Black Gate Caps shock

[KBK]

Well..I want some nice black gate caps..and I don't really care for the political shenanigans of Memorex nature that are afoot right now.

So..I'd go and get some nice capacitors..and end up on the Homeland CSIS NSA FBI MI6 Watch list.

Clandestinely taken pictures of me gently but very firmly hugging boxes of capacitors popping out of some Iranian bazzar...with my boxes of 'stuff' and that strange gleeful religious look on my face. These photos on the desk of the regional agent. Hmmm. I wonder if they'd try and blackmail me with such photos or if I'd simply be found dead in a public park somewhere....

Do you know the name of the shop? It is still possible for Canadians to shop by mail, there, you know. I am really, really holding my tounge here. We all know why.

The insanity being belched these days is like a never ending tirade of fabricated filth.

[mehrdad]

I`m In Iran But Not Tehran.
Any Question?

[SY]

Ken, the political stuff is not necessary. There's a reason that we have forum rules against it.

[Lynn Olson]

Air-shipping the BG's, or taking them in personal luggage, might be awkward in the current political climate, especially considering the city of origin. No matter who you are, I think you'd run a chance of ending up in a database somewhere, or worse, on a no-fly list.

When I was returning from the European Triode Festival in 2004, the inspectors at the Munich airport didn't like the looks of the tube amp on the X-ray machine. I don't think the blocky-looking transformers bothered them much, but they clearly didn't like the looks of the GE motor-run capacitors - cylindrical objects with wires coming out and filled with something mysterious. I can't say I blamed them, either.

This was Gary Pimm's amp, but before things got out of hand, I quickly spoke up and said "Guitar Amp!". Ah, tensions relieved, mystery solved. The inspectors don't see many DIY tube amps, but guitar amps checked as luggage are a common sight. Plenty of rock bands on tour all the time.

There's basically no difference between a guitar amp and what DIY'ers build, since fidelity isn't going to show up on an X-ray machine, and what the heck, both play music, right?

The color display on the X-ray machine was fascinating - the machine displayed different densities as different colors, and had enough punch to go right through transformers that were 3 inches of solid steel, while displaying at the same time, in different colors, materials as thin as plastic sheets. I'd never seen the inside of a transformer and a capacitor before - it was something to see.

I almost reached for my camera to snap a photo of the display, and stopped just in time - an airport security inspection with German guards carrying automatic weapons only a few meters away made me come to my senses. There's something about the sight of openly carried machine guns - that you know are loaded and ready for use - that makes you think and move a bit more carefully. No reason to cause an international incident just for a stupid photo.

The color view of transformers (you could even see the copper windings) and the caps was sure interesting, though.

[SY]

Is there train service from Tehran to other countries? Avoiding air until reaching someplace like Istanbul or Ankara might get one past the worst of the air security concerns.

Lynn, you're giving me second thoughts about hauling my amp to the UK DIY get-together.

[Lynn Olson]

Originally posted by SY
Is there train service from Tehran to other countries? Avoiding air until reaching someplace like Istanbul or Ankara might get one past the worst of the air security concerns.

Lynn, you're giving me second thoughts about hauling my amp to the UK DIY get-together.

Big capacitors do look scary on X-ray machines, no doubt about it. The combination of the shape, the wires, and the mystery goo (which even sloshes around on the GE motor-runs) has a way of getting attention. They look a lot like batteries, but without the central core. If I was an airport inspector - and I'd hope that all checked luggage is inspected by X-ray these days - those caps would probably rate a second look, or even a chat with the traveller. Not a good time to be a wise---.

I don't why I blurted out "Guitar Amps" to the X-ray technician, but the phrase just suddenly came to mind, along with the sudden memory of what happened in Munich during the 1972 Olympics. Most of the electronics these folks peer at are laptop computers, digicams, etc. Boomboxes are a particular focus, thanks to their decades-long track record - maybe even going back to 1972, for all I know.

When I was travelling in India in 1991, the Indian airport authorities confiscated all of the AAA, AA, C, and D batteries from both carry-on and checked luggage before they would let us board the plane. This happened at every airport in India, so OK, we just bought local batteries in every town, and threw them away at the hotel before departing for another city. It was annoying at the time, but I have a better understanding why they did this now.

Regardless of the current overheated political scene, this problem goes back to Munich and even earlier. It's not new, and poses a challenge for the airport inspectors. For the DIY community that wants to haul our weird-looking electronics across international borders, we might be ahead of the game to do what businesses do - use commercial air-freight carriers, just like they do. UPS, FedEx, the freight depot of the airline, etc.

In terms of the description that I tell the shipping people, I tell them what they're receiving are "electronics prototypes", which is true. They are one-of-a-kind electronics constructions that could be a forerunner of a commercial product. I'm not trying to be cute or clever, but closest to what the business world does on a routine basis. The system is set up to handle this.

[SY]

What's the best way to do this without running into Customs issues (I don't want to import it, just bring it it and take it out) or paying breath-taking costs and unexpected clearance fees? Any experiences welcomed. My own with UPS are strongly negative; ask EC8010 about that little extortion racket.

Sorry for going OT, I could split this out into a separate thread if there's any discussion.

[Lynn Olson]

I label all DIY stuff "Prototype - Sale or Transfer is Forbidden, Property of XYZ Corp (for example, SY Precision Audio)". I mean it, too. Hands off, this my intellectual and physical property, and it is NOT for sale.

This means what it says to the customs people - the item remains in your physical custody the whole time you travel, which you darn well intend to do anyway. You can insure against loss (and I would, using a rider on your household insurance), it'll cost a lot to replace, in parts, labor, and R&D time.

The customs people make a label, or document, and that is returned when you return to your country of origin. It's not that different than declaring an expensive camcorder or laptop - you take it out, and you return with the same item. Since DIY stuff is big, awkward, and not a good candidate for checked luggage, commercial airfreight is the alternative.

[XEAGLEKEEPER]

So, any of you ever in Tehran, the shop is on Jomhuri St, near the Hafez

Very unlikely...