What do you consider essential to your workbench?

#379477

I'm just in the frame of mind to wonder what you have for radio testing on your bench. Right now I don't have anything extravagant so I was wondering what you would have if you could have it, and if you do modifications what you feel you can't do without. I'd like to be able to at least tune up my radios to keep them on frequency and have clear reception.

It's interesting to see what others are doing from online videos, I just wonder how practical it is to buy some of the equipment they're using. So, what's on your Christmas list? OK, so what are you planning to get next?

#379478

This is a touchy topic, not something most want to say they have or do. For a start you would need a quality VTVM, SWR/Watt meter, dummy load (minimum 200w), frequency counter (minimum 6 digit), and proper alignment tools, think every radio operator should have at least that weither they work on radios or not. A bench radio (SSB if you do a lot of SSB radios) and a set of headphones so you can hear yourself.
What's on my Christmas wish list,, a quality used spectrum analyzer (never will be able to buy a new one).

3's

Greg

#379480

ditto on what MDY said. plus if posible an oscioscope. Also handy is a lighted magnifying glass. Solder station goes without mention and proper CERAMIC alignment tools. Way too many great radios have been murdered by metal screwdrivers and a slip or sneeze at the worst possible time. contact cleaner is a must have as well as the needed stuff to keep your bench free from loose solder drops component legs ect. I have felt pads that I put down when working on a radio or amp. They are cheap and you can toss them when dirty. JHMO 73's yall.

#379482

Ditto on the CERAMIC alignment tools! If you have the money buy a BIRD 43P with the right slug(s). A Tek TAS465 o-scope works great for me too.

#379485

Screwdriver, and a hammer...Everything else is just luxury items...

#379486

I use that foam diamond plate looking stuff for the bench. It is soft and you can stick screws and tools into it like a pin cushion but my new arrangement will use low pyle carpet repurposed from an suv cargo mat. There is no since in having a hard bench beating your elbows up. As long as it doesn't spill beer it isn't too soft.

I have the usual hand alignment doodads, weller solder station, small vice, multimeter, a triple set of bird 43's, one for fwd, one fwd with the peak kit from Martin, and one for reflect, all in a row- those are recent- as well as a pile of slugs. Because I'm more of an antenna guy I have an mfj 259b that serves as my freq counter and analyzer. I also have the usual assortment of mics, speakers to plug in, monitor radio, extra power supplies, dummy load, and I low pass filter before the meter to keep the trash out and can compare with it not in line as well. A few antenna switches and a magnet to hold small screws round it out. I'm not bench guy enough to dive into the real test stuff but this deal keeps me away from the tech most of the time. Also around is a ton of connectors, plugs, fuses, jumpers, cheap Old swr meters that work as field strength for antenna fun and probably 75 mobile antennas, mounts, magnets, odd projects, and test radios for comparisons. After all, the bench doesn't stop inside the shack.

-drdx

#379487

DRDX you said it....PERFECT! May I also add... a Hickok 266 CB signal generator and a BK1040 test station??

Deleted User 14541 · #379488

Got to have the soldering station. Small iron for radio work, larger iron for amp work. Desoldering pump and braid. Multimeter...of course mine won't read low value caps so I have a capacitance metet. An MFJ analyzer has more uses than you can shake a stick at. 5kw continuous dummy load, watt meters, a scope, 250 ish amp Frankenstein power supply.

Various coax jumpers, coax adapters, alligator clip test leads, storage bins for spare parts, assortment of teflon and HV wire, few spools of mag wire and a big junk box for those rainy day projects.

Then the redneck test equipment. A signal generator built from a uniden 68, cable to connect my phone to the 68 so I can inject a tone.

I need to buy a good transistor tester but the way I run them I don't really have many bad ones and it's once in a blue moon that I'll work on something for someone else.

#379489

Something that I find very handy is a bright penlight. The kind EMTs & doctors use, with a concentrated beam. You shine it through the circuit board so you can see the component solder pads and the traces on both sides.

