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Vintage Test Gear and Workshop Equipment For discussions about vintage test gear and workshop equipment such as coil winders. |
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31st Dec 2021, 3:43 pm | #1 |
Heptode
Join Date: Feb 2021
Location: Edinburgh, Scotland, UK.
Posts: 528
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Vintage Digital
Came across this video
https://youtu.be/jgS_UhDCn1s Most interesting, I didn't know that you could purchase digital test gear in this era (1957). |
31st Dec 2021, 4:01 pm | #2 |
Octode
Join Date: Jul 2009
Location: Cheshire, UK.
Posts: 1,740
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Re: Vintage Digital
The 524A dates back a bit further to 1952; https://www.hpmemoryproject.org/wa_p..._a_page_11.htm
Mil version of the 524B here; https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3ka1wwvex5o Presumably prices will go up now Carlson has done a video, not that any of them are easy to find over here. David Last edited by factory; 31st Dec 2021 at 4:30 pm. |
31st Dec 2021, 7:10 pm | #3 |
Dekatron
Join Date: Aug 2016
Location: Colchester, Essex, UK.
Posts: 4,108
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Re: Vintage Digital
I chanced upon a website giving details of the history of digital displays, cannot find it now- (Fran Blanche probably mentioned it in one of her videos)
Quite apart from Nixie, Nimo, Numicator, Numitron, i saw a more mundane set-up in a US made valve voltmeter of this sort of vintage that employed 10 acid etched glass slides per digit, toplit by one of ten lamps- so a 5 digit display required 50 lamps. Dave |
31st Dec 2021, 7:24 pm | #4 |
Dekatron
Join Date: Jun 2015
Location: Biggin Hill, London, UK.
Posts: 5,224
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Re: Vintage Digital
Those '10 slides with etched numbers and a lamp for each' made it into the transistor and IC era, albeit with perspex-like plastic slides. Normally there were 5 bulbs at the top of the unit and 5 at the bottom to save space.
There are a couple in my Trend test set 1/4 (DTL logic chips) and by chance I bought a little Racal 4-digit frequency counter last week (discrete transistors) with them. The previous model of said instrument (I have one with more digits) had a column of 10 bulbs behind a panel with numeral-shaped cutouts for each digit. There was also a thing with 10 bulbs at the back, each with its own digit-shaped mask and projection lens and a ground glass screen at the front that the digits were projected onto. I think I have ome somewhere but just the display unit, not a complete measuring instrument that uses it. |
31st Dec 2021, 7:52 pm | #5 |
Dekatron
Join Date: Aug 2016
Location: Colchester, Essex, UK.
Posts: 4,108
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Re: Vintage Digital
Yes Tony, i have 3 miniature examples of the projector displays in your last para.- usually called 'In Line Displays' by Counting Instruments Ltd. Superb miniaturisation, they remind me of microfiche and also the little victorian microphotograph viewers.
https://www.vintage-radio.net/forum/...ad.php?t=75707 (Mine are a lot smaller than those featured- two of them amount to the size of a tictac box.) Dave |
31st Dec 2021, 9:20 pm | #6 | |
Octode
Join Date: Jul 2009
Location: Cheshire, UK.
Posts: 1,740
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Re: Vintage Digital
Quote:
https://www.industrialalchemy.org/tubelist.php http://www.decadecounter.com/vta/tubelist.php The top-lit/edge-lit displays were used in British test equipment too, there are even some in a vintage BBC outside broadcast vehicle with custom plates. David |
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1st Jan 2022, 5:13 pm | #7 |
Dekatron
Join Date: Aug 2016
Location: Colchester, Essex, UK.
Posts: 4,108
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Re: Vintage Digital
Aha, found it again by chance, the YT algorithm threw up one of his videos- (mike's electric stuff) electricstuff.co.uk
Dave |
1st Jan 2022, 5:49 pm | #8 |
Octode
Join Date: Nov 2003
Location: Bath, Somerset, UK.
Posts: 1,806
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Re: Vintage Digital
I can remember using very similar counters to this in the 80s and 90s made by RACAL in the 60s. Although fully transistorised, the same decade lamp strips were used. As for the engraved glass plate decade displays, I remember in the mid 80s installing a Solartron HS7-3D analog computer circa 1968 which had an array of those for the readout.
Neil
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1st Jan 2022, 11:41 pm | #9 |
Nonode
Join Date: Dec 2012
Location: Kirk Michael, Isle of Man
Posts: 2,350
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Re: Vintage Digital
If i remember correctly, the Racal counters you are probably referring to used capless lamps, NOT neons. Same layout, 10 lamps in each vertical array.
Les. Les. |
2nd Jan 2022, 10:29 am | #10 |
Hexode
Join Date: Apr 2017
Location: Buderim, Queensland, Australia.
Posts: 428
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Re: Vintage Digital
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2nd Jan 2022, 8:15 pm | #11 |
Heptode
Join Date: Jun 2009
Location: St Helens, Lancashire, UK.
Posts: 641
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Re: Vintage Digital
I have a copy of a Racal catalogue from 1961, which shows many different digital counters, such as mentioned above.
