Heathkit clock available
I just got an email announcing this:
https://shop.heathkit.com/shop/product/most-reliable-clock-tm-gc-1006-26
They bill it as a "most reliable" clock. From the description it appears to be an AC line disciplined clock with battery backup.
I only mention it here because of the periodic discussion of AC line discipline and because I suspect I'm not the only one who remembers the old Heathkit fondly.
Sent from my iPhone
before you buy AC line disciplined clock read that
It hertz when you do that – power grid to stop regulating 60 Hz frequency
73
KJ6UHN
Alex
On 8/8/2016 2:29 PM, Nick Sayer via time-nuts wrote:
I just got an email announcing this:
https://shop.heathkit.com/shop/product/most-reliable-clock-tm-gc-1006-26
They bill it as a "most reliable" clock. From the description it appears to be an AC line disciplined clock with battery backup.
I only mention it here because of the periodic discussion of AC line discipline and because I suspect I'm not the only one who remembers the old Heathkit fondly.
Sent from my iPhone
time-nuts mailing list -- time-nuts@febo.com
To unsubscribe, go to https://www.febo.com/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/time-nuts
and follow the instructions there.
No virus found in this message.
Checked by AVG - www.avg.com
Version: 2016.0.7690 / Virus Database: 4633/12775 - Release Date: 08/08/16
Hi Nick:
The GC-1000 was the clock that not only received and was set by WWV (or WWVH) but also had a disciplined
oscillator(HFDO) at 3.6 MHz.
http://www.prc68.com/I/HeathkitGC1000.shtml
Tom: Have you made stability plots for the GC-1000 HFDO?
I recently got a Saunders Assoc. 150B Crystal Impedance Meter and the property sticker on the back says Heath Company.
I'm guessing they tested some or all of the 3.6 MHz crystals for the GC-1000 to be sure they would "pull" as needed.
I'd like to get my hands on a loose one of those to test it.
http://www.prc68.com/I/CrystalImpedanceMeters.html
--
Have Fun,
Brooke Clarke
http://www.PRC68.com
http://www.end2partygovernment.com/2012Issues.html
The lesser of evils is still evil.
-------- Original Message --------
I just got an email announcing this:
https://shop.heathkit.com/shop/product/most-reliable-clock-tm-gc-1006-26
They bill it as a "most reliable" clock. From the description it appears to be an AC line disciplined clock with battery backup.
I only mention it here because of the periodic discussion of AC line discipline and because I suspect I'm not the only one who remembers the old Heathkit fondly.
Sent from my iPhone
time-nuts mailing list -- time-nuts@febo.com
To unsubscribe, go to https://www.febo.com/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/time-nuts
and follow the instructions there.
The GC-1000 was the Most Accurate Clock. This new GC-1006 is Most
Reliable without mentioning accuracy.
The ad says that the standby oscillator can be calibrated by pushing
some buttons on the back. Wondering how they do that almost makes me
want to buy a simple clock that is $100 per pound. Perhaps there is a
motor that turns a tuning capacitor to make the standby oscillator match
the line frequency. More likely software changes the number of counts of
some inexpensive XO per cycle.
I have an alarm clock with 2" seven segment LEDS that I can read without
glasses. Its backup oscillator is LC, and somewhat faster than the line.
It has carried me through the short outages I've experienced.
There's not enough info on what's behind the Santa Cruz rebirth of
Heathkit. If I thought they were solid, I'd buy a kit to help prime the
pump, so to speak. As it is, I'll be looking for neon-colored seven
segment arrays a bit taller than those in the GC-1006.
No doubt, there are many schemes for disciplining 60 (or 50) Hz
oscillators with 1 PPS.
TIA for any helpful comments.
Bill Hawkins
Frankly, I don’t know why they didn’t make it a GPS clock. That would truly be a worthy successor to the GC-1000. Well, I do suspect I know why… and it’s not flattering. :)
Heck, if I thought I’d sell more than a handful, I’d make a desk-side GPS alarm clock and put it on Tindie. I’m actually fairly confident I could match their price. My problem is that I have no 3D modeling skills, so I don’t know what I’d do for a case for it. My usual trick of putting PCBs on the outside of extruded aluminum tubes (thanks go to Dave Jones for that) doesn’t seem like it would be apropos for this.
But for sure a GPS module, a handful of buttons, 7 7-seg LEDs (I’d display a 10 Hz digit), a little phototransistor dimming circuit and an ATMega… $99 retail? Certainly doable.
On Aug 9, 2016, at 11:03 PM, Bill Hawkins bill.iaxs@pobox.com wrote:
The GC-1000 was the Most Accurate Clock. This new GC-1006 is Most
Reliable without mentioning accuracy.
The ad says that the standby oscillator can be calibrated by pushing
some buttons on the back. Wondering how they do that almost makes me
want to buy a simple clock that is $100 per pound. Perhaps there is a
motor that turns a tuning capacitor to make the standby oscillator match
the line frequency. More likely software changes the number of counts of
some inexpensive XO per cycle.
I have an alarm clock with 2" seven segment LEDS that I can read without
glasses. Its backup oscillator is LC, and somewhat faster than the line.
It has carried me through the short outages I've experienced.
There's not enough info on what's behind the Santa Cruz rebirth of
Heathkit. If I thought they were solid, I'd buy a kit to help prime the
pump, so to speak. As it is, I'll be looking for neon-colored seven
segment arrays a bit taller than those in the GC-1006.
No doubt, there are many schemes for disciplining 60 (or 50) Hz
oscillators with 1 PPS.
