Which precision parts? Resistors, caps or dowel pins?
For .1% resistors Digikey and Mouser have worked OK for me. For ultraprecision (.001%) there are a few sources but that's not a simple discussion.
For caps I usually fall back to eBay for a few parts and go to Relcap Reliable Capacitors for small production runs of film caps.
Often, 30+ years of collecting leftover parts means I have the part in a bin if I can find it.
Machined parts are a different thing. . .
However there is quite a distance between here in the SF Bay Area resources and where you are.
For .1% resistors Digikey and Mouser have worked OK for me. For ultraprecision (.001%) there are a few sources but that's not a simple discussion.
For caps I usually fall back to eBay for a few parts and go to Relcap Reliable Capacitors for small production runs of film caps.
Often, 30+ years of collecting leftover parts means I have the part in a bin if I can find it.
Machined parts are a different thing. . .
However there is quite a distance between here in the SF Bay Area resources and where you are.
If by precision you mean tighter tolerance Rs and Cs, many small vendors will select parts to a tighter tolerance,
and/or select matched pairs, for a very reasonable fee that is much cheaper than buying enough parts to do it
yourself (and worrying about the cal of your test equipment).
In fact for that reason, I would not try to do it yourself. You may very well not get those better precision parts
in a random buy, since they've often been preselected out for those who wanted them and paid for the service.
Instead you could get the famous "double-hump" distribution of parts.
and/or select matched pairs, for a very reasonable fee that is much cheaper than buying enough parts to do it
yourself (and worrying about the cal of your test equipment).
In fact for that reason, I would not try to do it yourself. You may very well not get those better precision parts
in a random buy, since they've often been preselected out for those who wanted them and paid for the service.
Instead you could get the famous "double-hump" distribution of parts.
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My first choice is Digi-Key. They've always been good to deal with, and they ship fast. Mouser is second, but Digi-Key, being in Minnesota, is closer, so they get my preference.
Newark is my least favorite on the grounds that they are the biggest PITA of any distributor I've used. They won't give a shipping estimate, for example, until after you place your order.
I usually buy most of my hardware from McMaster Carr or my local hardware store.
For esoteric things, Surplus Sales of Nebraska is worth taking a look at.
Newark is my least favorite on the grounds that they are the biggest PITA of any distributor I've used. They won't give a shipping estimate, for example, until after you place your order.
I usually buy most of my hardware from McMaster Carr or my local hardware store.
For esoteric things, Surplus Sales of Nebraska is worth taking a look at.
What I am actually looking for is a few stores so that I can compare prices.
For instance how does the price of 1% compare with .1%?
or how does teflon compare to film?
For instance how does the price of 1% compare with .1%?
or how does teflon compare to film?
Vendor prices won't vary much for the same part, and there won't be a consistently high or low price
vendor for parts in general. Choose the exact part you want, and then use Octopart for stock and pricing.
The best way to get better pricing for a particular part is to buy a larger quantity of that part.
A tolerance of 0.1% is seldom needed in practical circuits, but when it is you have to pay the price.
The selection of 1% parts for use as 0.1% parts does not address issues of short and long term stability,
which are much better in 0.1% parts than in 1% parts, as would have to be the case for the rated
tolerance to be meaningful.
Teflon dielectric is just one type of film capacitor. There are far too many types and mfrs of capacitors
for there to be any general pricing rule, even for just one value/voltage/tolerance and dv/dt rating.
vendor for parts in general. Choose the exact part you want, and then use Octopart for stock and pricing.
The best way to get better pricing for a particular part is to buy a larger quantity of that part.
A tolerance of 0.1% is seldom needed in practical circuits, but when it is you have to pay the price.
The selection of 1% parts for use as 0.1% parts does not address issues of short and long term stability,
which are much better in 0.1% parts than in 1% parts, as would have to be the case for the rated
tolerance to be meaningful.
Teflon dielectric is just one type of film capacitor. There are far too many types and mfrs of capacitors
for there to be any general pricing rule, even for just one value/voltage/tolerance and dv/dt rating.
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