#379491

I'm sure many of you pick up radios from any place you find them, especially if they are cheap or free, and I find myself in the same position. I don't want to spend a lot of money on a hobby if I can find another way to get what I'm looking for without breaking the bank.

So, you come home and find out that a radio you picked up from an odd source doesn't work. When you open it up the guts are just garbage. (What did you expect for nothing.) So you throw the mic in the parts drawer because it looks good right? Well, you end up with about 20 factory microphones and no idea if they are any good. You don't want to plug them into your working radios in case they are shorted and do some real damage.

Why did I set this up? Well, I was thinking that a microphone tester might be a good idea. It may be overkill for keeping your own equipment up and running, but there has to be someone out there that needs a microphone for that Cobra or Realistic 40 channel that their friend gave them. you have a mic for it and you want to get rid of that drawer full of mics, so what if it's one at a time? Maybe you want to make back a few extra bucks you spent on that extra toy you got. It really doesn't matter, you have to know it that mic works, so isn't a tester cheap insurance?

I'm sure that there are other things you wouldn't want to open up, but you have to know it they're going to work. I'd like x-ray vision, but that isn't possible, so what do you do? When I say I'd like to keep my equipment tuned up, I mean working correctly and within tolerances by the way. So, I also like to build things myself from time to time.

Before I write a book I'll just say that I have a soldering iron, not exactly a station, but variable heat and a couple of multimeters or three and I used to work at a "TV repair" shop where I got some equipment. So I've got the simple things. I'm looking at the fun things now. One reason I started this thread was because I've seen some HP Oscilloscopes on an auction site that most people don't think of right off, and they seem to be in good shape and selling for decently low prices.

Keep up the good suggestions and maybe we can get a list together.

73s

#379492

Bluerunner wrote:Something that I find very handy is a bright penlight. The kind EMTs & doctors use, with a concentrated beam. You shine it through the circuit board so you can see the component solder pads and the traces on both sides.

Holy mackerel! That's really nice! I use a very small 2 AAA cell Maglite LED flashlight.

I use a Atten AT 201D soldering station and a Weller WLC 100 iron. When it comes to the large jobs like working on the old TUBE amps, I use a heavy duty Weller soldering gun!

Predominately, I do classic TUBE audio.... mostly point-to-point wiring from the pre-circuit board era.

The teensy-weensy *yikes!* stuff made today.........RUN!! *HEH!*

I work on the very small stuff with a jeweler's loupe and manage....

#379493

Bluerunner wrote:Something that I find very handy is a bright penlight. The kind EMTs & doctors use, with a concentrated beam. You shine it through the circuit board so you can see the component solder pads and the traces on both sides.

I've been using a lazer pointer for years, these new SMT boards you don't need it.

3's

Greg

#379557

All the stuff everyone listed already sounds great. But....I don't feel my workbench is complete without an open beer on it.

#379559

Yep!....BUT a cognac and a "Havana" hits the spot, especially after a major brain-drain. *no scat to be found*.

#379678

Well, fate, bad luck, what have you. The closest Radio Shack to me is closing.

I'm not happy to say the least, but everything is 20% to 40% off. So I grabbed some things for my bench. First a nice new soldering station. Yes, the real thing! A new Solder sucker, the old one really needs help. I got their last soldering heat sink, and I picked up a coaxial cable stripper that will give me a spare. If only they sold signal generators and oscilloscopes.

Now, I need the actual bench. I'm working on temporary "bench" for the moment. I'm off to a website to find a free bench.

73s for now.

#379686

If you like to build things check out circuits for the LM386 IC. It is an audio amp chip that takes a very low simple parts count to make a small amplifier for signal tracing.

Build two amps and use one for a signal generator by giving it a little feedback to the input from the output through a variable resistor.

Makes a nice cheap quick 'n dirty signal generator / tracer set up.

A oscillator circuit for the 8038 IC will give you a very handy precision square / saw tooth / sine wave signal generator. Again very simple and a low parts count.

