On Wed, 2013-03-27 at 14:03 -0700, chuck adams wrote:

On 03/27/2013 01:50 PM, Lee Mairs (SAG) wrote:

Check eBay. The Chinese have an LC ESR meter that is about $25.
Has good reviews and works great.
73 de Lee
KM4YY

A few days ago on qrp-tech, some one recommended the following.
I ordered one and will run some tests on it, but the fact that it does
so much is appealing, especially the ESR since I haven't gotten around
to homebrewing one and the bench queue is too long now. :-)

Maybe some one has already gotten the same model already.

FYI

chuck, k7qo

<http://www.ebay.com/itm/330855732011?ssPageName=STRK:MEWNX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1497.l2649>

Hi,

Requires PayPal and PayPal only. Other offers?

73,

Bill KU8H

I'll add my endorsement as well. The Chinese modules--tidy little pcbs with
LCD readout--are excellent. I have one for LC and one to test and
characterize transistors and other semiconductors. I'm very pleased with
each. The assumption that Chinese companies make junk is seriously
mistaken--in this case and in all my other Chinese experiences.

Todd / K7TFC
On Mar 27, 2013 1:32 PM, "W5COV" <cvest@...> wrote:

**


I have one of these on my quick test bench and it compares very favorably
to my high dollar test bench . It is quick and easy to use and accurate
enough for the home builder .

Charlie , W5COV

---- w1sfr <steverob@...> wrote:

I see a lot of LC meters on ebay. Do you think one of these might do the

trick or are they too cheap.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/L-C-F-5pF-1uF-0-05uH-500H-Inductance-Capacitance-High-Precision-LC-Meter-Clip-/170932517462?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item27cc5f3a56

73 Steve

--- In 4sqrp@yahoogroups.com, "Donald" <DKELLY42@> wrote:

I can't argue with the expense. I built my homebrew LC meter because

it was only a few bucks, simple and exceeded my required accuracy.

Good luck and have fun with your project, Steve.

72 K5UOS



--- In 4sqrp@yahoogroups.com, Stephen Roberts <steverob@> wrote:

Hi Don,

Well I can't see spending $150 for an LC meter although it would be

nice to have one. I'm not really a electronic tech by any means so it's
really hard to justify the expense. And from a practical point of view,
building one would take me forever but it certainly looks like a worthy
project. In the end, I'm sure I'll just fire it up and see what happens
which is my normal method of testing ;-)

73
Steve


On Mar 26, 2013, at 9:19 PM, Donald Kelly wrote:

Hi Steve,

I assume you know the ultimate inductance of the coil you are

winding. A handy tool to have is a L/C meter.

Not all toroids are alike and it is always a good idea to measure.

My guess is most of the guys have one of these.

http://aade.com/lcmeter.htm

This meter evolved from a homebrew project by Bill Carver, W7AAZ.

A digital readout was added later for easier use. The original project is
classic in its simplicity.

It is also included in "Experimental Methods in RF Design" in the

test gear chapter.

http://www.qsl.net/wm5z/cq199301b.pdf


My version is used all the time. You can see the ugly style board

is very simple. The trick is in the calibration steps and having a
precision calibrating capacitor.

http://forums.qrz.com/showthread.php?238952-A-Simple-Homebrew-L-and-C-Tester

Test gear is fun to build and a great way to get started in

scratch projects.

Don K5UOS



From: 4sqrp@yahoogroups.com [mailto:4sqrp@yahoogroups.com] On

Behalf Of w1sfr

Sent: Tuesday, March 26, 2013 11:18 AM
To: 4sqrp@yahoogroups.com
Subject: [4sqrp] How do you test a toroid?


The transforming toroids are pretty tricky to wind. Is there any

way to test them to find out if you've done it correctly?

73
Steve

�

Hi Don,

Well I can't see spending $150 for an LC meter although it would be nice to have one. I'm not really a electronic tech by any means so it's really hard to justify the expense. And from a practical point of view, building one would take me forever but it certainly looks like a worthy project. In the end, I'm sure I'll just fire it up and see what happens which is my normal method of testing ;-)

73

Steve

On Mar 26, 2013, at 9:19 PM, Donald Kelly wrote:

Hi Steve,

�

I assume you know the ultimate inductance of the coil you are winding. A handy tool to have is a L/C meter.

