custom/home made gadgets, etc.

[Hondaman]

OTA [free networks] television antenna

The Gray-Hoverman TV antenna works well (except for VHF). Smokin' good performance up in the channel 25 to 35 range (digital TV stops around channel 50 or so).



Anyone can take naked copper wire, screw it to a 2-by-4 piece of lumber, attach a 300-ohm to 75-ohm transformer (to connect to modern sets) and lean it against the wall behind a curtain or something. I wanted to do it with PVC, so I got PVC.

The chicken-wire backplane is 4 inches behind the driven elements, faithful to the hobbyists who adapted the Gray-Hoverman design. I decided on a base of 10 inches wide by 8 inches deep, to put on top of my DVR unit. It's something you could sketch out on a cocktail napkin, really (I used notebook paper). Quite fun to see it take shape. After you cut the PVC bits, file them to be PRECISELY the right size and it fits TIGHTLY with no glue. Total size is 35 inches tall, 27 inches wide.

I'm still living in my parents' house -- drilling holes in walls and hooking up another splitter to the rooftop antenna just wasn't an option for me.

[dood]

Re: custom/home made gadgets, etc.

I once put a nail through an old strip of molding to be able to slip down alongside a pontiac grand-am v-6 engine so I could slip the serpentine belt on the bottom idler while holding off the tensioner at the top.

That's about as good as I get.

[MXM]

Re: custom/home made gadgets, etc.

Hi Everyone! I made this for cleaning dust out of computers after almost choking on a few when trying to fix overheating problems caused by dust-sealed CPU coolers. It consists of the following:

- A very high RPM fan (in this case a blower removed from a Dell GX270's CPU cooler)
- The neck from a lemonade bottle
- Two fan grills with a layer of foam sandwitched between them
- The bristles from a small brush
- The molex connector from a siezed case fan
- Lots of tape

So far, it has been fairly effective. To clean, I just put the hose from a bigger vacuum cleaner over the top and nearly all of the dust gets sucked out.

dude home made portable vaccum.... damn, im gonna try it one day, nice work!!

nice thread

[ratdude747]

Re: custom/home made gadgets, etc.

How about some more details (schematics / part numbers / etc.) for the KeriProductions ATX338 Load Tester?

she got chased off the forum when a flame war erupted over operas vs rock concerts.

so i highly doubt you will hear from her.

[chipinnc]

Re: custom/home made gadgets, etc.

The KeriProductions ATX338 Load Tester for ATX Power Supplies.

It provides a convenient set of fan-cooled resistors to load up a PSU while providing voltage readings and scope outputs. The total load is roughly 338 watts which is enough to cause most PSUs to ramp up the fan speed and more than enough to kill a cheap PSU.

It works exactly as intended and is a great help for checking Power Supplies.

The prototype has digital voltmeters. I'm working on an analog version that uses Analog meters and maybe silkscreened markings instead of a stick-on Inkjet label.

It's not too bad for someone that isn't all that great at electronics, is it?

Keri

PS. Thanks to all here for the great advice on how to build and use it, especially Oklahoma Wolf.

PPS. Oh! I once made a special pliers thing out of a pair of Vise Grips. Well, I did have someone weld it for me but it was my idea. No pics though.

How about some more details (schematics / part numbers / etc.) for the KeriProductions ATX338 Load Tester?

[PCBONEZ]

Re: custom/home made gadgets, etc.

If it works, it works!

[c_hegge]

Re: custom/home made gadgets, etc.

Hi Everyone! I made this for cleaning dust out of computers after almost choking on a few when trying to fix overheating problems caused by dust-sealed CPU coolers. It consists of the following:

- A very high RPM fan (in this case a blower removed from a Dell GX270's CPU cooler)
- The neck from a lemonade bottle
- Two fan grills with a layer of foam sandwitched between them
- The bristles from a small brush
- The molex connector from a siezed case fan
- Lots of tape

So far, it has been fairly effective. To clean, I just put the hose from a bigger vacuum cleaner over the top and nearly all of the dust gets sucked out.