#379690

What a great post to come up with, everyone has just about the same needs, and most of all a good solder station, which I found really necessary with my latest mic wiring problems, but now it's all good. Keep it up guy's, I enjoy reading the mail everyday. 3's to all and yours.
David g.

#379798

OK, Bluerunner mentions some homebuilt equipment. How about other things that you can build that you would want on your bench? If you can provide a link to a project or schematics, or even a conversion, and it's allowable here on CB Radio Talk than I think it would be great to be able to have some do-it-yourself on here.

#379800

Transistor 9 wrote:OK, Bluerunner mentions some homebuilt equipment. How about other things that you can build that you would want on your bench? If you can provide a link to a project or schematics, or even a conversion, and it's allowable here on CB Radio Talk than I think it would be great to be able to have some do-it-yourself on here.

You have to be careful of infringements, some thing are allowed to be copied or posted and some are not, best thing would be to search for the items of interest on the internet, looking up "LM386 IC" alone brought up several nice plans, some of which are small enough to fit inside a desk mic.

3's

Greg

#379826

You have to be careful of infringements, some thing are allowed to be copied or posted and some are not, best thing would be to search for the items of interest on the internet, looking up "LM386 IC" alone brought up several nice plans, some of which are small enough to fit inside a desk mic.

3's

Greg

Well, I'm not talking about actually giving away any secrets. Unless the project is completely out in the public domain it's OK to just mention the end project and let people fend for themselves as to where they find it. Like, "I found a great project for a signal generator and it works great." After that we can all go to find a kit or project specs that meet our budget and needs. Everyone likes to customize a project a little bit.

Oh, and my opinion on the beer or cognac on the bench is that I would have a nice soda. I'm not drinking these days, so I won't say Capt. Morgan, or Jagermeister.

Well, anyone who can add something completely safe to try without any patent infringement or copyright problems, especially if you want to share something you came up with yourself. I'm sure others would like to know what you've done and if you have it up on the Internet and it's OK to post on CB Radio Talk, than put it up here for us to check out. (Is that enough of a disclaimer?)

Oh well, if it's not supposed to be here, than I guess we just drop it.

73s everybody.

-- Mon Aug 29, 2016 10:00 pm --

Not sure why the quote is messed up. ?

#379828

Transistor 9 wrote:Not sure why the quote is messed up. ?

Fixed it.

3's

Greg

#379876

My one tool that is needed is glasses, can't see squat with out them...

#380056

OK, so I decided it was time to dust off my electronics background and put the pedal to the metal. I am upgrading my equipment from just the hand tools I had when working in the field to a real world bench to cover my needs for my CBs and Ham radios, old and new. I have a new soldering station. Not high tech, but that will come when I find a lab quality unit on that auction site. As part of that, I bought a desoldering iron. I have a Thruline Bird model 43 wattmeter, a B&K model 606 tube tester (Like new), a kit signal/function generator and kit O'scope on the way.

I know the kits won't be up to par for long so I am hoping to have a "real" O'scope and signal/function generator real soon. The kits are mostly to practice my skills on modern circuity.

I have found a great bench if I can actually get my hands on it. (Free) Don't count your chickens right? I will be looking for all the finishing touches as time goes on. What would those be?

Oh, it doesn't hurt that in my major CB purchase last week I got a three function meter that can help with quick field evals. I did that Monday night and saved a load of cash on some older CBs.

The answer to the question will most likely be lots more of the same. But hey, that's why I asked you to chime in.

73s

#380058

Stoneman wrote:My one tool that is needed is glasses, can't see squat with out them...

Was just thinking the same thing.

#380110

Since you're all dying to see what I picked up, here's my FREE bench. I was lucky to get this one.

Work Bench_001-800.jpg

So now I have a solid bench to do some work on I just have to set everything up and fix those old girls up I've been bringing home lately. Anyone want to post pictures of their benches?

I would like to find a good shelf to go on it to help with the height distribution when I get a few more things together.

73s

CB Radio Talk

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