Not all toroids are alike and it is always a good idea to measure. My guess is most of the guys have one of these.

�

http://aade.com/lcmeter.htm

�

This �meter evolved from a homebrew project by Bill Carver, W7AAZ. A digital readout was added later for easier use. The original project is classic in its simplicity.

It is also included in �Experimental Methods in RF Design� in the test gear chapter.

�

http://www.qsl.net/wm5z/cq199301b.pdf

�

�

My version is used all the time. You can see the ugly style board is very simple. The trick is in the calibration steps and having a precision calibrating capacitor.

�

http://forums.qrz.com/showthread.php?238952-A-Simple-Homebrew-L-and-C-Tester

�

Test gear is fun to build and a great way to get started in scratch projects.

�

Don K5UOS

�

�

�

From:�4sqrp@...�[mailto:4sqrp@...]�On Behalf Of�w1sfr
Sent:�Tuesday, March 26, 2013 11:18 AM
To:�4sqrp@...
Subject:�[4sqrp] How do you test a toroid?

�

�

The transforming toroids are pretty tricky to wind. Is there any way to test them to find out if you've done it correctly?

73
Steve

I see a lot of LC meters on ebay. Do you think one of these might do the trick or are they too cheap.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/L-C-F-5pF-1uF-0-05uH-500H-Inductance-Capacitance-High-Precision-LC-Meter-Clip-/170932517462?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item27cc5f3a56

73 Steve

--- In 4sqrp@yahoogroups.com, "Donald" <DKELLY42@...> wrote:

I can't argue with the expense. I built my homebrew LC meter because it was only a few bucks, simple and exceeded my required accuracy.

Good luck and have fun with your project, Steve.

72 K5UOS



--- In 4sqrp@yahoogroups.com, Stephen Roberts <steverob@> wrote:

Hi Don,

Well I can't see spending $150 for an LC meter although it would be nice to have one. I'm not really a electronic tech by any means so it's really hard to justify the expense. And from a practical point of view, building one would take me forever but it certainly looks like a worthy project. In the end, I'm sure I'll just fire it up and see what happens which is my normal method of testing ;-)

73
Steve


On Mar 26, 2013, at 9:19 PM, Donald Kelly wrote:

Hi Steve,

I assume you know the ultimate inductance of the coil you are winding. A handy tool to have is a L/C meter.
Not all toroids are alike and it is always a good idea to measure. My guess is most of the guys have one of these.

http://aade.com/lcmeter.htm

This meter evolved from a homebrew project by Bill Carver, W7AAZ. A digital readout was added later for easier use. The original project is classic in its simplicity.
It is also included in "Experimental Methods in RF Design" in the test gear chapter.

http://www.qsl.net/wm5z/cq199301b.pdf


My version is used all the time. You can see the ugly style board is very simple. The trick is in the calibration steps and having a precision calibrating capacitor.

http://forums.qrz.com/showthread.php?238952-A-Simple-Homebrew-L-and-C-Tester

Test gear is fun to build and a great way to get started in scratch projects.

Don K5UOS



From: 4sqrp@yahoogroups.com [mailto:4sqrp@yahoogroups.com] On Behalf Of w1sfr
Sent: Tuesday, March 26, 2013 11:18 AM
To: 4sqrp@yahoogroups.com
Subject: [4sqrp] How do you test a toroid?


The transforming toroids are pretty tricky to wind. Is there any way to test them to find out if you've done it correctly?

73
Steve

I can't argue with the expense. I built my homebrew LC meter because it was only a few bucks, simple and exceeded my required accuracy.

Good luck and have fun with your project, Steve.

72 K5UOS



--- In 4sqrp@yahoogroups.com, Stephen Roberts <steverob@> wrote:

Hi Don,

Well I can't see spending $150 for an LC meter although it would be nice to have one. I'm not really a electronic tech by any means so it's really hard to justify the expense. And from a practical point of view, building one would take me forever but it certainly looks like a worthy project. In the end, I'm sure I'll just fire it up and see what happens which is my normal method of testing ;-)

73
Steve


On Mar 26, 2013, at 9:19 PM, Donald Kelly wrote:

Hi Steve,

I assume you know the ultimate inductance of the coil you are winding. A handy tool to have is a L/C meter.
Not all toroids are alike and it is always a good idea to measure. My guess is most of the guys have one of these.

