Author Topic: Vintage Tek Restoration pictures by Martin (Read 129171 times)

AlxDroidDev · « **Reply #150 on:** November 12, 2015, 05:44:24 am »

This is what I call "vintage porn"! I love seeing these equipaments being very well cared for. Thank you for sharing and congratulations on the great job.

DG5SAY · « **Reply #151 on:** November 12, 2015, 07:16:00 am »

Quote from: AF6LJ on November 11, 2015, 10:30:44 pm

Quote from: Radio Tech on November 11, 2015, 06:19:11 pm
Quote from: retrolefty on November 11, 2015, 06:05:17 pm
Quote
Dace needs to set up an amateur radio sub-forum here. This group has a lot of hams and is a more polite place than QRZ.

+1
WA6TKD

+2

+2

+1

tautech · « **Reply #152 on:** November 12, 2015, 07:21:57 am »

Quote from: DG5SAY on November 12, 2015, 07:16:00 am

Quote from: AF6LJ on November 11, 2015, 10:30:44 pm
Quote from: Radio Tech on November 11, 2015, 06:19:11 pm
Quote from: retrolefty on November 11, 2015, 06:05:17 pm
Quote
Dace needs to set up an amateur radio sub-forum here. This group has a lot of hams and is a more polite place than QRZ.

+1
WA6TKD

+2

+2

+1

Yep. we knew this was a great thread months ago and linked to it in this sticky started by VK5RC:

https://www.eevblog.com/forum/repair/vintageclassic-renovation-techniques/

Martin.M · « **Reply #153 on:** November 14, 2015, 06:29:24 am »

About graticules on old Tek scopes.

There are 2 different styles:

1.) graticule field includet in the front of the CRT
2.) a plexi glas what have inside the graticules, in front of the CRT screen.

On some pictures here you have seen red colored graticule fields. This are scopes at 2.).
The graticueles glass have holes up an d down, you can`t see them bec. they are covered from the bezel front plate.
In upside are 2 bulbs what do the graticules illumination, the heads of them are exactly placed in this holes of the glas.
The graticules glas have that holes in upside, also in downside. The both holes in downside are inside painted transparent red ! So, when you turn the glas to have that holes upside, the old Tek will display a red graticules field, not turned a white

To order spare bulbs to repair a Classic Tek look for bayonette bulbs 6.3V 0,3A GE#47

greetings
Martin

Martin.M · « **Reply #154 on:** November 16, 2015, 05:36:02 pm »

Systron Donner 6053, a 3GHz Nixie Counter...

Restoration starts

tautech · « **Reply #155 on:** November 17, 2015, 05:40:13 am »

Quote from: Martin.M on November 16, 2015, 05:36:02 pm

Systron Donner 6053, a 3GHz Nixie Counter...

Restoration starts

Martin, there is a Nixie thread:
https://www.eevblog.com/forum/reviews/lets-see-your-nixie-tube-equipment/

VK5RC · « **Reply #156 on:** November 17, 2015, 07:39:05 am »

Ooooooh, I like the Nixie Freq Counter, robrenz has done some excellent aluminium frame restoration on an old HP if you haven't seen it before https://www.eevblog.com/forum/testgear/hp-3410a-ac-microvoltmeter-restoration/msg433969/#msg433969,
but you two guys are setting the high standard for Vintage repair!!

Martin.M · « **Reply #157 on:** March 25, 2016, 04:59:16 pm »

The next restoration will start: this is a Tek 181 Time Mark Generator.
It works with a crystal and 20 tubes.

greetings
Martin

Martin.M · « **Reply #158 on:** April 02, 2016, 10:19:20 am »

The restoration is done.
2 tubes and a electrolytic was changed to become a good working condition.

AF6LJ · « **Reply #159 on:** April 02, 2016, 02:42:36 pm »

Looks really good.

med6753 · « **Reply #160 on:** April 02, 2016, 04:26:01 pm »

Every time I look at this thread I start drooling because my mouth is wide open in amazement.

I love the smell of hot vacuum tubes in the morning.

Martin.M · « **Reply #161 on:** April 02, 2016, 05:21:30 pm »

thank you.

