Soldering some Electronic Kits

Yes, I know what you're thinking. Electronic kits and at my age too.

I used to buy some of these when I was in my teens, learning electronics and being a member of an electronics club. Many a times were spent on figuring out why the kit did not work after I have soldered it. Mind you, if I can locate back some of these kits, it would have answered my question.

For you see, what you see and interpret at that moment in time, will be very different in the future or past. For example, when I look at my soldering in the past, it was perfect but fast forward decades later, my future self would have remarked and critised the very same work which in the past, I would have thought it to be perfect.

And another example in thinking is that when I was going that kid, it was for the purpose of self satisfaction and also the potential to show-off to your friends (provided it worked in the first place). But now, its nothing more than a cheap and fast alternative module to a problem/project i.e. 'Off-the-Shelf' solutions.

Anyway, today is an exercise in futility. This was for a project for a friend who wanted to light up his Aida Cruise ship. The idea is to 'simulate' a laser-light show in the ship and my idea was to suggest a number of LEDs which increasingly lights the area when an outside source was detected. In other words, a VU Meter...

And right off the bat, the said VU Meter electronic kit was not available.
So, I had to get two other electronics kits to perform the same function.

The first was actually the VU Meter section which would light up the LEDs when the Audio signal source is increased

You can tell right away that this is a very cheap kit due to the age of the PCB, its etching quality  and also, oxidized copper tracks.
At the same time, please note the cleanliness of my soldering.

OK, this part is done. Normally, you can now plug in a 9 volt battery and solder an audio jack, then connect to your Hi-Fi, MP3 player, etc. But no, not for me because I don't want to waste my audio jacks...

Here is the second part of the citcuit. A Megaphone which consists an amplifier with a mix and no speaker.

Again, please note the wonderful soldering skills of mine

And so, after combining the two circuits together and some component adjustment, it works.

Oh, and the futility?
My friend took one look at it and that's it. The End.

What a waste of time and money. I really have to stop believing stuff when people talk and separate fancy talk from facts.

Did she or didn't she?

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My dad told me that he dreamt of Mother being back in her room, sleeping on her side of the bed. While she was changing her adult nappy, my Dad came down to get her medications.

Then he woke up.

I asked my dad, "Does this means she came back?". My dad could not answer me.

[Update] A few days later...
Kristine - I dream that Grandma helped me with my homework.

Kaelynn - I dreamt that Grandma bought me ice-cream and I also helped her cross the road.

[Update] A few more days later...
Me - I was a nice morning and the Sun was bright. Mom woke up on the Hospital Bed in that room wearing her grey shirt/dress and she wanted to go to the toilet. She Iooked very healthy but complained that she sprained her shoulders. I know what is going to happen and I advised her to get to the Hospital, which she refused. I called the rest of the Nurses to try persuade her but she still refused, even when we're all at the house's back toilet.

Tailes from Hobby HQ

I was at Hobby HQ today and met one of the regulars there. I do not know his name but indirectly, we call him, "Khou Lou", which is Cantonese for Tall Fella. The topics discussed ranges from Politics to modeling and finally, to a really off-topic: Rats

1. There was this one time, when he came home, he spied a pair of tiny rodents literally dancing on his table. And they really looked like those from Mickey Mouse because of their large ears. So when he opened the door even more, the rats noticed him and started to run. Or jumped as in their panicked state, they wanted to get away and as far from him as possible. So, when they

2. His friend has a better method of disposing rodents. Normally, what people do was to trap them in and then either dropped the cage into the water to drown the rats or, left the cage in the Sun. According to him, the former is very cruel because the rats have to gasp for air, which is really suffering. But let's come back to his friend's method, which was the highlight of this topic.

What his friend does is to take the trapped rats into the middle of a field, and then, soak them with petrol. Next, he place the cage's entrance in front of an open flame. As soon as the door to the cage was opened, by reflex, the scared rat would rush out, thinking it is free.

Instead, it became and instant fireball on four legs....

Lou Shee Fun

Mommy said, Kristine claimed Mommy caught a lot of rats, cut off their tails and painted them white...

And that's is how Lou Shee Fun was made from...

Oh-oh...

Something's wrong with Blogger. I cannot access all m y posts...

Letting go...

Just had a dream this morning.

Apparently, I was deal a fatal Lightsaber blow just under my stomach, slightly on the left hips (I know because I saw it on the mirror). Although the wound has started to heal, I am afraid I do not have much time left.

So, I know I am going to the Other Side and told my assistant not to worry. I am glad to go over there but its the pain of dying that I am afraid of. Because we're Jedis (WTF?) we can communicate to each other when we brush our teeth (really, WTF....?)

And so, here I am sitting down, waiting to die...

Hold my Hand...