http://aade.com/lcmeter.htm

This meter evolved from a homebrew project by Bill Carver, W7AAZ. A digital readout was added later for easier use. The original project is classic in its simplicity.
It is also included in "Experimental Methods in RF Design" in the test gear chapter.

http://www.qsl.net/wm5z/cq199301b.pdf


My version is used all the time. You can see the ugly style board is very simple. The trick is in the calibration steps and having a precision calibrating capacitor.

http://forums.qrz.com/showthread.php?238952-A-Simple-Homebrew-L-and-C-Tester

Test gear is fun to build and a great way to get started in scratch projects.

Don K5UOS



From: 4sqrp@yahoogroups.com [mailto:4sqrp@yahoogroups.com] On Behalf Of w1sfr
Sent: Tuesday, March 26, 2013 11:18 AM
To: 4sqrp@yahoogroups.com
Subject: [4sqrp] How do you test a toroid?


The transforming toroids are pretty tricky to wind. Is there any way to test them to find out if you've done it correctly?

73
Steve

Hi Don,

Well I can't see spending $150 for an LC meter although it would be nice to have one. I'm not really a electronic tech by any means so it's really hard to justify the expense. And from a practical point of view, building one would take me forever but it certainly looks like a worthy project. In the end, I'm sure I'll just fire it up and see what happens which is my normal method of testing ;-)

73
Steve


On Mar 26, 2013, at 9:19 PM, Donald Kelly wrote:

Hi Steve,

I assume you know the ultimate inductance of the coil you are winding. A handy tool to have is a L/C meter.
Not all toroids are alike and it is always a good idea to measure. My guess is most of the guys have one of these.

http://aade.com/lcmeter.htm

This meter evolved from a homebrew project by Bill Carver, W7AAZ. A digital readout was added later for easier use. The original project is classic in its simplicity.
It is also included in "Experimental Methods in RF Design" in the test gear chapter.

http://www.qsl.net/wm5z/cq199301b.pdf


My version is used all the time. You can see the ugly style board is very simple. The trick is in the calibration steps and having a precision calibrating capacitor.

http://forums.qrz.com/showthread.php?238952-A-Simple-Homebrew-L-and-C-Tester

Test gear is fun to build and a great way to get started in scratch projects.

Don K5UOS



From: 4sqrp@yahoogroups.com [mailto:4sqrp@yahoogroups.com] On Behalf Of w1sfr
Sent: Tuesday, March 26, 2013 11:18 AM
To: 4sqrp@yahoogroups.com
Subject: [4sqrp] How do you test a toroid?


The transforming toroids are pretty tricky to wind. Is there any way to test them to find out if you've done it correctly?

73
Steve

From: Eric Dallmann

To: 4sqrp@... ; Phil Anderson

Sent: Tuesday, March 26, 2013 8:35 PM

Subject: Re: [4sqrp] eznec and LTspice software

Really, you find the EZNEC manual poorly written?  I actually think Roy did an outstanding job with it (I have no financial interest in EZNEC).  Of course, I will point out that antenna modeling is a little more involved than turning on/off some combination of four burners and an oven, so the manual may not read like that of a 1950's vintage range.  If that's what you were looking for in the EZNEC manual, I can see why you were disappointed.

Eric/K9VIC

---

From: Phil Anderson
To: 4sqrp@...; n0evh ; WA0ITP
Cc: Phil Anderson
Sent: Monday, March 25, 2013 11:42 AM
Subject: [4sqrp] eznec and LTspice software

 

Good idea John on downloading EZNEC. It does take a bit of time to get used to the manual/instructions - and that would be true of any manuals "written" today. Manuals in general are a problem. Take my iPhone as an example, really crappy documentation. About 6 or 8 years ago I was visiting my daughter in St Louis and we were cleaning her kitchen. We really cleaned the stove top gas range only to discover the manual for it in the drawer, written in about 1950. I found that manual to be excellent, very clear on how to use it and what burner went with what knob, etc. Not so of today's ranges. When did we stop teaching writing to kids, todays designers? Maybe about 1980?

 

A second via John, consider downloading LTspice. You can download a free copy from linear technology's website. It is really super for simulating circuit. It's easy, for example, to draw the schematic for a audio phase-shift oscillator and then hit the simulation button; you can select to see the waveform generated or the frequency response of the unit. Then you can change values and play what if. Again....the manual takes some time to get used to.

