Many, many years ago I worked for Dymar - they made VHF radios for police, taxi, etc...
About once a week there was a group of women who did the coil winding run.
The machines were at the back of a large open plan dev and production area.
These were air cored inductors made with 20 or 18 swg tinned copper wire. Once they finished winding, they'd have to clip all the ends to the correct length. This resulted in everyone else getting pelted with bits of wire - they had good aim. You'd be fishing them out of your hair all day....
I build a lot of circuit boards and I found a good visual inspection before first power up is always worthwhile. I have found unsoldered joints and completely missing components on a few occasions. Doing this before first power on saves blowing up other components.
In the case of the Cushmans the whack was placed to apply maximum shock to the main chassis while inflicting zero damage to the outer skin or front panel. These things had 4 and 5 layer wafer switches behind those frequency knobs. Changing one of them was an all day job, but the cal lab had never heard of TV tuner cleaner, DeOxit, or tuner lube before I got there. I was previously a TV tech in Florida before everyone had air conditioning. Green tin connectors and switches were common. There was a card cage on the bottom with about a dozen plug in boards that used those 1960's vintage finger card edge connectors. All of this controlled a frequency synthesizer that went from about 20 MHz to 550 MHz in several discontinuous bands all built with discrete TTL logic chips. These were the sources of the intermittent operation.
During the ramp up in cell phone volume in the mid to late 1990's tantalum became in short supply and much of it was mined in conflict torn countries. We were tasked with evaluating various "non approved" vendor's parts to see if we could use them on a waiver. There were three large caps on the B+ line of a TDMA (pulsed at an 11 or 22 Hz rate) transmitter so these parts saw a constant charge / discharge cycle. We had to use 16 volt parts on a 7.2 volt phone. Many caps couldn't hack it especially on a hot phone with a weak battery. Let's just say that most testing was done with the boards aimed toward a certain unpopular manager's office......until a wayward flaming ember set the carpet on fire.
The HT-220 and almost all of the boards built at Motorola during the leaded parts days were palletized 1 to 4 up, hand stuffed, then ran over a wave solder machine, then passed over the "fly cutter."
This machine was caged for obvious reasons. The pallet with multiple boards entered and was locked in place, then a high speed router with a bit the resembled a bladed engine valve was passed over the board to cut all the leads. An inspection line followed this operation. Every once in a while a board would be placed incorrectly, or come loose. The "flying decapitator" would make a mess of the board, and sometimes the entire aluminum pallet. Sometimes it took an hour or more to untangle the mess.
We installed a stainless steel catch basket on input of the solder pump in the wave solder machine mainly to keep wayward parts from jamming the pump, but it caught quite a few parts that fell out of the boards. The quantity of the parts in the basket was always higher than those listed on the inspection / rework logs. Missing or mangled parts were a top contender in the "defects found" log when these boards got to the test station where I first started at Motorola.
By the 1980's much of Motorola's products were all SMD, or mixed, with mostly SMD, reducing many of the defects and time spent in defect tracking.....until someone mounted a wrong reel in the pick and place machine and built a few thousand wrong boards in one day.
A Tektronix triple output power supply that had been dropped.
I went little overboard in restoring it, replaced all the electrolytic caps,
Cleaned all the pots and switches, Re-soldering every connection in it,
Installed silver plated binding posts, and gave it a paint job.
It came out far nicer than expected and works great.
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I went little overboard in restoring it, replaced all the electrolytic caps,
Cleaned all the pots and switches, Re-soldering every connection in it,
Installed silver plated binding posts, and gave it a paint job.
It came out far nicer than expected and works great.
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A model railway train shuttle controller.
Relay clicked ever few seconds but no LED on.
Bad joint on one of the LED legs.
Easy fix.
I had another play up. It would power up click relay once then go dead.
I had missed out flywheel diode on relay and it was crashing the processor.
New USB scope design wouldnt log on PC for USB functions.
I hadn't connected USB_BUS_SENSE signal to VCC through a resistor to show bus was powered.