TIA for any helpful comments.
Bill Hawkins
time-nuts mailing list -- time-nuts@febo.com
To unsubscribe, go to https://www.febo.com/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/time-nuts
and follow the instructions there.
Hi Bill:
For night viewing ceiling projection clocks are the way to go. I have both very old ones and a new (WWVB) one.
http://www.prc68.com/I/Shadow-Clock.shtml
--
Have Fun,
Brooke Clarke
http://www.PRC68.com
http://www.end2partygovernment.com/2012Issues.html
The lesser of evils is still evil.
-------- Original Message --------
The GC-1000 was the Most Accurate Clock. This new GC-1006 is Most
Reliable without mentioning accuracy.
The ad says that the standby oscillator can be calibrated by pushing
some buttons on the back. Wondering how they do that almost makes me
want to buy a simple clock that is $100 per pound. Perhaps there is a
motor that turns a tuning capacitor to make the standby oscillator match
the line frequency. More likely software changes the number of counts of
some inexpensive XO per cycle.
I have an alarm clock with 2" seven segment LEDS that I can read without
glasses. Its backup oscillator is LC, and somewhat faster than the line.
It has carried me through the short outages I've experienced.
There's not enough info on what's behind the Santa Cruz rebirth of
Heathkit. If I thought they were solid, I'd buy a kit to help prime the
pump, so to speak. As it is, I'll be looking for neon-colored seven
segment arrays a bit taller than those in the GC-1006.
No doubt, there are many schemes for disciplining 60 (or 50) Hz
oscillators with 1 PPS.
TIA for any helpful comments.
Bill Hawkins
time-nuts mailing list -- time-nuts@febo.com
To unsubscribe, go to https://www.febo.com/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/time-nuts
and follow the instructions there.
On 8/10/2016 11:31 AM, Nick Sayer via time-nuts wrote:
Frankly, I don’t know why they didn’t make it a GPS clock. That would truly be a worthy successor to the GC-1000. Well, I do suspect I know why… and it’s not flattering. :)
As I recall ( At 70 my memory is not quite as accurate as it used to be)
by the time GPS was a main stream reality Heath was well on it's way to
getting out of the KIT business and was more focused on the educational
market
Not sure if the GC-1000 manuals are available on the usual freebie sites
(please check there first) If NOT I have a PDF copies of both the
assembly manual as well as the "Technical " manual. I offer for free to
list members who are prior ArtekMedia/ArtekManuals customers. Direct
your requests to manuals@artekmanuals.com ONLY, requests sent to the
list will be simply ignored
On Wed, 10 Aug 2016 16:55:39 -0400, you wrote:
On 8/10/2016 11:31 AM, Nick Sayer via time-nuts wrote:
Frankly, I dont know why they didnt make it a GPS clock. That would truly be a worthy successor to the GC-1000. Well, I do suspect I know why and its not flattering. :)
As I recall ( At 70 my memory is not quite as accurate as it used to be)
by the time GPS was a main stream reality Heath was well on it's way to
getting out of the KIT business and was more focused on the educational
market
That is how I remember it. The first consumer level handheld GPS
receivers I ran across were the single channel Magellan units after
1989 and Heathkit was all but dead by then although they did not
officially stop producing kits until 1992. The Heathkit outlet store
was not far from where I lived then and I tracked the progress of
Heathkit by observing its condition.
Given the cost of the GPS receivers, I can see why a GPS clock did not
become available for some time after that when increasing integration
allowed inexpensive GPS receivers.
On Aug 10, 2016, at 4:01 PM, David davidwhess@gmail.com wrote:
On Wed, 10 Aug 2016 16:55:39 -0400, you wrote:
On 8/10/2016 11:31 AM, Nick Sayer via time-nuts wrote:
Frankly, I dont know why they didnt make it a GPS clock. That would truly be a worthy successor to the GC-1000. Well, I do suspect I know why
and its not flattering. :)
As I recall ( At 70 my memory is not quite as accurate as it used to be)
by the time GPS was a main stream reality Heath was well on it's way to
getting out of the KIT business and was more focused on the educational
market
That is how I remember it. The first consumer level handheld GPS
receivers I ran across were the single channel Magellan units after
1989 and Heathkit was all but dead by then although they did not
officially stop producing kits until 1992. The Heathkit outlet store
was not far from where I lived then and I tracked the progress of
Heathkit by observing its condition.
Given the cost of the GPS receivers, I can see why a GPS clock did not
become available for some time after that when increasing integration
allowed inexpensive GPS receivers.
What I meant by my remark was that I was surprised that the new Heathkit did not put out a GPS clock instead of what they did.
But for sure a GPS module, a handful of buttons, 7 7-seg LEDs (I’d display a 10 Hz digit), a little phototransistor dimming circuit and an ATMega… $99 retail? Certainly doable.
Almost everyone one Earth already owns a GPS sync'd alarm clock. My
iPhone does all I need, pretty decent sync to UTC, big numbers I can
read without glasses and it makes noise when I need to get up. The
iPhone sells for way over $100. But any cheap $99 android tablet can
function as a digital clock. All You need is a stand. These phones
has pretty much obsoleted alarm clocks, cameras, Dedicated GPS
receivers for car navigation, and 100 other things
Heat does have one product that will do well. A mod board for an
older heath signal generator. It's about $30 and an easy retrofit.
Digital clocks are just not the amazing technical wonders they once
were.
--
Chris Albertson
Redondo Beach, California