 

If anyone is interested, we could get a "go-to-meeting" link set up on the WEB and I'd be happy to outline how to use the program, generating and simulating several simple circuits. Let's discuss that at Ozcon?

 

Uncle Phil 

 

 

 

Short answer is 'yes' long answer is a bit more complicated. As an example, you can model a crystal oscillator, but as all the components are "perfect" there is no noise in the resistors and transistors that in the real world is what starts the oscillation. In Spice you get around this by modeling a voltage source that induces a little kick to get things started.

A regerative receiver would be an interesting model as the feedback to start the thing is carefully controlled so as not to actually run away and turn into a full blown oscillator.

Though I haven't done so- a query on the LT Spice Yahoo Group might yield some interesting answers (as might a simple Google Search)

--- In 4sqrp@..., Barney wrote:
>
>
> Would this work for a regenerative radio?
>
> Barney
>
>

Would this work for a regenerative radio?

Barney

 

I have wound the small roid twice. The wires are like they are supposed to be but I am still not sure if I have "6 full turns on"

Paul N0NBD

Sent from my iPad

On Mar 26, 2013, at 1:06 PM, Joe E <cornhusker@...> wrote:

 

It took me two tries to get the small binocular toroid right too. It is a bit confusing at first but isn't too bad once you figure it out. I just have resistors in and sip pins besides the toroids. 73 de K0NEB Sent from Yahoo! Mail on Android

---

From: David Martin <davemrtn@...>;
To: <4sqrp@...>; Stephen Roberts <steverob@...>;
Subject: Re: [4sqrp] Re: A Good Night for Finishing Pig Rig Inventory
Sent: Tue, Mar 26, 2013 4:33:57 PM

Yup, and if there's a hard way to do something, I'll find it. While I was messing with my binocular toroid I thought up a 'rule of thumb' for winding one. If you need a winding with an odd number of turns, insert the 'initial hair pin' from the opposite where the leads will be soldered. Each time the leads are wrapped through and back to the side where they'll terminate add '2' - therefore the count would be 1, 3, 5, 7, etc. If you need an even number of turns, insert the 'initial hair pin' on the same side where the ends will terminate and then loop the ends back to that side. Again add 2 each time the leads are looped through both holes - therefore the count would be 2, 4, 6, 8, etc. -- David Martin - K5DCM - Mountain Home Ar. Quoting Stephen Roberts :   Yes, those are nasty to wind. I hope I got mine right. I guess I'll find out when I do my smoke test. BTW, is there any way to test a toroid to ensure that you got it right? Installing caps this afternoon and winding the rest of the toroids. 73 Steve W1SFR On Mar 26, 2013, at 11:41 AM, David Martin wrote: Maybe I should go back and check my small binocular, I re-did my big binocular 3 times before I was satisfied I did it right. But the first problem I had with the big binocular was I had soldered the "end" connections into the holes for the capacitors !!  After that I questioned everything I did with that big binocular. -- David Martin - K5DCM - Mountain Home Ar. Quoting "Lee Mairs (SAG)" :   The first small binocular toroid has been driving me crazy for two days now.  I keep losing count and end up unwinding everything to start over again. Can anybody tell me if there is enough excess 34 ga magnet wire in the kit to trye and start over again.  I suspect my first (and second thru sixth) try wire has a lot of nicks in it. 73 de Lee KM4YY Romney, WV On 3/25/2013 5:44 PM, Louis Axeman wrote:   Good luck to you, also, Steve.  I hope the toroids wind up successfully.  Will probably start soldering resistors tomorrow and then try toroids.   Lou, N8LA From: w1sfr To: Louis Axeman ; 4sqrp@... Sent: Monday, March 25, 2013 4:10 PM Subject: [4sqrp] Re: A Good Night for Finishing Pig Rig Inventory   Good luck Lou. My first post here and I just started my pig rig too. Going to wind my toroids tonight if I can. Steve W1SFR --- In mailto:4sqrp%40yahoogroups.com, Louis Axeman wrote: > > Greetings, >   > Finally finished inventorying Pig Rig #204 parts tonight so this is a good night for me.  >   > 72/73, > Lou, N8LA >