Relay clicked ever few seconds but no LED on.
Bad joint on one of the LED legs.
Easy fix.
I had another play up. It would power up click relay once then go dead.
I had missed out flywheel diode on relay and it was crashing the processor.
New USB scope design wouldnt log on PC for USB functions.
I hadn't connected USB_BUS_SENSE signal to VCC through a resistor to show bus was powered.
I remember the fun days of the mid 1980's when we I worked for a Prestel company. We made Prestel adaptors and modems.
They took on kids just out of school to stuff pcb's.
I was working in test then and we got loads of errors coming through.
Components missing, wrong components, shorts , open joints etc etc
Just to add to the pleasures of the job the boss insisted on buying in cheapo pcb's. Quite a few batches had been under etched and there were loads of shorts on them ! Of course some of the shorts were under soldered in IC's !
So we had to remove them to fix the problem.
I am amazed they ever made any money.
After the first year in test I was moved into R&D so got away from a lot of it.
The test lads would sometimes bring one to me they couldn't fix.
I just completed repairing a mid-90's vintage Victorinox ladies' watch I picked up for $19 at an antique shop. The jeweler I took it to for a battery replacement said that it didn't work, but after I looked at it a second time I noticed that the battery retainer was missing. After a new battery and a little persuasion with a screwdriver, it now runs fine. My wife will enjoy it!
Zen and the Art of Percussive Maintenance
Funny, back in college I worked at a small AM station that sustained a lightning strike. One of the damaged-but-later-repaired items was the eight- or ten-channel RAMKO Research mixing console in the main studio. It was one of those deals with the capacitive "touch" sensors that were dodgy even when new, but almost totally worthless after being jolted. Only a sharp *smack* with just the right "english" would restore it to operation, and that was a fine line indeed; only the most skilled among us could get it to work without making the current record skip on the air.
So true!
Zen and the Art of Percussive Maintenance
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I've been monkeying with my toilet flush as well.
Over here we have a product called the Fluidmaster flush valve. Inexpensive and generally very reliable, but rather noisy. Last night I tried removing the top and flushing the lines as recommended, which I think may have reduced the noise level by approximately 1.5 dB. (I should've taken before & after measurements!) 🙄
Over here we have a product called the Fluidmaster flush valve. Inexpensive and generally very reliable, but rather noisy. Last night I tried removing the top and flushing the lines as recommended, which I think may have reduced the noise level by approximately 1.5 dB. (I should've taken before & after measurements!) 🙄
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I see the thread has gone down the toilet, so I'll add my own dump to the mix.....
Those new "efficient" toilets that use much less water - of course the advertising and mandated replacement all lead you to believe they're "better for the enviornment", right?
BS!
Think about this.....
Using a tiny bit of water, they leave the waste sitting in the pipe under your house, perhaps taking several flushes to actually reach the main sewer.
Yes, it's true.
A measily gallon of water won't remove your solid waste all the way out to the main.
But the advertising doesn't allow you to think of that.
So while that waste is sitting there, it sticks to the plumbing, eventually causing a clog or bottleneck, which over time grows - and then that fabulous "energy saving" causes your bank account to drop when you need to call a plumber out to clear the line.
Almost every homeowner I've met with those new toilets have had a plumber come out for the clogging, particularly if you've got older pipes like terra cotta or lead.
Funny, my old 1970's toilet uses plenty of water to flush that crap right out to the city's main, and I've never had a clog.
Those new "efficient" toilets that use much less water - of course the advertising and mandated replacement all lead you to believe they're "better for the enviornment", right?
BS!
Think about this.....
Using a tiny bit of water, they leave the waste sitting in the pipe under your house, perhaps taking several flushes to actually reach the main sewer.
Yes, it's true.
A measily gallon of water won't remove your solid waste all the way out to the main.
But the advertising doesn't allow you to think of that.
So while that waste is sitting there, it sticks to the plumbing, eventually causing a clog or bottleneck, which over time grows - and then that fabulous "energy saving" causes your bank account to drop when you need to call a plumber out to clear the line.