Got this somewhere from the Internet:

A little girl and her father were crossing a bridge.
The father was kind of scared so he asked his little daughter:
"Sweetheart, please hold my hand so that you don't fall into the river."
The little girl said:
"No, Dad. You hold my hand."
"What's the difference?" Asked the puzzled father.
"There's a big difference," replied the little girl.
"If I hold your hand and something happens to me, chances are that I may let your hand go. But if you hold my hand, I know for sure that no matter what happens, you will never let my hand go." :')

Like if you love your dad. ♥

1/72 WWII Pilot Figure Set

Just got a set of those 1/72 Pilot figures for whatever reasons you think is valid. This is one of those 'stock-up' buying spree which, to me, does not need any explanation save for the fact that I was desperate for some 1/72 figures which, do not look like any ground infantry. Of course I can go to eBay, the infamous eBay, that eBay... but then, not only would it costs me three times more, I would not be supporting my LHS (Local Hobby Shop)

And so, here it is, the big wonderful box, with colourful pictures of all the WWII pilots

The funny part is that the box is big but the contents were...
Anyway, you get six figures. But Hasegawa has generously included another identical set in case you wanted to make twin pilots

So, rule of thumb is, 1/35 is about two finger ridges tall while 1/72 is 3/4 single finger ridge.

Wrong number! Wrong number!

I've forgotten the actual time and date. Saved this in the draft section where Blogger conveniently 'forgot' the info.



Phone rang

Caller: Hello, can I speak to Ms. Yati?

Me: I'm sorry, she is no longer here. And this is a wrong number.

Caller: Can I speak to Ms. Hui?

Me: She's no longer here too. And this is a wrong number.

Caller: Is this HELP College?

Me: Er... erm... yes, this was HELP College a hundred years ago, now its a house and this is you calling a wrong number.

Caller: Huh? ...... Ok, ok. Thanks.

Me: .....

(So tempted to shout 'GOTCHA!' instead)

The things I get from eBay

They just arrived today and I am quite happy as I thought they would come in May. There is a reason why I need these two items now since its not easy to get them here.

1. The 1/150 scale figures

Actually, they can be bought locally but for the price of RM10.00, you get just a bit. So, for a few more ringgit, I get 100 figures instead, but with the same quality . These will be used for Revell's 1/144 u-2540 Cutaway Submarine. But of course, knowing that this is too good to be true (the price), I suspect it could be recasted from some other model kits...

2. The 100 White OSRAM TopLEDs

Ha. This is a sure winner. I have checked the OSRAM website and it costs about USD2.00 per LED and you have to contact their local distributors. So, one click of the mouse, I get 100 for less than 65 sen each. How about that?

Company Re-activation

Somewhere in May, 2012

I am going to 're-activate' my registered company. It went dormant after I went into my two last jobs. Yeah, I should have paid more attention to it. Goodness knows how much fine i am going to get...

Anyway, just set up a gmail email account for it today.

[Update: August 2012]
OK. I am not going to reactivate it after speaking to a very experienced person now am I going to start a new company now despite my itchy fingers wanting to do so. Because I am not so certain on this path I am taking.

Yeah, might as well start looking for a job and stop this electronic lighting for model kit nonsense.

Marcus ont he rebound

i love you youare my angle. She smiles. Don't be foold, its holiday and there are no one lse to call as he only has your nyumber

09052012 1843

Kristine had some time off today and so, decided to paint her other 'pain by numbers' canvas which we got for her when we were in VIVA some time ago. See that maniacal grin?
That's because the canvas was for the both of them to share and she, well, 'owned' it all.

Man, the way she is concentrating, looks more like some old Aunty

Its just a painting but looking at her all the time, its as if she's painting very fine details. I am not sure what happened to the canvas after this because I myself am curious to see the results.

2020 Draw

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We need to go back to that place, the 2020 Furniture thingy as we had submitted our names for some lucky draw. And so, it was back to Puchong again.

The girls were eager to be at that plane. Not.

Panoramic shot of the area

Apart from the attraction of the first prize, food also helps draw in the crowd.

And some actually well, nothing much to say la...

Thanks to the DJ's professionalism, the crowd was quite enegized

No, we did not win the first prize. And if we did, I would not even tell you what it was in case thieves read my blog and come after me.

Help me choose

While testing the new 'sound' for Vee-Chai, I asked Kaelynn which buzzer sounds better; the alarm horn type (sounds like Wira alarm) or the buzzer type.

Me: Girl, which sound is better?

Kaelynn: I cannot choose

Me: Why?

Kaelynn: Because this is your car, so I cannot choose for you

Me: .....

The Maturity of Kaelynn

Wife just related an incident to me:

Yesterday, she bought some Yau Chae Kuay and upon reaching home, called Kristine and Kaelynn to come and eat them. Both said, 'No' and ran off.

