Docs For Old Oscilloscopes?

Dan Olson asks: "I recently became the owner of a RCA WO-91B Oscilloscope, and it did not come with a manual. Does anybody have any idea where I could come by one?" Oscilloscopes are one of those geeky things that usually pop up in auctions, old electronic shops and other random surplus outlets. Surely many of us have seen one, simply couldn't resist, and bought it, only to find that it was too difficult to operate without a manual? For those of you in this situation, what did you do? Throw it in the storage unit and forget it even existed, or were you able to at least find some information to make it usable? If you were able to do the latter, what sources did you use?

Re:Manual?

[1101z]

I must not know how to use a o-scope ether because your scope has that fancy digital stuff. Why would you need a manual. Here is a universial manual. 1.) find button/switch labbel power. 2a.) Play with x and y position until, you center the flat line. 2b.) get focus until it is as fine as posable and play with the Inens until it is visable but not overly. 3.) Hook up a probe to the test pattern and make sure that everything is ok. Make sure the scope is in cal all the way to one end usally clicks in. 4.) Set the time base set the voltage, I have never seen one that did not say V/cm(or division). How often do you need an external trigger. Then just pick ac, dc. And hook up the probe to whatever you need need to mesure.
I have never seen a O-scope manual just used them in EE labs, and learned along the way. Only even came up once when as EE labs tend to do we had to do some off the wall thing and need to know some weird info about the way the scope worked.

WIBNI

[Tackhead]

Wouldn't It Be Nice If...

...PDFs of them were made available by owners in a way similar to that in which 80s arcade game schematics are archived online?

Sigh... I've got one 'scope that I can use just fine, but have no idea what it's supposed to be capable of, 'cuz it's from a manufacturer (TelequipmenT anyone?) I don't recognize.

And I've got one tube-based antique, that's got no circuit boards - it's just tubes, sockets, and resistors/capacitors soldered together by their leads. Not a homebrew/kit, it's professionally-made. Just very, very old. And (sigh again!) the test mode works, but it doesn't respond to input signals. Lord, I'd love to debug this thing, just for the hell of it. Real bakelite knobs and buttons even!

Holy crap!

[Tackhead]

Bad form to post twice in a row to the same thread... but Google rocks ;-)

The Vintage Audio, Video, and Television Site [callnetuk.com]

No, it didn't cover my 'scope, but it turns out that TelequipmenT was a British company bought out by Tek in the 70s. Other pics on their site seem to put the date of my tube-based 'scope in the mid-1950s, judging from its general appearance.

Sweeeeeeeeeet!

Manual?

[nuggz]

Is it really that hard, you just kinda plug it in, set the speed thingie, and it goes.
Most of the labels are pretty explanitory.
or maybe I have no idea how to use mine, anyone got a good intro to uses for them?

w7fg Vintage Manuals

[Matt_Bennett]

I was able to get a (photocopy of a) manual for one of my old (dead) scopes- an old Dumont 1100P- I believe they have been out of business for over 30 years. I got mine from W7FG [w7fg.com] Looking through his catalog (of photocopies), I don't see your RCA in his list, but there are a number of people like this guy who sell old manuals. Check some amateur radio sites- they're going to be the guys that have them if they are available. I don't know how they deal with the whole copyright issue...

Hamfests!

[N3Bruce]

You might want to try one of the larger hamfests in your area. In the Mid-Atlantic area where I live, there is a guy who goes to all of the major hamfests who has a large number of operator and service manuals for all types of test equipment. Check the ARRL website for a hamfest near you. Even if you don't find the manual you are looking for, you are liable to find all kinds of great slightly used electronics stuff, from spark gap transmitters to the latest computer hardware. I even saw some of the consoles from the Appollo program on the block once. BTW: there is a big hamfest in Timmonium MD this weekend if you are in the area :o) Bruce N3LSY

try a university

[grammar nazi]

Go to the EE dept. at a large university and ask a faculty member (not an administrator) if there are any of these in a lab somewhere.

At my MSU, the EE dept. had hunderds of Oscilliscopes from modern digital marvels to a tried and tested analog RCA WO-91A.

Good luck with your endeaveors.

Check eBay and electronics surplus stores

[JohnTheFisherman]

Manuals pop up all the time. Also try a local (older) library - I've found some good, old out-of-print SAMS manuals.

Old Hewlet Packard Scope Story

[dhovis]

This is a little offtopic, but relevant here.

I had a professor who told a story that happened to him when he was a graduate student at MIT. He had this old HP occiliscope that he was trying to use for something, but he didn't have a manual. He called HP to see if they could find something and HP called him back to see if they could BUY the scope.

It seems they wanted it for their own company museum.
--

Err

[Anna Mouse Cowherder]

I just hooked mine up to our stereo, and twist the knobs until the wave pattern looks cool. Next one of you is going to tell me I'm doing it wrong! ;-)

$20 at a thrift store two weeks ago. I probably paid too much, but I just couldn't resist.