Almost every homeowner I've met with those new toilets have had a plumber come out for the clogging, particularly if you've got older pipes like terra cotta or lead.
Funny, my old 1970's toilet uses plenty of water to flush that crap right out to the city's main, and I've never had a clog.
Interesting line of discussion...
My wife had the bright idea to put bricks in the toilet tank as a way to conserve water. I'm unsure how many years these things were in there, but I began to notice this toilet becoming less and less effective in accomplishing what it's supposed to do. To the point where even a minor content simply doesnt go down, without help from additional water poured in on top of the flush. Fortunately, it hasnt plugged completely -
I took the bricks out and explained that the cumulative effect of saving all that water may ultimately turn into a freakin disaster for us! (thinking remove toilet from the floor to start) Hopefully, with a little luck, the situation will reverse itself in time - via continued use of the proper flush volumes.
So, yeah, my latest repair - pull 3 bricks outta the toilet tank!
My wife had the bright idea to put bricks in the toilet tank as a way to conserve water. I'm unsure how many years these things were in there, but I began to notice this toilet becoming less and less effective in accomplishing what it's supposed to do. To the point where even a minor content simply doesnt go down, without help from additional water poured in on top of the flush. Fortunately, it hasnt plugged completely -
I took the bricks out and explained that the cumulative effect of saving all that water may ultimately turn into a freakin disaster for us! (thinking remove toilet from the floor to start) Hopefully, with a little luck, the situation will reverse itself in time - via continued use of the proper flush volumes.
So, yeah, my latest repair - pull 3 bricks outta the toilet tank!
I'm not going to pollute this thread further discussing crap. Yesterday's experience reminds me of good old mud.....you know, the other brown substance. I spent much of yesterday crawling around in it trying to remove some rotten wood from my deck. I had to whack things from underneath to get some of the good wood off for reuse.....I even used a car jack for assistance.
This brings me to the third trip my jeans are about to make through that useless energy efficient washing machine, and I rinsed them out good before washing them the first time. The old top loading wall shaker would have cleaned them in one trip. Now, three trips VS one, which uses less water and electricity overall.
This brings me to the third trip my jeans are about to make through that useless energy efficient washing machine, and I rinsed them out good before washing them the first time. The old top loading wall shaker would have cleaned them in one trip. Now, three trips VS one, which uses less water and electricity overall.
Wow, just last month I finished building an entire deck on our house to replace one that was (to put it mildly) nothing more than termites holding hands. No mud was harmed during production, but there was a lot of entertaining neighbors via an extensive repertoire of ladder pirouettes, wild gesticulations, and colorful metaphors. But now it looks great, and I'm getting lots of compliments from the same neighbors who ask me how much I charge (they couldn't afford me).
Oddly enough I also replaced a toilet valve last weekend. There must be something in the water...
Oddly enough I also replaced a toilet valve last weekend. There must be something in the water...
What did I last repair.....
The deck was made with pressure treated deck boards....the joists that support those boards are not pressure treated and some have rotted. The more I take apart, the more rottenness I find. I am about at the point where I rip it all apart and start over. Yesterday I removed the last of the deck surface.....so I will investigate the cost of refacing it with that plastic stuff.
So much for my "forever" retirement home. Much of my winter will be devoted to rebuilding a deck in the cold instead of making warmth in the basement with tubes.
This house is 5 years old and already stuff is failing.....yes I have already replaced both toilet valves, a sump pump (fried motor), a garage door opener, and repainted two rooms due to stains bleeding through and fixed numerous little issues. I'm still chasing electrical gremlins in the basement where my lab is, but it's time to just run some new wire and be done with it.
The biggest problem that I see no easy solution to, is the fact that they NAILED the sheetrock to the studs, no drywall screws. Who does that......Amish carpenters that know how to handle a hammer, but not a screw gun. This house is in a valley, and on days like yesterday gets some strong winds and blowing rain that makes it shake, causing those nails to work their way out ripping through the paint.