[Logistics]

Re: custom/home made gadgets, etc.

LoL! I remember one of the first things I made that had anything even remotely to do with electronics was taking a little alarm-type speaker which... I can't even imagine what it was originally for because it wasn't gigantic, but it wasn't tiny at about 1-1/4", but I hooked it up to the telephone wires in my room and put it in a little, six-inch baseball card box, and stuffed it with poly-fill to make the tone softer. My parents and friends were getting upset that I couldn't hear the phone ring from in my room so this was my solution. Haha!

[celica]

Re: custom/home made gadgets, etc.

yes i going to bluilt one because i think it is very important now to have a good psu for the computer , and psu are very expensive ... to put in the dustbin lol
i find this link this guy making the same thing like your tester but manage with computer very interressting
so http://www.bearblain.com/psu_test_2.htm
i going to make one but to monotoring all 12v1 , 12v2, 12v3, 5v and 3.3 v
thank you for the idea Keri ...
i m to making little lab for testing all stuff pc

[KeriJane]

Re: custom/home made gadgets, etc.

Hello.

My little tester is nothing more than a convenient box full of load resistors that are cooled by fans. The important testing is done by Oscilloscope.

I picked the 300 watt range because I felt this to be a good compromise.
300w is adequate to fully load and even overload most Power Supplies used in HP, Dell, Gateway computers.

Even at "only" 330w one must be careful to avoid damaging the power supply. For example, 196w (16A) can be drawn on 12v circuits alone and while not sounding like much this can (and has) kill a PSU.

It also represents the maximum amount of power that any normal single video card computer is likely to draw, so even if a PSU is rated for 500, 700 or even 1,000w it can approximate the most current that is likely to be drawn from it and thus simulate a running system.

Likewise, putting a 330w load upon a 500w PSU may not test it to capacity but will probably stress it enough to give a fair assessment of its condition.

THere is space in the prototype's housing for two more resistors that could put it in the 400w range.
More load would require a larger housing and more powerful fans.


If you would like to build your own, you need to determine what size and type of power resistors to use and how to cool them. Adequate cooling is essential both to prevent dangerous overheating and to reduce the temperature - related de-rating that will reduce the load after the resistors warm up.

Here's a handy site for determining how much power your system uses.... not as much as you would think!
http://extreme.outervision.com/PSUEngine

Have fun,
Keri

PS. In an emergency, the KeriProductions load tester series can be used as a convenient room heater or hair dryer! (or doorstop/paperweight)

[celica]

Re: custom/home made gadgets, etc.

hello
look like very good project , i want to know how to making that ...
keri come on

[lucky13]

Re: custom/home made gadgets, etc.

That would be the KeriProductions ATX1000. No release date yet....

Maybe KeriJane will come in and let us know...

have you looked at the pictures she posted of her design? You probably just need to add more power resistor so it can sink 1KW.

[celica]

Re: custom/home made gadgets, etc.

Well, this was already in the Test Equipment section but I made a home-made gadget....

The KeriProductions ATX338 Load Tester for ATX Power Supplies.

It provides a convenient set of fan-cooled resistors to load up a PSU while providing voltage readings and scope outputs. The total load is roughly 338 watts which is enough to cause most PSUs to ramp up the fan speed and more than enough to kill a cheap PSU.

It works exactly as intended and is a great help for checking Power Supplies.

The prototype has digital voltmeters. I'm working on an analog version that uses Analog meters and maybe silkscreened markings instead of a stick-on Inkjet label.

hello all , i m new in the forum , i nnedd to know if the psu checker can to test psu more than 1000 w , thank you very much

It's not too bad for someone that isn't all that great at electronics, is it?

Keri

PS. Thanks to all here for the great advice on how to build and use it, especially Oklahoma Wolf.