This very glowing apparatus is only 60 years old and works very accurate,
means that is good for along time again

Time Mark Generators have a crystal. In following are some stages of tube mono flop where the hold time is set to 9 clocks, so the output of each of them is always f/10.
They are very useful to calibrate Time Bases in analog test equipment, scopes.

greetings
Martin

med6753 · « **Reply #162 on:** April 02, 2016, 05:49:07 pm »

Quote from: Martin.M on April 02, 2016, 05:21:30 pm

thank you.

This very glowing apparatus is only 60 years old and works very accurate,
means that is good for along time again

Absolutely! I've used Type 535's, 545's, and 547's in a production test environments and those scopes had thousands of hours on them and still worked well. Anyone who says vacuum tubes are unreliable don't know vintage Tek. Once a year calibration check and they were good to go.

I did own a Type 561S (Special version of a 561A) but due to some unfortunate circumstances I no longer have it. One of these days I'm going to get myself another boat anchor. I even have a copy of Stan Griffiths book "Oscilloscopes - Selecting and Restoring a Classic".

Martin.M · « **Reply #163 on:** April 03, 2016, 07:42:00 pm »

I would like to have a 547.
This ist the Tek with the most plugs on the front

It have the internal wiring in the slot to feed spectrum analyzer plugins with the sawtooht. There is only 3 Tek what provide that:
the 549 storage, the 547 (may include the low cost 546) and the heavy 556 Dual Beam.
All others have to use a cable to feed the plugin external with the the sawtooth from the scope at the banana plug in front.
Also there is to select at the rear from the spec if the sawtooth is a 100V or a 150V amplitude. This is various by Type, 547, 549 and 556 deliver 100V, 551, 535 and a lot of others 150V.

greetings
Martin

Curtis · « **Reply #164 on:** April 20, 2016, 08:30:08 pm »

I have a around 1965 Tek 422 scope where channel two is not working. I read that the 8056 nuvistor was probably bad. I took the scope apart and it looks like the scope I have does not use a 8056 nuvistor tube, but a FET. Can anyone tell me what replacement FET number this would be, and if this could be the problem?

Martin.M · « **Reply #165 on:** April 26, 2016, 04:15:37 pm »

if your 422 is the newer version, serial No higher then 20.000 there is a Dual Fet , Tek part No 151-1011 to replace by a 2N3822

if your 422 is the older version, serial No < then 20.000 and the Nuvistor is replaced by a Fet use a MPF102 to repair the scope

Verify that the Fet is the problem by swapping with CH1

greetings
Martin

Martin.M · « **Reply #166 on:** April 26, 2016, 04:24:38 pm »

Quote from: med6753 on April 02, 2016, 04:26:01 pm

Every time I look at this thread I start drooling because my mouth is wide open in amazement.

I love the smell of hot vacuum tubes in the morning.

If you need smile again look at my website, in the little forum,
our friend from johannesburg made "a little walk in the garden" (with some very large scopes and scope mobiles... I think there is a 547, a549 and some others, see the picture)

greetings
Martin

fernando_roque · « **Reply #167 on:** May 19, 2016, 04:55:46 pm »

Good afternoon!
I have a Oscilloscope Tektronix type 454 but the high power transformer that have to deliver 12KV to the CRT no longer deliver that amount of voltage. I need another transformer for it! Can you help me in that? i don't know if you have one for it that you may sell to me or if you know someone that can help me in that. Its not an easy part to find.

I apreciate your help!
Best regards,
Fernando Roque,
radio amateur class 1 with call sign : CT7ABI
https://qrz.com/db/ct7abi

fernando_roque · « **Reply #168 on:** May 19, 2016, 05:08:51 pm »

Quote from: valvedoctor on January 18, 2015, 10:10:32 pm

Great work Martin, I have lots of vintage test gear but never found a classic 500 series scope. It's one of my wishes to find one.

Good afternoon!
I have a Oscilloscope Tektronix type 454 but the high voltage transformer that have to deliver 12KV to the CRT no longer deliver that amount of voltage. I need another transformer for it! Can you or someone here in the forum help me in that? i don't know if you have one for it that you may sell to me or if you know someone that can help me in that. Its not an easy part to find.

I apreciate your help!
Best regards,
Fernando Roque,
radio amateur class 1 with call sign : CT7ABI
https://qrz.com/db/ct7abi

Martin.M · « **Reply #169 on:** May 19, 2016, 06:40:52 pm »

hello Fernando,

please check first the C behind the HV rectifier if that is allready working ( a 500pF or like that, doorknob).
Sometimes they have a failed isolation and the HV goes down.
Also the rectifier self (is there soldet tube 5642?) is to check.