Including SA505 which was 10MHz direct reading using "in-line projection displays", mechanical printers at up to 60 measurements (Prints) per minuit, converters to use with calculating machines, as well as inline digital readouts. Also very interesting is a very early A/D converter, that converted any counter into a Digital DC voltmeter. Catalogue also includes some good descriptions on how these instruments worked. Catalogue is marked from www.electrojumble.org.uk http://www.electrojumble.org.uk/DATA..._Inst_1961.pdf
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4th Jan 2022, 10:15 am | #12 |
Pentode
Join Date: Dec 2005
Location: Denton, Manchester, UK.
Posts: 188
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Re: Vintage Digital
I have a Racal version of this HP, full of twin triodes, virtually same display,size & layout.
I think it predates the HP by about 5 years. I don't know if it still works, it was ok about 30 years ago! |
4th Jan 2022, 8:10 pm | #13 |
Octode
Join Date: Jul 2009
Location: Cheshire, UK.
Posts: 1,740
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Re: Vintage Digital
The HP 524A is featured in the Jan 1951 Journal https://www.hpl.hp.com/hpjournal/pdf...Fs/1951-01.pdf
And the HP 522B counter is in the Nov 1952 Journal https://worldradiohistory.com/Archiv...PJ-1952-11.pdf The Racal one must be pretty hard to find too. Try not to mention what it contains, last thing we need is more counters being pillaged for the parts. The oldest Racal counter I have is the transistorized SA505A, it's not in the best of condition, but I hope to repair it one day. David |
9th Jan 2022, 12:37 pm | #14 |
Heptode
Join Date: Jul 2010
Location: Wellington, New Zealand.
Posts: 653
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Re: Vintage Digital
I love the older digital meters with nixie and similar displays and have several. At the time whne still a child (60's) it seemed so utterly furturistic - remember seeing the sinclair black watch kit with it's red led display ads in Pratcial Eletronics and really wanting one. I later heard it was real fun to actually fit the guts into the case!!
I quite enjoy Mr Carlsion's lab - can appreciate it must be annoying when everybody who has something he talks about then thinks it must be valuable, but this happens in all sorts of areas - I've seen someone recently try to get $150 for a Heathkit transistor tester which was just a bastic passive one - mine cost me just $10 but did not have the case!! As for anyone wanting a 12AU7 or 12AX7 valve - well they are now the target of Guitar valve amplifier enthusiasts questing after 'tone' and only available for silly prices. Of course there are also the dreaded 'tone-sucking capacitors' in modern electric guitars only to be remedied with $80 Russian oil-filled paper capacitor replacements - LOL. |
10th Jan 2022, 1:57 am | #15 | |
Nonode
Join Date: Aug 2007
Location: Walsall Wood, Aldridge, Walsall, UK.
Posts: 2,874
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Re: Vintage Digital
Hi!
Quote:
Chris Williams
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10th Jan 2022, 6:44 am | #16 |
Tetrode
Join Date: Aug 2021
Location: Virginia Beach, Virginia, USA
Posts: 79
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Re: Vintage Digital
I had one of these many years ago Dave, made by a company called Cubic (I don't remember the model number). It was a true boat anchor, about a foot tall, the width of a rack, and very heavy. The display and autoranging were done using Ledex solenoids to ratchet several rotary switches into position. It made quite a racket, but was pretty fascinating to see it in operation. I wish I still had it, but at the time I had to let it go for lack of space.
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10th Jan 2022, 10:34 am | #17 |
Octode
Join Date: May 2009
Location: Linkoping, Sweden
Posts: 1,465
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Re: Vintage Digital
@markfff: Thanks for mentioning the Cubic model, I Googled some and found an instruction manual with circuit diagram here: http://www.dvq.com/docs/cubic-v45/cubic-v45-ocr.pdf (there is also a non-OCR version http://www.dvq.com/docs/cubic-v45/cubic-v45.pdf) and that helped me a lot since I have an earlier valve driven voltmeter model from Non-Linear Systems, the Model 64, which I haven't been able to find a circuit diagram nor an instruction manual for. I was sent an article describing the NLS Voltmeters that showed some of the design but the Cubic manual contained information on maintenance of the stepping relay switches which will be very helpful when getting my NLS up and running again. This video shows the selectors and display of an NLS voltmeter running: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OIATKbSkYxw
I also have other types with other displays and one type I like is the moving coil design Digivisor Mark II: http://www.electricstuff.co.uk/venner.html
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11th Jan 2022, 3:45 am | #18 | ||
Tetrode
Join Date: Aug 2021
Location: Virginia Beach, Virginia, USA
Posts: 79
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Re: Vintage Digital
Quote:
Quote:
Mark |
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11th Jan 2022, 1:25 pm | #19 |
Dekatron
Join Date: Jan 2012
Location: Brentwood, Essex, UK.
Posts: 5,349
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Re: Vintage Digital
We had one of those Racal glass slide counters in the lab at Plessey in the early 1970's. Large, easy to read digits.
I only encountered HP linear display instruments with displays as per the OP's video when they had a clearout of obsolete stuff that employees could buy: I think they were priced by weight at scrap metal prices! One of my colleagues bought several of them, which he promptly sold to a shop in Lisle Street, making enough to finance his next holiday in Spain. |
15th Jan 2022, 8:56 pm | #20 |
Octode
Join Date: Jul 2009
Location: Cheshire, UK.
Posts: 1,740
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Re: Vintage Digital
Advance had digital counter using analog panel meters scaled 0 to 9.
As did Venner. P.S. Pictures were saved from old auction listings, I don't have either of these. David |