Tektronix 576 Curve Tracer - Part 1

I always wanted a decent curve tracer to check up on replacement parts with a bit more scrutiny. But the price was alwas a limiting factor. And the Tektronix model here is also quite heavy, so shipping usually almost doubles that. By the end of 2023, an online friend said he had to sell off his, due to lack of time, space and money. Add that to another online contact making a journey by car earlier in 2024, and I just couldn't pass up the chance! So, here we are: part one of either two or three (most likely three) of the in-depth restoration of this classic device!

(note: not visible in the video becuase I stupidly didn't think much of it at the time: I found a loose resistor resting smack against one of the test fixture onnectors in it. So any less-deep restoration might have missed that and ended up with a short eventually. So yay! I found a good reason after the fact at least!)

0:00 Intro / First Look 2:20 What Is It For? 3:48 CRT Driver / CRT Removal 5:15 Test Fixture / Buttons / LV Power Supply and Rectifier 7:02 Knobs / Soldered Wires / Filter Caps 9:15 Belly Plate and Transformer View / Step Generator / Rear Panel 10:21 Current Shunts and CRT Amplifier / CRT Shield / Handle / Final Knobs 12:05 Front Panel / CRT Driver Removal / Oil Cap / Compensation Assembly / Relay 13:20 Chassis Front / Button Boards / Mains Transformer 14:50 Power Resistors / Collector Supply 16:00 Wiring Loom Tangle / Collector Supply Unwrapping 17:00 Test Fixture / Cleanup! 18:30 Test Plate Restore / Wring Cleanup / Banana Plug Cleaning 19:37 Left-Right Switch Clean / 22Ohm Issue 20:39 Mode Switch Clean 22:23 Rebuilding Fixture / Decals / Safety Interlock Switch 24:57 Wire Repair / Case Closed / Lamp Test 25:56 Summary of Part 1 / Credits / Outtakes

General Information: https://w140.com/tekwiki/wiki/576

Music (in order)

My Train's A Comin' - Unicorn Heads Town of 23 Bars - Unicorn Heads First Aid - Letter Box Dusty Fingers - DJ Williams Frame of Mine - Freedom Trail Studio No Good Right - Freedom Trail Studio (YouTube Audio Library)

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Thanks to everybody who signed up already! ... https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pQRmlUGJsZA