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Resuscitating the Tripplet 630

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nuckolls.bob(at)aeroelect
Guest

Posted: Fri Aug 24, 2012 10:04 am Post subject: Resuscitating the Tripplet 630

After my reply on this thread, I was recalling some

 features of the 630 buried pretty deeply in the grey-matter.

 I dug mine out and pulled the case off.



 Replacing JUST the one battery is still a good idea but

 the cell is 'captured' into position in the battery box

 by the case. Proper retention of the battery depends on

 the HV battery being installed.



 Looking at this configuration sparked an idea that was

 easy to implement and worked around the fixture problem.



 I cut a couple 3/4" pieces of hobby shop brass with a 9/16" i.d. 19/32" o.d.



 [img]cid:.0[/img]



 

   Tape one piece to the (-) end of AA cell so that you have

   a recess about 1/8" deep. Tape the other piece to the (+)

   end looking for a recess about 1/2" deep. Make a conductive

   "plug" to drop into the (+) cavity. Here's a quick-n-dirty

   pair of nuts on a 10-32 screw and trimmed flush with a

   Dremel.



 [img]cid:.1[/img]



 Drop the "plug" into the (+) end and place it between

 the cell contacts of the 630



 [img]cid:.2[/img]



 This configuration captures the cell between the contacts even

 though the hv battery is not present.



 Also, I'm pleased to report that the single AA cell excites ALL

 resistance ranges EXCEPT the highest range. A little time

 on the lathe could produce adapters fitted more closely

 to the dimensions of the AA cell and the mating contacts

 on the 630. A pleasant distraction . . .



 Another approach would be to make a 'plug' from plastic or

 wood that emulates the shape of the 30v battery. You'd want

 holes in both ends to clear the 630's battery contacts. Then

 use the standard C-cell and exploit the original design

 goals for cell retention.



 Depending on how determined you are to get it all up and

 running, there is sufficient volume inside to house three 9v

 alkaline batteries. One where the 30v goes, two on each end

 of the battery box over the fuses. A bit of wire, some tack

 soldering and double-sided tape for battery retention

 could give you a 27v 'work-around' that should bring the

 x100K range back to life as well.



 Bit lots sells an alkaline 9v for $2 or less.



 Bottom line is that there may still be more years of useful

 utility left in your venerable ol' workhorse. Working the

 flight line at Boeing, the Simpson 260 was all the tool

 cribs stocked. We fixed a lot of airplanes with this genere'

 of measurement tools.



 

   Bob . . .

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raymondj(at)frontiernet.n
Guest

Posted: Fri Aug 24, 2012 7:52 pm Post subject: Resuscitating the Tripplet 630

Bob,



I replied to your 1st post before I read the 2nd.  I can get 10 

Panasonic 2450 lithium cells for $12 and I'll machine a little case to 

make them fit in the 30V position.  I think that should take care of it.



I don't know why, but I just like seeing the needle move. Much more 

satisfying then the LCD numbers.  Too many sci-fi movies when I was young.



do not archive



Thanks again.



Raymond Julian

Kettle River, MN.



"And you know that I could have me a million more friends,

and all I'd have to lose is my point of view." - John Prine



On 08/24/2012 01:02 PM, Robert L. Nuckolls, III wrote:

 	  Quote: 	
		   After my reply on this thread, I was recalling some

 features of the 630 buried pretty deeply in the grey-matter.

 I dug mine out and pulled the case off.



 Replacing JUST the one battery is still a good idea but

 the cell is 'captured' into position in the battery box

 by the case. Proper retention of the battery depends on

 the HV battery being installed.



 Looking at this configuration sparked an idea that was

 easy to implement and worked around the fixture problem.



 I cut a couple 3/4" pieces of hobby shop brass with a 9/16" i.d. 19/32" o.d.



 Emacs!

    Tape one piece to the (-) end of AA cell so that you have

    a recess about 1/8" deep. Tape the other piece to the (+)

    end looking for a recess about 1/2" deep. Make a conductive

    "plug" to drop into the (+) cavity. Here's a quick-n-dirty

    pair of nuts on a 10-32 screw and trimmed flush with a

    Dremel.



 Emacs!



 Drop the "plug" into the (+) end and place it between

 the cell contacts of the 630



 Emacs!



