A word of warning (especially if you have to pay taxes if you are not in the US) when buying electrolytic capacitors from DIGIKEY. I bought Nichicon capacitors with the date code B1311, this is March 2013, the capacitors are 8 years old now. After 3 years they start to deteriorate if they are not used. 8-year-old capacitors should be wasted and not sold as new.
I called DigiKey Europe's customer service and described the problem. I got the answer: why did you not ask what is the production date? What? Really? I should ask about the date of production of every electrolytic cap I am buying? This is very disappointing.
I called DigiKey Europe's customer service and described the problem. I got the answer: why did you not ask what is the production date? What? Really? I should ask about the date of production of every electrolytic cap I am buying? This is very disappointing.
I stock vintage NOS Philips from the 90s and this stuff measures fine if you use them for a while. Theres plenty of Rubbish to be bought. Nice stuff tends to last a long time.
Not an issue, they are not like a battery and do not deteriorate as you think.
I use capacitors made in my home town by Daly Condensers back in 1980. They are as good as they are straight out of the factory.
I would say there is no issue. They don't 'dry out' as they are sealed.
What's wrong with Farnell or Mouser or RS Components, they are UK based with EU stores?
I use capacitors made in my home town by Daly Condensers back in 1980. They are as good as they are straight out of the factory.
I would say there is no issue. They don't 'dry out' as they are sealed.
What's wrong with Farnell or Mouser or RS Components, they are UK based with EU stores?
Last edited:
well, according to Nichicon:
https://www.nichicon.co.jp/english/products/pdf/aluminum.pdf
the shelf life is 2 years
https://www.nichicon.co.jp/english/products/pdf/aluminum.pdf
the shelf life is 2 years
I read an article last year that stock rotates more slowly in companies such as DigiKey and Mouser. So you're not guaranteed fresh parts. The article indicated that distributors rotate stock more frequently since they may have military and critical customers that need components of recent manufacture. I'm no expert - it's just what I read in the article. YMMV.
Nothing is wrong with them. When I used to live in the UK I always got fresh electrolytic caps from Farnell (it was a great service - next day delivery), but together with mentioned caps I also bought other parts that were not available in my country.
BTW buying from the UK to the EU is now due to customs and taxes... 🙁
how about the ripple current at the nominal voltage, same as in the specs? 🙂 some might mention about the leakage current.
I have 1976 amp with original caps and it still working fine, but if you buy new caps that are 8 years old something is not right here...
of course i can't tell you exactly how big the leak is..but how much i tried to charge them - after a month or two they held a charging voltage (25V) well ... some were 20-17v ... of course there were some differences but nothing critical.
I bought some electrolytic capacitors from Radio Twenthe (a shop in the Hague) in 2013, and they were from 1969. I didn't check if they were in spec, but they certainly are still functional. Then again, it didn't surprise me that they were older than I was, as Radio Twenthe is an electronics parts shop that seems to be specialized in antique electronics.
Last edited:
I got LME 4986MAX from DK in December.
These still had the National Semiconductor logo.
When did TI buy NS? Where is my bottle of Gerontol Forte?
Gerhard
These still had the National Semiconductor logo.
When did TI buy NS? Where is my bottle of Gerontol Forte?
Gerhard
I also have boxes with PHILIPS and ROE 100uf ..47uf, 33uf NOS capacitors, but their practical application is not so common, at least for me ... so I haven't measured them
Ripson, as alerted, the manufacturer recommends reforming if they have been unused for at least 2 yrs. Just follow the instructions. If you are concerned then measure leakage current (as voltage across the recommended 1k resistor) and compare to spec sheet. Pretty simple, and yes caveat emptor about the purchaser needing to reform.
Some applications reform any cap be default, but not all applications have at least 1k of upstream resistance, nor do they apply rated dc voltage level.
Some applications reform any cap be default, but not all applications have at least 1k of upstream resistance, nor do they apply rated dc voltage level.
I here posted about getting 5+ year old Nichicon caps from Digikey a few years ago. It was only a few $ worth of caps, but I found it rather annoying. I contacted Digikey and they refunded me for the caps so I just ordered some from a different series. Generally I've found Digikey's customer service to be really good.
Electrolytics degrade at high temperatures, either ambient or due to ripple current heating.
Sitting in a warehouse box should do no harm so long as they still solder well
Sitting in a warehouse box should do no harm so long as they still solder well
