A Fubsy Polymath subdomain

Test Equipment

Vacuum-tube testers, VTVMs, signal tracers, oscilloscopes — owned, in service, on the bench.

Deep-dive volumes arrive as instruments work their way through the queue.

Photo: IDS-2074E oscilloscope + signal generator on the bench by Mortymore · CC BY 2.0

Curve Tracers

Curve Tracers — Overview & Primer

Curve Tracers — Overview & Primer A curve tracer is a test instrument that sweeps voltage across a device under test while measuring the resulting current… · Reference · Active deep-dive target · Reference (spans the vacuum-tube era through modern DIY) · Deep dive · 5 vols Live

Heathkit IT-3121 Curve Tracer

Heathkit IT-3121 Curve Tracer The Heathkit IT-3121 (and its identical-but-for-color-and-price twin, the IT-1121) is Heathkit's late-1970s semiconducto… · Aspirational · Active deep-dive target · Vintage Heathkit (1970s — transistor / semiconductor curve tracer) · Deep dive · 4 vols Live

VBA Curve Tracer

VBA Curve Tracer The VBA Curve Tracer is Paul Versteeg's open DIY semiconductor / component curve tracer, documented on his blog at paulv… · Aspirational · Active deep-dive target · Modern DIY (2022 — Paul Versteeg "paulvee" open design) · Deep dive · 4 vols Live

eTracer

eTracer The eTracer is Ronald Dekker's earlier DIY tube curve tracer — the design that evolved into the uTracer3/6. It uses the … · Owned · Active deep-dive target · Modern DIY (2010s — original Dekker design; Dekker's later refinement is the uTracer6) · Deep dive coming Live

uTracer NXT

uTracer NXT The uTracer NXT is Ronald Dekker's next-generation DIY tube curve tracer — a modern redesign of the long-running uTracer… · On order · Active deep-dive target · Modern DIY (2020s — next-generation successor to the uTracer3+/uTracer6) · Deep dive · 5 vols Live

uTracer6

uTracer6 The uTracer6 is the current generation of Ronald Dekker's DIY tube curve tracer (the refined successor to the eTracer). … · Owned · Active deep-dive target · Modern DIY (2020s — current generation of Dekker's tracer; the '6' suffix denotes the latest revision with extended Vp envelope and faster sampling) · Deep dive coming Live

Function / signal generators

Gigatronics 6060A Signal Generator

Gigatronics 6060A Signal Generator The Gigatronics 6060A series (6061A / 6062A) is a pair of synthesized RF benchtop signal generators — full ATE-class iro… · Owned · bench-only · Vintage (Fluke 6060A-series design, early 1980s; Gigatronics rebadge ~1995; line discontinued 2013) · Deep dive · 3 vols Live

Multimeters

Simpson 260 Series 8

Simpson 260 Series 8 The Simpson 260 is the iconic American analog VOM — in continuous production from 1936 (the original 260) through the ea… · Owned · Active deep-dive target · Vintage VOM (Series 8 is the late-production revision of Simpson's 260 line — produced from the 1980s into the early 2000s; the 260 itself dates to 1936) · Deep dive coming Live

Power supplies

Heathkit IP-32 HV Power Supply

Heathkit IP-32 HV Power Supply The IP-32 is Heathkit's late-1960s regulated tube-circuit lab supply: simultaneous 0–400 V B+ (~100 mA), 6.3 V AC filame… · Owned · Active deep-dive target · Vintage Heathkit (~1968 — solid-state regulated HV bench supply, replaced the earlier IP-17) · Deep dive coming Live

Heathkit SP-2717A HVPS

Heathkit SP-2717A HVPS Heathkit SP-2717A is the higher-current sibling of the IP-32: same architecture (series-pass regulator, 0–400 V B+, AC f… · Owned · Active deep-dive target · Vintage Heathkit (~1970s — higher-current variant of the IP-32 family) · Deep dive coming Live

Signal tracers

PACO Z-80 Audio-RF Signal Tracer

PACO Z-80 Audio-RF Signal Tracer PACO's Z-80 is a classic audio + RF signal tracer for tube-era radio and TV servicing. Two probes — an RF/IF demodulator… · Owned · Active deep-dive target · Vintage (~1950s–60s — Precision Apparatus Co. / PACO branded signal tracer for radio/TV service) · Deep dive coming Live

Specialty test gear

Radio Shack 43-114 Telephone Tester

Radio Shack 43-114 Telephone Tester The Radio Shack 43-114 is a budget POTS line tester for 2-wire analog phone lines. Useful for: verifying tip/ring polari… · Owned · Active deep-dive target · Late vintage / consumer-tier (1980s–90s — POTS / 2-wire analog telephone line tester) · Deep dive coming Live

Tube testers

Heathkit TT-1 Tube Tester

Heathkit TT-1 Tube Tester The Heathkit TT-1 is Heathkit's flagship dynamic tube tester — a true mutual-conductance (Gm) tester rather than the sim… · Owned · Active deep-dive target · Vintage Heathkit (~1957–1965 — Heathkit's top-of-line mutual-conductance tube tester) · Deep dive coming Live

Supreme Instruments 385 Automatic Tester

Supreme Instruments 385 Automatic Tester The Supreme Instruments Model 385 Automatic is a 1930s-era emission tube tester from the Supreme Instruments Corp of Gre… · Owned · Active deep-dive target · Vintage (mid-1930s — pre-WWII tube tester, emission-style, with the famous Supreme 'Automatic' switch setup) · Deep dive coming Live

Variacs / autotransformers (bench infrastructure for tube and mains-powered work)

B&K 1653A Variac

B&K 1653A Variac The B&K 1653A is the bench Variac used to safely re-energize vintage tube gear after long storage. 0–150 Vac output at u… · Owned · Active deep-dive target · Modern (B&K's still-current 0–150 Vac, 2 A bench Variac with isolation transformer, GFCI, fused output, and analog metering) · Deep dive coming Live

Voltmeters

B&K Dynamic 375 VTVM

B&K Dynamic 375 VTVM B&K's 375 is part of the 'Dynamic' VTVM line that succeeded the earlier all-tube 177 / 277. It provides the ~10 MΩ DC in… · Owned · Active deep-dive target · Vintage (1960s–70s solid-state VTVM era — bridging from true tube VTVMs into early FET-input designs) · Deep dive coming Live

Radio City Products 665 VTVM

Radio City Products 665 VTVM The Radio City Products 665 is a mid-1940s combined vacuum-tube voltmeter, ohmmeter, capacity meter, and insulation test… · Owned · bench-only · Vintage (Radio City Products Co., New York; period-dated October 1944) · Deep dive · 3 vols Live

Simpson Model 311-2 VTVM

Simpson Model 311-2 VTVM Simpson's 311-2 is the bench VTVM counterpart to the B&K 375. Same role: ~11 MΩ DC input for tube-circuit measurements w… · Owned · Active deep-dive target · Vintage VTVM (1960s — late-production all-tube or hybrid VTVM) · Deep dive coming Live