 This configuration captures the cell between the contacts even

 though the hv battery is not present.



 Also, I'm pleased to report that the single AA cell excites ALL

 resistance ranges EXCEPT the highest range. A little time

 on the lathe could produce adapters fitted more closely

 to the dimensions of the AA cell and the mating contacts

 on the 630. A pleasant distraction . . .



 Another approach would be to make a 'plug' from plastic or

 wood that emulates the shape of the 30v battery. You'd want

 holes in both ends to clear the 630's battery contacts. Then

 use the standard C-cell and exploit the original design

 goals for cell retention.



 Depending on how determined you are to get it all up and

 running, there is sufficient volume inside to house three 9v

 alkaline batteries. One where the 30v goes, two on each end

 of the battery box over the fuses. A bit of wire, some tack

 soldering and double-sided tape for battery retention

 could give you a 27v 'work-around' that should bring the

 x100K range back to life as well.



 Bit lots sells an alkaline 9v for $2 or less.



 Bottom line is that there may still be more years of useful

 utility left in your venerable ol' workhorse. Working the

 flight line at Boeing, the Simpson 260 was all the tool

 cribs stocked. We fixed a lot of airplanes with this genere'

 of measurement tools.



    Bob . . .

BobsV35B(at)aol.com
Guest

Posted: Sat Aug 25, 2012 4:51 am Post subject: Resuscitating the Tripplet 630

Good Morning Jeff,

  

 Just waxing nostalgic I guess. 

  

 I have a Simpson 260 in one of those beautiful sliding cover cases that I  just cannot let go.  I also have several Fluke 77s around.  However, the 260 has a place of honor on my work bench. It just LOOKS like  an instrument ought to look.

  

 Happy Skies. 

  

 Very Old Bob

  

 Do Not Archive

  

  In a message dated 8/24/2012 11:04:24 P.M. Central Daylight Time,  JLuckey(at)pacbell.net writes:

  	  Quote: 	
		        

When my dad passed    away last year I inherited a lot of old electrical equipment, including a    630.     

    

Finding that meter    while sorting thru his stuff brought back lots of memories of futzing w/    batteries, lamps & alligator clips as a kid â€“ funny what you    rememberâ€¦   

    

Using 3 9-volters to    replace the big battery is a great idea â€“ glad to hear that 27 volts is    enough.   

    

Lots of people,    especially younger ones, would just throw-away something like this but I find    it strangely satisfying to keep an older, good-quality instrument in service,    even if it requires a little engineering.  Is that due to age or    wisdom???   

    

Pardon the    philosophical observations,   

    

-Jeff   

             

	


 [quote][b]

nuckolls.bob(at)aeroelect
Guest

Posted: Sat Aug 25, 2012 6:41 am Post subject: Resuscitating the Tripplet 630

At 05:48 AM 8/25/2012, you wrote:

 	  Quote: 	
		  I'm gonna have to side with Eric on this one.  I think you guys are 

in a nostalgia induced somnambulism that results in tons of 

worthless cr*p laying around the house. By worthless, I mean things 

that you will never use again. You'll just walk by it and admire it 

occasionally as you worm your way through the make shift aisles to 

the kitchen for yet another Ruben sandwich. Some people call it hoarding.


	


    What's this about taking sides? If

    anything, this thread has been a cognizant

    observation of what these tools represent

    in utility, history, and teaching value.



    I don't think anyone has suggested that the

    260/630 genre' of tools is a substitute for

    modern digital instruments. At the same time,

    there are things an analog instrument will do

    for the observer that a digital instrument cannot.



    I still have a lot of vacuum tube era parts

    and tools. It is my plan to use them as teaching

    tools for my grandchildren . . . assuming they're

    interested. Building a vacuum tube receiver or

    transmitter requires some skill development in

    schematic reading, stripping wire, soldering,

    chassis layout, punching/drilling holes, winding

    coils (after we calculate how big they should

    be), measuring voltages and currents (yes, the

    630 will do nicely).



    Something a vacuum tube offers that a transistor

    can never offer is that you can take it apart.

    Hold, feel and see the pieces. Imagine the

    boiling of electrons off a hot cathode for

    launching toward plate. This, like the experiments

    of Hertz, Helmholtz, Faraday, Volta, Ampere, et. als.

    is hands-on, see-it, feel-it physics.