The deck was made with pressure treated deck boards....the joists that support those boards are not pressure treated and some have rotted. The more I take apart, the more rottenness I find. I am about at the point where I rip it all apart and start over. Yesterday I removed the last of the deck surface.....so I will investigate the cost of refacing it with that plastic stuff.
So much for my "forever" retirement home. Much of my winter will be devoted to rebuilding a deck in the cold instead of making warmth in the basement with tubes.
This house is 5 years old and already stuff is failing.....yes I have already replaced both toilet valves, a sump pump (fried motor), a garage door opener, and repainted two rooms due to stains bleeding through and fixed numerous little issues. I'm still chasing electrical gremlins in the basement where my lab is, but it's time to just run some new wire and be done with it.
The biggest problem that I see no easy solution to, is the fact that they NAILED the sheetrock to the studs, no drywall screws. Who does that......Amish carpenters that know how to handle a hammer, but not a screw gun. This house is in a valley, and on days like yesterday gets some strong winds and blowing rain that makes it shake, causing those nails to work their way out ripping through the paint.
My old house that I lived in for a while and now we rent was built in the 70's was maddening: nailed drywall, nailed electrical boxes (@#$&), and aluminum wiring. The 2nd is the most annoying and the 3rd is worst long term because always fighting with insurance company.
Joe, the crap usually lies around any elbows/bends, and horizontal sections of drain pipe.
This is what I gathered from several of my neighbors when they had a plumber come out.
That small 1.6 gallons of flush water simply didn't do the job well to push it out fully to the main.
And then there's the "J" trap/vent out by the curb too, that crap can lay in and gather.
The last thing I repaired is a laptop which failed to properly install a video driver while Linux was booting. The failure happened when udev was initialising "/dev" with device nodes. For some reason, it was most probably crashing while attempting to detect the battery electronics. Removing the battery was the cure, but the symptom did not go away as soon as I removed the battery. I had to "dpkg-reconfigure linux-image-$(uname -r)" to remove all references to the battery in "/boot/initrd.img". After that, the issue was cured.
As the battery was practically dead, I degutted the battery module and its failing electronic brain, and used UHU glue to glue back the two halves of the compartment. I needed the compartment, as it is part of the laptop's bottom.
As the battery was practically dead, I degutted the battery module and its failing electronic brain, and used UHU glue to glue back the two halves of the compartment. I needed the compartment, as it is part of the laptop's bottom.
My laptop battery became a balloon. I replaced it for 30$.
I'm also glad I live on the 24th floor of a building... My toilet is also a food disposal... It uses less water, and it's weird in the sense that you can't flush it using a bucket of water, but it works fine otherwise 🙂
I'm also glad I live on the 24th floor of a building... My toilet is also a food disposal... It uses less water, and it's weird in the sense that you can't flush it using a bucket of water, but it works fine otherwise 🙂
The worst enemy of drains, is edible oil. I had two occasions of drain pipe blockage due to edible oil being converted into something much like grave wax. It is a wax like substance and it is very hard to penetrate. Fortunately, in both occasions, the blockage was within reach. The first time I had to call someone to unblock the drain and the second time I did the job using a product sold at supermarkets and several big kitchen pots of hot boiling water!
After these two occasions, I make a point to use kitchen towels to remove all oil from plates, saucepans and pots: the expense to unblock a drain blockage under my house would cost several thousand, as it would require the removal of tiles to access the drain pipes underneath. This extreme can be a reality if other less invasive and less expensive methods fail.
My advice is, treat kitchen edible oils and fats like the devil himself!
After these two occasions, I make a point to use kitchen towels to remove all oil from plates, saucepans and pots: the expense to unblock a drain blockage under my house would cost several thousand, as it would require the removal of tiles to access the drain pipes underneath. This extreme can be a reality if other less invasive and less expensive methods fail.
My advice is, treat kitchen edible oils and fats like the devil himself!
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