[time-nuts] HP and other equipment failure

[DaveH]

That works out to $118,480 in 2012 dollarettes.

http://www.westegg.com/inflation/

Dave
 

> -----Original Message-----
> From: time-nuts-bounces at febo.com 
> [mailto:time-nuts-bounces at febo.com] On Behalf Of Mark C. Stephens
> Sent: Saturday, June 15, 2013 13:46
> To: Perry Sandeen; Discussion of precise time andfrequency measurement
> Subject: Re: [time-nuts] HP and other equipment failure
> 
> Hi Perry, I was browsing a 1988 HP catalogue tonight..
> The 8566B came in at a cool 62 thousand dollars new.
> Wow!
> 
> 
> -marki
> 
> -----Original Message-----
> From: time-nuts-bounces at febo.com 
> [mailto:time-nuts-bounces at febo.com] On Behalf Of Perry Sandeen
> Sent: Friday, 14 June 2013 2:48 PM
> To: time-nuts at febo.com
> Subject: [time-nuts] HP and other equipment failure
> 
> 
> 
> All,  
>  
> There has been an on and off discussion of equipment failure 
> so I’d thought I’d add my experience.
>  
> First I’ve been repairing HP equipment since 1976 before many 
> of you were born.
>  
> I now have over 16 pieces of HP test equipment and several 
> units now need repair.
>  
> In my experience, the vast amount of failures are 
> electrolytic caps with some aggravated by heat.
>  
> Someone floated the notion of not repairing HP equipment but 
> cannibalizing it for parts.
>  
> Please bear with me on my long story.
>  
> After WWII there were all sorts of surplus stores selling 
> everything in the mid-fifties.  I even remember an add in 
> popular Mechanics magazine for a Norden bombsite for $29.95.  
> Much of my allowance was spent on mysterious wonders like a 
> IFF receiver.  Hams reveled in B-29 prop pitch motors for 
> rotating beam antennas.  Since it was 28 volt stuff it was 
> far, far cheaper than commercial equivalents.
>  
> Then it all gradually disappeared.  Now people want $75 or 
> more for a cruddy
> ARC-5 receiver.
>  
>  Now this is
> how it applies to us today.
>  
> If one peruses the Ebay adds for HP test equipment one 
> frequently sees a statement like *removed from a place that 
> went out of
> business* or something similar.
>  
> True, the equipment we are buying is 20 years old or older.  
> But it is going away never to return.  I saw an old Ebay invoice from
> 12 years ago where I won a working HP 3586B for $50.  The 
> shipping cost me more!  Now a non-functional unit sells for $400.
>  
> These prices are only going to continue to rise as the supply 
> continues to diminish.
>  
> But this equipment is repairable unlike the questionable test 
> equipment from China.  Doing preventative maintenance on this 
> equipment is not optional if you want it to continue working. 
>  All electrolytic caps should be replaced, except for 
> tantalums.  That will be more on a case by case business.
>  
> This is equipment you can repair.  This is not very true for 
> the newer stuff.
>  
> On the HP 3586B for example, there are a dozen or so of TVA 
> atoms.  When I do mine I expect it will then lock below 500 
> KHz as it is specified.  The HP 5370B needs far more cooling 
> than provided.  I have even given thought to adding 
> additional resistances to the pass transistor collectors on 
> the outside by the heat sink.  I found on my two that the 
> mother board was scorched from overheating by rectifier 
> diodes.  This will have to wait until after we have moved.  I 
> will also add EFC to the 10811 oscillator.
> 
> (Why that feature was omitted can be answered by Ric).  
>  
> There are two long standing truths about electronic 
> equipment.  One you can’t have too much filter capacitance.  
> Two, you can’t cool too much.  (Please spare me the  liquid 
> nitrogen or submarine battery
> comments.)
>  
> Regards,
> 
> Perrier
> 
> 
> ________________________________
> _______________________________________________
> time-nuts mailing list -- time-nuts at febo.com To unsubscribe, 
> go to https://www.febo.com/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/time-nuts
> and follow the instructions there.
> _______________________________________________
> time-nuts mailing list -- time-nuts at febo.com
> To unsubscribe, go to 
> https://www.febo.com/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/time-nuts
> and follow the instructions there.