    At the other end of the spectrum, programming a

    micro-controller is a purely intellectual exercise

    that has nothing to do with electronics . . . but

    without it, you cannot exploit the value that

    electronics can deliver. They are joined at the

    hip. The elegant solutions are achieve a working

    understanding of both.



    When I was in high school, the school board

    was participating in a dual-track science education

    experiment. One group of students took chemistry

    and physics in the contemporary setting while

    another group studied using more 'modern aids'

    like films and 'less sophisticated' and hardware-

    store/lumber-yard tools and materials. This was

    carried out in two Wichita high schools. The

    question to be answered was, "Can science be

    adequately taught in less endowed schools using

    more rudimentary tools and processes?"



    Don't know how powers-that-be viewed the

    outcome of the studies for teaching methods.

    I took the experimental course in chemistry.

    I found out from my chemistry teacher years

    later that I made the highest score in Wichita

    going in, and the highest score coming out.

    I can personally attest to the fact that the

    shiny tools and latest processes do not drive

    the outcome of a teaching process so strongly

    as modern 'educators' would have us believe.



    I think the point of this discussion is to

    explore the physics and utility of any tool

    for understanding and without prejudice for

    it's less than modern shortcomings. Would

    you similarly denounce a builder's choice to

    build a replica J-3 as opposed to a Sonex?



    If this discussion was about applying modern

    materials and systems to a 1940's restoration,

    would you decry the effort as whipping a

    dead horse? As one of my heros, Richard Feynman

    suggested in the tile of his book, there is

    a lot of pleasure to be gained from finding

    things out.



http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bgaw9qe7DEE&feature=related



    Those who do not find pleasure in such endeavors

    are certainly free to focus their efforts elsewhere

    but let us refrain from obstructing the pleasure

    of others.

   Bob . . .

nuckolls.bob(at)aeroelect
Guest

Posted: Sat Aug 25, 2012 7:17 am Post subject: Resuscitating the Tripplet 630

At 04:38 PM 8/24/2012, you wrote:

 	  Quote: 	
		  



Bob,



I replied to your 1st post before I read the 2nd.  I can get 10 

Panasonic 2450 lithium cells for $12 and I'll machine a little case 

to make them fit in the 30V position.  I think that should take care of it.


	


  Cool. Send me some pix.

   Bob . . .

Bob McC

Joined: 09 Jan 2006
Posts: 258
Location: Toronto, ON

Posted: Sat Aug 25, 2012 7:23 am Post subject: Resuscitating the Tripplet 630

While the modern digital instruments can be inexpensive and exceedingly accurate, sometimes that accuracy can be an issue especially when dealing with changing values. Trying to visualize constantly changing numbers or even read their value if the changes are rapid can be very frustrating, sometimes impossible. The old analogue instruments, while they may not read to the ultimate resolution, average changing values very well and in that dynamic situation, where the digital is useless, can give a nice, relatively stable, easy to see, reading. If what you’re looking for is a steadily falling or rising value, then the analogue will show a nice steady needle movement (or an erratic one to show a not-so-steady change) whereas the rapidly changing numbers on a digital display don’t help. You’ll have almost no idea of what is going on. (Measuring the resistance of a potentiometer with both a digital and an analogue meter while smoothly turning the shaft from one extreme to the other to determine if there are any dead spots or if the pot is a linear or logarithmic taper for instance will quickly show the superiority of the analogue meter. If you want to know the precise value of a fixed resistor then the digital will be superior)  

   

In short both types are useful. Sometimes the digital is better, sometimes the analogue beats it by a mile. As in most things - - “It depends”  

   

Only my .02¢ opinion  

   

Bob McC  

     [quote]



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[b]

_________________
Bob McC
Falco #908
(just starting)

raymondj(at)frontiernet.n
Guest

Posted: Sat Aug 25, 2012 7:43 am Post subject: Resuscitating the Tripplet 630

Well, by your definition: "just walk by it and admire it occasionally" 

makes it cr*p.  All art is cr*p.  Gotta disagree.



I'll say no more on this topic because it doesn't further electron 

herding skills.



Thanks to everyone for sharing their opinions.



do not archive



Raymond Julian

Kettle River, MN.



