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Old occiloscope, should I give it a try?

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Triode

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Someone at my school is offering to sell me an old occiloscope that just quit giving a verticle readout for $15. It turns on, but the line stays flat. I don't have a scope, so it would be nice to have one. This is a model from the 60's, its very sturdy looking. Its an EICO, I dont know the model but I could find out. So what are the chances this is fixable, I know some stuff isn't worth trying to fix, but I'm not familiar with scopes enough to decide. I figure that if I cant get it working I would get a nice case with a lot of pots and knobs and some other stuff. Anyway, the central question is, does this sound like something a person who can solder and build basic stuff like amplifiers, but is not a technician, could repair?
 
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yeah, that probably is the practical thing to do, since I don't have a lot of room. And advice as to which PC occiloscopes are a good deal?
 
I would say that IF and ONLY IF you can find a service / tech manual on the net, should you get this scope and try to repair. Without the SM there is essentially no chance in the world of fixing the scope.

However, WITH the SM, it shouldn't be too hard to troubleshoot and fix it ASSUMING the broken components can be replaced (with older units, transistors may be obsolete but replaceable or just plain unobtanium ; resistors and caps should be easy)

If you do get it, post again to this thread and I will try to help you troubleshoot if you want... unless this is tube based. :D

Michael
 
I've got a 60's era EICO 460 and I know I have the service manual somewhere. The thing works (in a broad sense) but desperately needs recapping and new tubes (no transistors here; it's tubes all the way).

Anyway, there are many EICO service manuals online if you Google for them. All the ones I've found are available for free download.


Regards,

Torben
 
Vacuum tube equipment and amps have become collectible items. Specially if those are brand names of the tube's golden era, which I believe EICO was one of them.

If you can fix it, you can always resell it. Depending on the condition, you could profit several times the cost of fixing it.
Could you post a picture??
 
It depends a little on your skills and what you intend to do with it .
When i was still studying i bought a old all tubes solartron scope and it been priceless for me ,it weighed a ton it was old and ugly but for me as student very usefull .
Scopes this old aint exactly usable for rocketscience but they can be very nice for the barn workshop .
First i would check if you can get the schema ,if you can get it i would consider if you have the capability to either fix it or take the tube and make your own .
Philips once had a scope as experimental kit (EE1007 & EE1008),in itself scopes aint that complex .
(as long as you aint expecting perfection upto 60 Mhz)
For 15 $ i would do it ,as long as i could check out the schema first to see what tube etc. is used .
Google a little to see if you can find the Philips instructions and make your own if its just for homeuse experiments .

Goodluck and be carefull with high voltages .
 
If the CRT is still bright I would buy it just for the experience of repairing it and such. Then when you want a good scope you know what to look for and appreciate it. I got a 100MHZ dual at a garage sale for $20 and it works great and about the only thing I use it for is video and audio.

As a CE for a small TV station we used an old tektronix (tuber) with a serial # below 250.
 
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Some EICO manuals for free download:
**broken link removed**
 
My primary O - scope is still a tube drive. It tops out at 500khz range wise but can still read the wave forms from of my 5 mhz signal generator well enough. (it gets pretty crunched though)

For $15 take it! I can spend that much buying food in town in one day!
 
I also had an EICO scope, but it was closer to 50's era. However, it was still in great functional condition, all 6 tubes worked great and only took a minute or so to warm up (hahah.) $15, though? I paid $11 for my mid 80's B+K 30MHz scope, so $15 for an ancient scope might be a bit much, especially when replacing tubes could get very costly.

Didn't think of the cost of it as a collector's item, though. Go for that, if you can. You could probably sell it in working condition and buy a decent 80's or 90's analog scope. :)
 
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Please do post pictures. Front, back, inside if possible.

As other posters have noted, we believe it is worthwhile for you to spend the 15 bucks, but of course a lot depends on the actual physical condition of the unit itself.
 
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