyman kill himself
trying to replace a bathroom faucet that just needed new cartridges*

Fuck-a-doodle. The faucet he installed is some gewgaw "Arc Fashion" faucet that has a fixed spigot. The old one had a spigot that turns like a kitchen sink, so you could fill pitchers or a bucket for mopping. Waaaay useful.

And I specifically asked him to keep that feature when he shopped a new one. We waited a month and a half to get a perfectly serviceable faucet fixed; and got a downgrade instead.

fucking muppet.

mnem

[mnementh]

well, if a turbine on a 30m mast came crashing into the neighbors there would certainly be some hubbub. Understandably.
Rooftop turbines are just a waste of money, and vibrations will ruin your roof, so that's a definite no go.

As for PV, the problem is that I am getting to old to crawl onto a roof and that I am not legally qualified to do the electrical work.
So I have to find a company which is willing to do both - over here in this area of the swamp you don't find contractors who just throw the panels onto the roof, or do the electrical work, or do battery installation. The contractors in this area want to provide a turn key installation (do it all or do nothing) and do not even answer the phone if you don't buy into that. So it's shell out or be naked.

I thought that ferengi women are meant to be naked  Oh I see you were talking about your roof being naked 

Yeah... PV and the related storage is some pretty complex systems, and people are wanting/needing finished product with warranty. It's not reasonable to expect a contractor to warranty say a multi-panel install when they have no idea what charging/storage system is going to be connected to it. We're talking stuff that can melt down and start fires if not correctly matched.

I certainly wouldn't do just the panels, unless it was by the hour and no warranty, express or implied. And I had it in writing. And if I were in the biz, I wouldn't touch the kind of client that wants piecemeal with a barge-pole. Too much exposure for not enough money; both liability-wise and potential damage to the brand I'd worked hard to build.

Not only no, but hell no.

mnem
*not a muppet*

[Saskia]

problem there is that the turn key providers do not really like the panels I like (I do not want to go with the cheapest chinesium stuff), they do not offer microinverters, ...
I can see where they are coming from, but I would also like to see some options instead of: you can buy a multiple of x kWp. Take it or leave it.

[TERRA Operative]

Is the Digikey website not working right for anyone else?

Yesterday I couldn't use the parametric search, today I managed to add one part to my cart then I was bounced with an error, and now the login button goes straight to a 404 page...

[Zenith]

You really don't need to take on something else of dubious benefit, and with a host of potential problems.

Hey stop insulting my oscilloscopes 

Yes but when it comes down to it you can sell the oscilloscopes for next to nothing, or give them away, or just take them to the dump - if you had to get rid of them quickly. How much did you pay for them in the first place? Knowing you a bit on here - not much.

A 15m wind turbine, with planning permission and maintenance, affecting property values, annoying neighbours, and a lot of money wrapped up in it, is a different scale of hassle and worries.

Fair point. TBH I usually buy for fuck all and sell for lots of money. I am of Ferengi heritage 

What does your Ferengi heritage tell you about wind turbines?

Mine tells me they could be a good little earner; if you are already wealthy beyond the dreams of avarice and own more than a few thousand acres, if your hammerhead accountants and great white lawyers have been over the deal from top to bottom, and if your contract negotiation specialist is more or less happy - he's the kind of guy who leaves you counting your fingers when you shake hands, and you are relieved only the little finger has the tip off, then you look at your left hand, and the thumb and forefinger are gone.