"And you know that I could have me a million more friends,

and all I'd have to lose is my point of view." - John Prine



On 08/25/2012 05:48 AM, Henador Titzoff wrote:

 	  Quote: 	
		   I'm gonna have to side with Eric on this one.  I think you guys are in a

 nostalgia induced somnambulism that results in tons of worthless cr*p

 laying around the house. By worthless, I mean things that you will never

 use again. You'll just walk by it and admire it occasionally as you worm

 your way through the make shift aisles to the kitchen for yet another

 Ruben sandwich. Some people call it hoarding.

raymondj(at)frontiernet.n
Guest

Posted: Sat Aug 25, 2012 7:52 am Post subject: Resuscitating the Tripplet 630

Will do, but it'll be a while before it makes it to the top of my 

priority list, so don't hold your breath.



do not archive



Raymond Julian

Kettle River, MN.



"And you know that I could have me a million more friends,

and all I'd have to lose is my point of view." - John Prine



On 08/25/2012 10:16 AM, Robert L. Nuckolls, III wrote:

 	  Quote: 	
		   

 <nuckolls.bob(at)aeroelectric.com>



 At 04:38 PM 8/24/2012, you wrote:

> 

>

> Bob,

>

> I replied to your 1st post before I read the 2nd.  I can get 10

> Panasonic 2450 lithium cells for $12 and I'll machine a little case to

> make them fit in the 30V position.  I think that should take care of it.



   Cool. Send me some pix.

    Bob . . .

nuckolls.bob(at)aeroelect
Guest

Posted: Sat Aug 25, 2012 8:47 am Post subject: Resuscitating the Tripplet 630

At 10:52 AM 8/25/2012, you wrote:

 	  Quote: 	
		  



Will do, but it'll be a while before it makes it to the top of my 

priority list, so don't hold your breath.


	


   Understand. My do-do list is immeasurable and constantly

   getting stirred by a 'pleasurable curiosity' of the moment

    . . . I readily confess to being ADD on a grand scale.



   It probably frustrated my teachers but since I wasn't disruptive,

   they left me alone to suffer my intellectual chaos in

   private. So back to the sheet rock and plumbing task at

   hand . . .





   Bob . . .



   Do not archive

JLuckey(at)pacbell.net
Guest

Posted: Sat Aug 25, 2012 8:48 am Post subject: Resuscitating the Tripplet 630

Bob,   

   

There was a Simpson 260 in my dad’s stuff as well – in the same kind of case as you describe.  I think it will get a place of honor on the test bench, too.  

   

Just for grins I looked on ebay: they go for $20-$200.  Does anyone remember what they sold for new?  

   

         

  

From: owner-aeroelectric-list-server(at)matronics.com [mailto:owner-aeroelectric-list-server(at)matronics.com] On Behalf Of BobsV35B(at)aol.com

 Sent: Saturday, August 25, 2012 05:50

 To: aeroelectric-list(at)matronics.com

 Subject: Re: AeroElectric-List: Resuscitating the Tripplet 630  

  

     

Good Morning Jeff,  

    

   

    

Just waxing nostalgic I guess.   

    

   

    

I have a Simpson 260 in one of those beautiful sliding cover cases that I just cannot let go.  I also have several Fluke 77s around. However, the 260 has a place of honor on my work bench. It just LOOKS like an instrument ought to look.  

    

   

    

Happy Skies.   

    

   

    

Very Old Bob  

    

   

    

Do Not Archive  

    

   

      

In a message dated 8/24/2012 11:04:24 P.M. Central Daylight Time, JLuckey(at)pacbell.net writes:  

   	  Quote: 	
		      

When my dad passed away last year I inherited a lot of old electrical equipment, including a 630.    

   

Finding that meter while sorting thru his stuff brought back lots of memories of futzing w/ batteries, lamps & alligator clips as a kid – funny what you remember…  

   

Using 3 9-volters to replace the big battery is a great idea – glad to hear that 27 volts is enough.  

   

Lots of people, especially younger ones, would just throw-away something like this but I find it strangely satisfying to keep an older, good-quality instrument in service, even if it requires a little engineering.  Is that due to age or wisdom???  

