WB0SMX

  Making the Heathkit IG-102 Signal Generator Useful Filed in Kits on Apr.27, 2015 While I am very happy with my homebrew 8640jr signal generator, I’ve had this old IG-102 RF Signal Generator from Heathkit hanging around for a decade or so. I was curious what kind of levels it was capable of, so I dragged it out and hooked it up to the scope to investigate a bit.   Heathkit IG-102 The main problem I have always had with this generator is the connectors on the front for the RF and AF out. They are not commonplace anymore, so replacing them with BNC connectors made sense. Prior to doing this, I always used a coax with alligator clips to connect, which wasn’t very secure. I found a few panel mount BNC connectors in my junk box, and installed them into the same holes as the original connectors.     Back side of BNC Connector installation   Front side BNC Connectors Installed   Now that I could get decent cables on the generator, I started making meas...

  PCB Fabrication Experiments – First Board Finished Filed in homebrew on Apr.04, 2015 After confirming that the HP Laserjet 400 Black/White Laser Printer worked good for toner transfer, I wanted to try the HP Laserjet 200 Color Laser Printer to see if there was a difference. It actually worked very well, and I used that transfer to complete the process of creating my first PC Board by toner transfer.   Finished PCB made from Toner Transfer with Laserjet 200 Color Laser Printer. I have been using the GCB 9″ Creative Laminator that I bought from Amazon way back in 2012.   GCB 9″ Creative Laminator (1701860 Laminator) I also have a Cen-Tech Infrared Thermometer from Harbor freight that I recently bought on closeout. I ran the bare board through 3 times, until the board was too hot to hold comfortably. The thermometer does not read well off of the shiny copper surface, so I just had to guess on this. Then I laid the paper with the toner side down onto the board an...