Curve tracer/ component tester sugestion's

[dr pepper]

I have generated text on composite video using a pic, but not a scope screen, shouldnt be that difficult, but you'll have to re-trace the scope to be able to get the shapes required.

 

[4pyros]

These are mainly for my railway layout, i have around 70 more to fit

Sounds like a big layout.

 

[large_ghostman]

Yeah we started to put it up in devon! It was given to me, its 32 feet long 17 feet wide, with over 100 point sets.

 

[4pyros]

WOW

 

[dr pepper]

Better buy a couple of rolls of bell wire then.

 

[large_ghostman]

Bell wire!!!! NO way!!! The whole thing is colour coded with cable from rapid, 11 colours, each relates to a certain section like points or power or lights etc. There is no Bell wire in my circuits!
well actually dad just pointed out that we are called Bell. so i guess its all Bell wire

 

[dr pepper]

Wot no bodges.
Must have cash to burn then.

 

[large_ghostman]

Wot no bodges.
Must have cash to burn then.

Dad drops me and the trailer at various recycle centers (dumps) for the day , Up here in Scotland the local one isnt very good! it is tiny compared to the one we had near us in Devon, and so far hasn't thrown up much to play with, except a petrol lawn mower (5hp). Waiting for dad to weld me up a bracket type thing to mount it, then i will have the wood pulpper. Dad made one in Devon for waste paper and sawdust, he made a press and that made burning blocks from the pulp, these i will sell , the masher bit is from a old wood chipper with old bench saw blades welded on.

 

[dr pepper]

If only I could have done stuff like that at your age!
I have made a press, couple of years back I made one for pressing hubs off land rover axles, and its been quite handy a few times since.
I said before and I'll say again get yer old man to teach you to weld, mig is the only way forget stick thats for ships.

 

[large_ghostman]

I have tried getting dad to teach me! The mig welder is in bits, I tried to tweak it so we only have sticks, but if i fix the mig, maybe i can have the transformer from the arc welder

 

[dr pepper]

There isnt a lot to a mig, unless its an inverter, so it shouldnt be that hard to put back together, start off with 0.8mm wire and thicker material - about 3mm.

I have an inverter set, but its not as good as my oxford transformer one.
I have used a stick welder as a power supply before, your dicing with magic smoke with one of those, and they are not that suitable for our projects as they usually have a magnetic shunt, when you turn the current down some of the magnetic field from the primary is shunted away from the secondary back to the primary via the shunt (its joined to the big knob on the front), essentially making the trans a current source high impedance supply, not great for electronicians, if you turn the current to max then its resembles more of a voltage source, but if something shorts kapow.
When I was stuck and wanted to weld something heavy I connected the stick welder (200A) to the mig welder via a fat russian rectifier diode to the mig as a power boost, and it worked well for a jury rig.

 

[large_ghostman]

There isnt a lot to a mig, unless its an inverter, so it shouldnt be that hard to put back together, start off with 0.8mm wire and thicker material - about 3mm.

I have an inverter set, but its not as good as my oxford transformer one.
I have used a stick welder as a power supply before, your dicing with magic smoke with one of those, and they are not that suitable for our projects as they usually have a magnetic shunt, when you turn the current down some of the magnetic field from the primary is shunted away from the secondary back to the primary via the shunt (its joined to the big knob on the front), essentially making the trans a current source high impedance supply, not great for electronicians, if you turn the current to max then its resembles more of a voltage source, but if something shorts kapow.

Would make a good pcb short finder or short buster , might be good for billy to add to his test equipment

 

[dr pepper]

Yep, wheres that short - fizzz, it was where that hole is in the bench.

 

[large_ghostman]

Yeah but you can guarantee no more solder whiskers . I wonder if it could make a safe Jacobs? Or rather a safer one, but then again it is DC?? Hmmm a buck boost probably better if i dont go thinking down that path

 

[4pyros]

You can also use it to test dead Christmas light strings.

 

[large_ghostman]

You can also use it to test dead Christmas light strings.

I make our lights with leds, so i hope your not suggesting, I make them to Chinese standards ,every led has a resistor that is hand picked for it and measured! NO led is run at more than 15 mA!
DEAD LIGHTS INDEED

 

[dr pepper]

Hand picked resistors, if they produced them like that they wouldnt be a quid each.

 

[large_ghostman]

Hand picked resistors, if they produced them like that they wouldnt be a quid each.

I measure all the resistors i use and any that are not within 2% i bin, unless they are 1% tolerance ones then obviously they have to be 1%!. I also try and measure the Vf of every led yes I am a bit OCD with this stuff

 

[dr pepper]

Being polite I wasnt gonna say that, but I have to agree.
If you were building a measuring instrument that would be fine.