Tag Archives: test equipment

What’s On Your Workbench?

People ask me what kind of gear I use at Retrovoltage and at Rain City Audio for projects. So, here we go: While it’s by no means the best-equipped workbench out there, it has a good mix of lab- and service-grade … Continue reading

Posted in Collections, Commentary, Test Equipment | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 6 Comments

Mailbag: What’s the best multitester for vintage radios?

I recently got this question in the mailbag, and it seemed like a good one to answer: What’s the best multitester for vintage radio repair? That’s actually a tougher question than it seems. The short answer? Well…it depends a bit, but … Continue reading

Posted in Commentary, DIY, Electronics, Gadgets, Test Equipment | Tagged , , , , | 2 Comments

What do you get from a $25 multimeter?

Fred Clift wrote over on his blog about why it’s worthwhile to pick a more expensive multimeter. He’s comparing a $200 Fluke to a $6 Harbor Freight multimeter, which really is a no-brainer. I’m not sure the Harbor Freight model … Continue reading

Posted in Commentary, DIY, Electronics, Gadgets, Test Equipment | Tagged , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Test Equipment Round-Up – September 20th, 2014

I always keep an eye on eBay for plug-ins for my HP 143 oscilloscope and even if they don’t turn up, it’s always interesting to see what else is in the category. Some of these are pretty interesting – there’s definitely … Continue reading

Posted in Collections, Test Equipment | Tagged , , , , , | 1 Comment

1934 Weston Capacity Meter Model 664 Repair

Here’s another project I just finished at Rain City Audio:

This 1934 Weston Capacity Meter/AC Voltmeter was used to measure capacitors and the output of transformers for experimentation and troubleshooting. It only needed a good cleaning and one component replaced to fire right up and make some measurements. Continue reading

Posted in Electronics, Gadgets, Radios and Tubes, Vintage | Tagged , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

EICO 221 VTVM Dial Scale

In a fit of clumsiness, I sent my EICO 221 VTVM flying off my bench and it struck the ground pretty hard. Not bad for its first major accident since 1959. Everything survived…except the sensitive meter movement, which snapped a … Continue reading

Posted in Commentary, Vintage | Tagged , , , , | 1 Comment