PPS. Oh! I once made a special pliers thing out of a pair of Vise Grips. Well, I did have someone weld it for me but it was my idea. No pics though.

hello all , i m new in the forum , i need to know if the psu checker can to test psu more than 1000 w , thank you very much

[PCBONEZ]

Re: custom/home made gadgets, etc.

I made a shovel out of a log once. - Power tools weren't allowed.

Made my own O-ring extractors out of SS rod.

Built a gas furnace out of scrap 1930's furnace parts. Added the safey shut-off and a thermostatic control. [That was back in the '80's. It's still in use.]

Made a tool to remove lock ring nuts [big] on power steering gear boxes.

I got the bent screwdriver deal too.

I made this thing to test model rocket chutes when I was a kid.
Cats really don't like being the test weight.

Custom made a power steering assembly for a car the never came with PS.
[Full power steering with hydraulic cylinders, not 'power assist' like most cars have.]

Made my own coil spring compressor. [Automotive / Front End]
No one makes one that works for that particular car. Really freakin' BIG springs.
I tried the standard tool and snapped two of them [the threaded rod] in half.

Made my own bushing press. [Also for suspension work.]

Made a bug catcher. Used a box with holes and a light bulb inside.
BIG fan in one end blowing into a nylon stocking for the 'collection' area.

I also cross pollinated Indian corn and pop corn to get multi-colored pop corn.
That takes two growing seasons to get the end product.

When I worked in a factory situation I made this clamp that would pinch off 100 PSI air hoses without cutting them so localized air leaks could be fixed without shutting the whole line down. A lot of machines there used air cylinders so there was always some hose somewhere coming apart at the end. [Whoever set that place up didn't believe in marking isolation valves.]

Too many to list really.
.

[ratdude747]

Re: custom/home made gadgets, etc.

better than socket a/370/7/5 where one bad move and the fan clip beaks the socket

thats where the socket 478 design comes from. removable clip system allows for better fan support and easier fan removal/installation. if you're lucky, the mobop bracket uses screws not clips... thank god lga775 uses screws without clips

[bgavin]

Re: custom/home made gadgets, etc.

KC8, thanks for the tip.
I was working a GX270 and found exactly that condition.

Ick.

Sewing machine oil, or ??

[kc8adu]

Re: custom/home made gadgets, etc.

some on the gx270 are very tight.i sometimes put a tiny bit of oil on the center pin from the bottom.let it wick in then push it out.rather not stress the board forcing the pin.
i have to watch myself when it comes to force.my friends say i could break an anvil.i break lots of tools too.

[bgavin]

Re: custom/home made gadgets, etc.

The easiest way to remove the Pins of Pain is to merely push them through from underneath.

Yep.
This is still a VIGOROUS undertaking.
The push-pin is blocked by the end of its outer assembly, so you have to push from an angle.
I find these damn things INCREDIBLY tight fitting.
Taking a pin punch and hammer to a planar board is so wrong, so many ways.

In my earlier life, I was an ASE certified mechanic, so I'm no stranger to building my own tools. A quick pass with the arc-torch provides sufficient heat to bend tools into interesting shapes. I have an old screwdriver bent 90 degrees to function as a lever pry bar. I should cut a slot into the blade so it can grab both sides of the top hat on the pin.

S478 retention brackets are ugly, shitty work.
If the machine was standard, instead of a Dell, I would replace with a metal screw-down bracket, and Thermalright XP90 cooler. But.. it's a Dell.

[ratdude747]

Re: custom/home made gadgets, etc.

yup, another s***-a** intel design

like the core2 duo- not until now is releasing the i7... quickpath is SOOOOOO... behind- amd has had hypertransport for... long enough to say intel is lagging behind a bit in the race. in the core 2 days, socket am2+ was rolling baby!

intel, get your s*** together

[Wizard]

Re: custom/home made gadgets, etc.

that what I do for Pushing these pegs out.

Cheers, Wizard