   

Pardon the philosophical observations,  

   

-Jeff  

         

  

  

  



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href="http://www.matronics.com/contribution">http://www.matronics.com/c

	


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 08/24/12  [quote][b]

nuckolls.bob(at)aeroelect
Guest

Posted: Sat Aug 25, 2012 9:24 am Post subject: Resuscitating the Tripplet 630

At 11:48 AM 8/25/2012, you wrote:

  	  Quote: 	
		   Bob, 

  

 There was a Simpson 260 in my dad’s stuff as well – in the same kind of case as you describe.  I think it will get a place of honor on the test bench, too.

  

 Just for grins I looked on ebay: they go for $20-$200.  Does anyone remember what they sold for new? 	


   Yup, at least in 1961 both the Tripplet 630 and Simpson 260 sold for

   about $70. That's about $500 in today's dollars. It was a week's

   wages for me at my first job in aviation at Boeing.



 

 

   Bob . . .    [quote][b]

user9253

Joined: 28 Mar 2008
Posts: 1935
Location: Riley TWP Michigan

Posted: Sun Aug 26, 2012 6:58 am Post subject: Re: Resuscitating the Tripplet 630

 	  Quote: 	
		  I'm gonna have to side with Eric on this one. I think you guys are in a nostalgia induced somnambulism that results in tons of worthless cr*p 

laying around the house. By worthless, I mean things that you will never 

use again. You'll just walk by it and admire it occasionally as you worm 

your way through the make shift aisles to the kitchen for yet another 

Ruben sandwich. Some people call it hoarding. 	


I think the above post was written with tongue in cheek.  I thought it humorous.  As I make my way though the makeshift isles in my house to the garage, I have to be careful not to knock over the nicknacks that my wife has sitting on every available horizontal surface in the house.  Talk about worthless stuff that that some people might admire, but to me it is junk that is in the way.  However, the "STUFF" in my workshop is not junk, even though I do not use some of it.  There is the EICO Model 232 VTVM that I assembled from a kit way back in the 60s.  And of course there is the Simpson 260 and another analog meter and 5 digital meters of various capabilities.  And there is a HeathKit capacitance meter that I put together.  One of the digital meters has taken over its duties.

Joe

Do Not Archive

_________________
Joe Gores

henador_titzoff(at)yahoo.
Guest

Posted: Sun Aug 26, 2012 5:28 pm Post subject: Resuscitating the Tripplet 630

--- On Sat, 8/25/12, Robert L. Nuckolls, III <nuckolls.bob(at)aeroelectric.com> wrote:



    If this discussion was about applying modern

   materials and systems to a 1940's restoration,

   would you decry the effort as whipping a

   dead horse? As one of my heros, Richard Feynman

   suggested in the tile of his book, there is

   a lot of pleasure to be gained from finding

   things out. 



Of course you are correct that we should be free to choose what gives us the most pleasure in life. Certainly the Tripplet meters are great instruments; however, I was responding to the original sender's question about whether it worth resuscitating the meter with a hard to find battery or go with a newer meter  for modern day usability. His question didn't talk about having museum pieces on top of lab workbenches or collecting meters for the heck of it.  He was concerned about what instrument to use for troubleshooting purposes today, not back in the 1950s-60s.



If I misunderstood the original question and/or offended anyone on this list, I extend my apologies to these people.

I also think there is value in looking at vacuum tubes and other electronics as I believe it helps to understand all technologies; however, the days of simple vacuum tubes are over as far as I can tell. I now get very good insight on the electronics of today by using tools that allow me to "see" what's going on with highly sophisticated electronic systems and products, I use PSpice, MG HyperLynx, Ansys HFSS and several vendors' HDL simulators to get a darn good idea of what's going on where we can't visually see what's going on. I believe I  said it here before that all this black magic stuff may be black magic to many, but to us guys who have these tools and know how to use them, it's not. I even know guys who are way better than I am who don't need some of these tools.  For example, they know magnetic fields so well they can "see" them without HFSS. Same with the guys who don't need PSpice other than to prove to others are correct. These guys are few and far between, but they're out there. Most of them are older like the Tripplet meters, so I do understand to some degree why some contributors to this list admire Tripplets immensely.

I'm now like the previous contributor who said he wants to get back to herding electrons, except I want to herd holes, too. Like him, this is my last contribution to this thread.

Everyone have a great week!



Henador Titzoff

Do not  archive

 [quote][b]

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