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  1. hevans1944

    powering 2 LEDS or Neons from a 240v feed?

    Maybe @cardiffboy22 could post a schematic diagram of his radio... those are always handy when attempting to restore and/or repair anything electronical in nature.
  2. hevans1944

    Reducing Voltage Drop over distance

    Which is why I asked what gauge his "Garden Railroad" was. You don't need 4 AWG to energize HO-gauge track if the track is confined to your average backyard garden. "O" gauge (without the center "third rail" Lionel favored) is often used for Garden Railroads, but it is still rather small-ish to...
  3. hevans1944

    Reducing Voltage Drop over distance

    @Stese, in an earlier thread you mentioned an HO-gauge model railroad that would be used outdoors. Is HO the same gauge as your "Garden Railroad" which is the topic of this thread? Just askin'... This is more like what I had in mind than an HO-gauge outdoor railroad.
  4. hevans1944

    Reducing Voltage Drop over distance

    I think they are readily available on eBay at exorbitant prices. They might still be manufactured for all I know. Simple coiled nichrome wire (like you find in clothes dryers) wrapped around a tapered ceramic cone with molded grooves to support and separate individual turns around the cone...
  5. hevans1944

    Controlling an Actuator

    @jeffie3, thank you for the very nice overview of different sawing methods and machines. I would be willing to help you get a motor-driven linear actuator attached to your horizontal band saw for the purpose of lifting it after the cutting is finished. We might even, together, figure out a way...
  6. hevans1944

    Reducing Voltage Drop over distance

    ...And how much voltage drop can your electric train engine tolerate under load? Current and voltage drop are related, and both should be considered. In smaller (indoor) track layouts, it is not uncommon to have multiple electrical connections to the rails at fairly frequent intervals, often as...
  7. hevans1944

    Controlling an Actuator

    Some folks have tried to get around some of the disadvantages of the horizontal band saw by using a circular abrasive "cut off" disk. We had one of those in our shop for awhile, but someone decided to use it without coolant and burned up a disk. Apparently the original installation of the...
  8. hevans1944

    Controlling an Actuator

    Sensible idea, Harald, but a horizontal band saw applies a virtually constant downward pressure on the blade, sometimes adjustable by moving a counterweight. The "leaky cylinder" has a piston that supports the blade mechanism during its downward (cutting) travel. The cylinder has an adjustable...
  9. hevans1944

    Controlling an Actuator

    I like the idea of using an actuator to lift the horizontal band saw above the work after making a cut. Not liking so much the idea of using an actuator to control the downward movement versus the present "leaky cylinder" mechanism. The optimal speed of the downward "cutting movement" depends on...
  10. hevans1944

    wanting to buy a new scope

    Years ago I had the opportunity to use a 16-channel Hewlett-Packard Logic Analyzer. I thought this would be a good tool for analyzing the circuit operation and perhaps troubleshooting TTL (Transistor-Transistor-Logic) circuits. This was during the 1970s and TTL was on the way out, while...
  11. hevans1944

    Automatic system for home light

    I am not a software professional. I hack small programs, but for anything really sophisticated I have found it best to hire someone who knows better than I how to do it. I haven't used flow charts or state diagrams since college, back in the 1970s. Didn't find either of them particularly useful...
  12. hevans1944

    Experiment to show that current leads voltage by 90° in capacitor (Using RC circuit & Oscilloscope)

    The video that was posted on YouTube by @Edward Yuen seemed somewhat self-serving to me, plus I didn't really see how he actually proved the ninety-degree voltage vs current relationship for sinusoidal wave forms applied to a capacitor. This was "experimentally verified" with only three discrete...
  13. hevans1944

    Recommendation for side cutters

    Which ever cutter you finally choose, NEVER use them to cut steel wire, such as piano wire or spring wire or anything harder than copper wire. That means you should NEVER loan your cutter to ANYONE. Don't ask why I have given you this unsolicited advice. Diagonal cutting pliers (the proper name...
  14. hevans1944

    3 Phase Motor - 3 Individual Circuit Breakers - Detect if 1 Breaker Tripped And Shut Down Motor

    Connecting the opto-coupler in parallel with the breaker will also require adding a diode in parallel with the internal LED input of the opto-coupler along with a series current-limiting resistor to prevent damaging the opto-coupler by applying full line voltage across it when the circuit...
  15. hevans1944

    Automatic system for home light

    Many commercial PIR-activated outdoor flood-lights also have a visible-light sensor, often just a simple solar cell or a CdS light-sensitive resistor, to monitor ambient light and prevent the flood-lights from activating during daylight hours. Most street lights also have ambient light sensors...
  16. hevans1944

    single-phase motor speed control

    AFAIK, the ONLY single-phase motor that is made to ALLOW for speed control is an AC/DC Universal Wound brushed motor, typically found in small appliances such as hand mixers. You might be able to use a variable frequency drive on a single-phase motor, but it will not be very efficient, nor will...
  17. hevans1944

    Automatic system for home light

    Have you tried Google to find a commercial, off-the-shelf, passive infrared switch (with time-delay to turn-off) that will do exactly as you have described? Is there any particular reason you want to re-invent this wheel? PIR light switches are inexpensive. Or is this just a learning project to...
  18. hevans1944

    Remote control beach trolley.

    @Menewbie, we here will believe the "Problem solved" when we see a picture, or better yet a video, of your beach cart rolling down the beach with you operating it with your handheld remote control. Please keep us up to date on your progress. I wouldn't mind building something like your beach...
  19. hevans1944

    Experiments with Three-Plate "Capacitors". Center Plate Being a Coil

    Wonderful! I did sh!t like this when I was a kid, trying to figure out how things "electronical" worked. Of course, way back then, I didn't have a personal computer with a sound card to play with. No one did, because they hadn't been invented yet. So, one of the very first pieces of test gear I...
  20. hevans1944

    Video over laser

    Yes, maybe. No, probably. The correct answer depends on the nature of your "video," which you have not bothered to describe. My television set has a provision to input "composite video," also known as NTSC video, using a shielded coaxial cable. Typical cable lengths are on the order of one...
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