[R-390] Panel meters

[Tisha Hayes]

To go about it in the way I am considering I would use a plastic bezel, sort
of the same thickness as the plastic lid on a coffee can but translucent
white so it diffuses the light evenly. I would print the dial face using a
color laser printer on a very thin paper like vellum or onionskin.

I have done similar things before with other meters but really need to buy a
junker R-390A panel meter so I could experiment with how much room there is
to work with.

In modern times I will probably use a low intensity white LED and add a
second set of connections on the case for the dial lamp connection. A dab of
hot glue would hold the LED in place and provide illumination from behind
the diffused plastic with enough distance so it does not leave a bright
spot. You can do that with some of the LED's that have different lighting
patterns.


On Thu, Apr 21, 2011 at 12:45 PM, Dennis Wade
<sacramento.cyclist at gmail.com>wrote:

> I'd like to hear more about how one would add back lighting to a
> meter; not just the '390A meters (hazardous material issues), but
> backlighting meters in general.
>
>            Dennis
>
> On Thu, Apr 21, 2011 at 9:21 AM, Tisha Hayes <tisha.hayes at gmail.com>
> wrote:
> > This may be blasphemous but I always wanted to change the panel meters
> from
> > white on black to black on white with some additional scaling.
> >
> > We have the JPEG and TIFF renderings of the panel meter faceplates but
> they
> > are very grainy looking
> >
> > I figured it I went with black on white I could laser print it in vellum
> > paper and glue it to a translucent bezel. Remove the old, radioactive
> bezels
> > and add backlighting to the meters.
> >
> > Before someone gets all excited about me handling radioactive materials I
> > used to be licensed to handle radioactive sources (Cobalt 60, Radium 226,
> > Cesium 137, Americium 241, Polonium 210), including those that posed a
> > threat of airborne contamination so I know the right steps, have the
> proper
> > clothing and respiratory protection and have the equipment to monitor for
> > external contamination (alpha, beta,gamma).
> >
> > Definitely not something I would want to (or legally could) do for
> someone
> > else. The freaking NRC would be all over me if I went into the home
> business
> > of retrofitting radioactive panel meters or dial knobs.
> >
> > --
> > Ms. Tisha Hayes/ AA4HA
> > -
> > *“If toast always lands butter-side down, and cats always land on their
> > feet, what happens if you strap toast on the back of a cat and drop it?”
> > Steven Wright
> >
> > ***
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>
>
> --
> "If they trust you, it is an extraordinary privilege, and you simply
> can't abuse it."
>       - A. Alan Post  1914-2011.  California Legislative Analyst 1949-1977.
>
> -------------------------
> Dennis L. Wade
> KG6ZI
> Carmichael, CA
>



-- 
Ms. Tisha Hayes/ AA4HA
-
*“If toast always lands butter-side down, and cats always land on their
feet, what happens if you strap toast on the back of a cat and drop it?”
Steven Wright

***