Minutes later, Kaelynn returned and asked my Wife if she is sad because they did not eat the Yau Char Kuai after she bought for them? And then she continued, I will eat it for you...

Vintage Presents from Richard

While Richard passed me the secret project, he also passed me some of his brother's unwanted model kits, which I gladly took. This was because he mentioned that the kits in question was done by his brother many years ago. And so, guesstimating his age and his brother, the kits could be very old indeed. The main reason why I said yes was because he mentioned submarines which you can see the insides.

And the only ones I know, apart from the Revell U-2540 which I was working on, was the Revell's Polaris and another German sub. And boy, was I right...

And so, these are the kits richard kindly gave to me. An aircraft carrier, which suspiciously looked like the Enterprise, Revell's Polaris Sub and the German U-47, A Matchbox instruction sheet for a Tomcat, an Airfix Gun Emplacement kit which I have never seen before and a Fujimi 1/76 diorama accessory.

A closer look at the aircraft carrier. Since I am not an expert at Naval Models, I cannot tell what this is but it just looks like the Enterprise.

And it came with some planes such as Phantoms and what looked like Ravens and they're all completely out of scale to each other. The only consolation is that this carrier will float on water...

Next up is the Fujimi 1/76. I think I used to see this in the 80's where the Anthonian Bookstore was the main source for them,

And when I opened the box, whoa!

This is so cool!

This is from Airfix, which, even during my younger years, I have never seen such model before. This is going to be very exciting...

OK, there were no instruction sheets on this but I think, I can modify it to suit my future projects.

Hokay, coming to the main subject. This is the Revell 1/125 German Sub U047. Its length is 21". which is a little bit longer than the 1/144 U-2540 Submarine. What is so nice is that its a cutaway too. Lighting possibilities? You bet!

And when I opened the box, it was partly built and the decals were, well, used

There were no instruction sheet and so, if I need to work on it, I would need to search for more information on the Internet. Oh, yeah, I have to remove the glued parts before I can do anything else on it. Still, let's see how my U-2540 works out.

This is the Revell 1/253 Polaris Submarine which I was waiting for. I am not sure why I like Submarines all of a sudden. Maybe because I missed out on the Bandai Shinkai 6500 or maybe I am still enamoured by the nuclear submarine, Stingray.

OK, so the instruction sheets are still there but the stand is missing, and so are some other parts.

However, one good thing is that MOST of the parts are still there

And the other half of the hull is not glued. If I were to light it up and put some sounds into it, I need to revise my design as due to the space limitation in the model, its going to be a challenge. And without the stand, its not that easy either.

All three ships lined up. Nice or not?

My new SMD soldering jig

Actually, this came to me by accident. I knew that with so many Cylon Raider PCBs that needs to be soldered, the normal way of sticking it to a piece of double-sided tape and making them less tacky does not work anymore. So, I have to think big, as in production line big. But how?

The first idea was to have a turntable. This would solve my first problem of the double-sided tape. It is very troublesome and time consuming ripping the PCB off and putting it back on another angle every time I need to solder a new component or, troubleshoot. And if the tape is sometimes less tacky, pulling the PCB off by force would mean accidents with the components. By having a turntable, I can eliminate this problem.

Secondly, with the double-sided tape, I can only work on one PCB at a time. By having a turntable with a large 'table' in theory, I can eliminate this problem too.

And so, by accident, I saw this for sale at the Multifilla counter. Initially, I was there to look for some clear 2mm acrylic rods which, ran out. Then, the Plastruct ladders are also, 'out of stock' as well.

Anyway, for RM20.00, this is worth it because, its not easy to find any used 5 ¼ Hard Discs where I stay and a real 'Lazy Susan' is out of the question too since its too big. So, this is a nice solution, where, a gutted hard disc space serves as a base for the upturned motor.

Alas, in my limited time, I could not go to the Pasar Road shop which sells the round glass covers for rice cookers (yes, it does exist) as the table and so, I got a Rm1.00 metal dish instead. It needs to be either metal, porcelain or glass since I am using a soldering iron on them. Unfortunately, the curved rim of the dish is causing some problems, which affected the quality of the soldering. I need to find another 'table'. Fast.

The tiredness of it all

Kaelynn had a very exciting night. This was the scene after we came back to the house from dropping Kristine off to school.

Mundane observations

After taking Kaelynn to school, I needed to stock up some immediate groceries, namely, edible stuff that can be used to encourage some kids to eat their breakfast.

Am I seeing this right? It costs more not to have sugar?
With sugar, its RM3.99 while without, its RM4.69.
WTF?

Bought some of this bread because well, it tastes great but the girls hated it. I am going to let them try again tomorrow.