For spare part, I have send you a pm including the links.

greetings
Martin

fernando_roque · « **Reply #170 on:** May 19, 2016, 09:24:46 pm »

Thanks so much for your reply my friend and thanks for all that aloud my participation here in this forum.
I already mesure all the cap behind the transformer and also the diodes and it seems all ok. Diodes also maintain their polarity. I know that sometimes this does not mean anything. A caps can be all ok in measured capacitance but still a cap can be damaged. But until now nothing proof that i am wrong regardless to the transformer. I will talk with the people of that sites u sent me. Even if the problem is not from the transformer at least i will be with 2 transformers and then i will change all that caps behind the transformer just to be sure that all will be ok.
I will be in touch with you here in this site my friend and once more thanks for your help.
I will keep in touch,
Thanks and have a nice night,
Fernando Roque, class 1 radio amateur with call sign CT7ABI

Martin.M · « **Reply #171 on:** May 30, 2016, 07:01:34 pm »

The Makerfaire in Hannover, yesterday

greetings
Martin

alsetalokin4017 · « **Reply #172 on:** May 30, 2016, 07:52:31 pm »

I love my old Tek RM503 "precision low-frequency oscilloscope".

This scope has an interesting history. It was bought at a surplus auction from a NASA Ames laboratory 20 or so years ago. I cleaned and restored it internally and calibrated it, left it on overnight to "burn in" and in the morning found that it had failed, no trace and was blowing the mains fuse. I did a lot of troubleshooting over the next several years here and there, and eventually found that the CRT filament supply winding, which is raised to -2kV or so by the HV circuit, was shorting to the primary winding inside the big main power supply transformer. Obviously this wasn't going to be replaced... so what to do. I finally figured out that I could simply provide a separate transformer for the CRT filament circuit altogether. Once I figured out the fix, the hardest part was finding room inside the chassis for the new filament transformer. Now the scope works perfectly again. I love the blue persistent phosphor and the orange-red graticule.

I mostly use the scope in X-Y mode, although the timebase works perfectly. I really like the dual inputs (inverting and noninverting) to each amplifier and the symmetrical V and H amplifier construction. It also helps keep my room warm in winter !

med6753 · « **Reply #173 on:** May 31, 2016, 01:20:08 am »

Quote from: alsetalokin4017 on May 30, 2016, 07:52:31 pm

I love my old Tek RM503 "precision low-frequency oscilloscope".

This scope has an interesting history. It was bought at a surplus auction from a NASA Ames laboratory 20 or so years ago. I cleaned and restored it internally and calibrated it, left it on overnight to "burn in" and in the morning found that it had failed, no trace and was blowing the mains fuse. I did a lot of troubleshooting over the next several years here and there, and eventually found that the CRT filament supply winding, which is raised to -2kV or so by the HV circuit, was shorting to the primary winding inside the big main power supply transformer. Obviously this wasn't going to be replaced... so what to do. I finally figured out that I could simply provide a separate transformer for the CRT filament circuit altogether. Once I figured out the fix, the hardest part was finding room inside the chassis for the new filament transformer. Now the scope works perfectly again. I love the blue persistent phosphor and the orange-red graticule.

This is a fairly common fail in vintage 500 series scopes. I had it happen on a 561S scope and Martin has seen it too. It can be traced back to the design of the CRT circuit. The cathode in the CRT is sitting at about -2KV while the filament that heats the cathode is at 6.3VAC. And they are very close together within the CRT gun assembly. To prevent internal arcing the filament is raised to near cathode potential thru a resistor. So while the filament "sees" 6.3VAC the wiring, and the filament winding in the main power transformer, see nearly -2KV to chassis. Over time this may cause the power transformer to arc over internally. And as you discovered the best solution is mount a separate filament transformer within the chassis. But you have to make sure it has a high insulation resistance or it may arc over eventually too.

Martin.M · « **Reply #174 on:** June 04, 2016, 08:57:41 pm »

here is the english report from the last weekend

http://makezine.com/2016/06/01/hundreds-makers-hannover/

greetings
Martin


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Author Topic: Vintage Tek Restoration pictures by Martin (Read 129171 times)

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