Heathkit

wsuffa

wsuffa

Touchdown! Greaser!
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Bill S.
Off the wall question.

I recently acquired an old Heathkit IM-5258 distortion analyzer. It did not come with manual. I wonder if (by chance) anyone has a copy of the manual & could pdf the calibration/alignment instructions. I don't need the whole manual, just the calibration info.

TIA
 
I googled around and found that Heathkit is still in business...
 
Kelvin said:
I googled around and found that Heathkit is still in business...
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That is Amazing......

I rate Heathkit with the old days of Olson Electronics.... Boy , were those the good ol days...:yes:.....:)
 
Kelvin said:
I googled around and found that Heathkit is still in business...
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Wow. That really surprises me. I built my first Heathkit stereo receiver/amplifier in 1967. I still remember how proud I was of that. But I thought they were extinct.
 
They went out of the kit business years ago. You still can find some kits (and manuals) on eBay (at a premium).
 
Brings back fond memories of my teenage years in the '80's.
I built a shortwave radio on my Lafayette 80-in-1 electronics kit that my dad bought me and ran a long wire antenna from our attic to a tree in the backyard. I was ecstatic when I began tuning into Radio Moscow, BBC London, Radio Canada, Quito Ecuador and a few others I can't remember. Dad was pretty amazed also.

My neighbor inquired about it and then gave me his old Heathkit Shortwave receiver that had gathered dust. But what I really wanted but couldn't afford, was the Heathkit Robot :yes:

Yeah I had no idea they were still around.
 
Jim Logajan said:
And it may surprise some to learn what one built with the first kit that the Heath company sold:
http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Heath_Parasol
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Same company as the electronics?

Good old days indeed. My dad had all the components for a Heathkit stereo laid out in orderly fashion as he worked on it, when my brother and I decided to come into the room and show him how flour, when puffed through a candy cigarette, looked like smoke ... we couldn't figure out why he was so upset ... :hairraise:

But that was one awesome stereo when he finished it. Good stuff.
 
Well pretty much. Same "Heath" at least. Edward Bayard Heath bought the Bates Aeroplane Company and changed it's name and built he parasol kits. Heath died in an airplane crash in 1931. A man named Howard Anthony bought the bankrupt remains of Heath's company and started building electronic kits out of surplus military electrical parts.

I started with the Heath 19-in-1 kit with all those little spring things for the wires.
I built the code oscillator and then went on to purchase an HW-16 which was my first ham rig. I also had a DX-60/HR-10/HG-10 for a while. When I was in college, I did some work for one of the psych professors on one of the Heathkit H-11 (an LSI-11/03) computers with the incredibly inane terminal that matched. This thing had individual key switches and you stuck lables on them to put the letters on them. The thing also spazzed out when you sent it lower case letters (as opposed to most uppercase only terminals that just printed them in upper case). I also had an old Heath O-9 scope.

Later I helped assemble of few H-19 (much more reasonable) kits for another university.


My wife and her father built a few Heathkits back in the glory days (1960's/1970's). They built a kit form of a Thomas organ Heathkit put out as well as a TV. Margy's father was editor of Radio Electronics at the time and would get the kits for review purposes.
 
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Good old Heathkit. I used an SB-10 SSB adapter on the ham bands. If I told someone I was using the SB-10 I'd get reports of splatter. If I lied and told them I had a Collins S line I'd be complimented on my signal.:dunno:
 
pmanton said:
Good old Heathkit. I used an SB-10 SSB adapter on the ham bands. If I told someone I was using the SB-10 I'd get reports of splatter. If I lied and told them I had a Collins S line I'd be complimented on my signal.:dunno:
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Funny how that works:rolleyes:....

We get the same response in the experimental sector...
 
pmanton said:
Good old Heathkit. I used an SB-10 SSB adapter on the ham bands. If I told someone I was using the SB-10 I'd get reports of splatter. If I lied and told them I had a Collins S line I'd be complimented on my signal.:dunno:
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I often get compliments on my signal (as well as my instruments).
 
Bill S - Didn't find any calibration instructions online, but I did run across this very interesting article about a guy who restored one, just recently in 2013:

http://www.vacuumtubeaudio.info/project9.htm

Looks he went through extensive restoration on it, and got it working and in service, so I bet if anybody out there has current information on that device, he does.

I'd suggest contacting him and see if he can scan or email you the instructions you need. Seems like the kind of guy who would help a fellow hobbyist out.

I don't want to post his email here for privacy reasons, but if you're having trouble finding his email on the site, go to his home page, and scroll down until you see the text "...please let the author know" - that bit of text has a hyperlink on it that points to his email address.

Good luck!
 
wsuffa said:
Except that the only thing there is the schematic. Apparently someone bought the rights to Heathkits manuals so very few full manuals are online.

Tried the link and it doesn't have calibration instructions. :(
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I should have looked at the document. Some individuals have purchased the Heathkit name and company, including all IP. They claim that they are the only ones who can sell the old manuals, as well.

More information on the "new" Heathkit at http://www.heathkit.com/heathkit-faq.html
 
flyingron said:
I started with the Heath 19-in-1 kit with all those little spring things for the wires.
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Likewise. Great learning tool.

FastEddieB said:
Used to wait with bated breath for those packages from Benton Harbor, Michigan!
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Yup.

I built a few smaller Heathkits, but as time went on in the early '60s my audiophile dad preferred Dynakits for his system.
 
At one time, I determined that I had eighteen Heathkits!
 
I recall building...

A light dimmer.

A soldering iron.

A Heathkit Mohican shortwave radio.

A reel-to-reel tape recorder.

Maybe others, but it's been a long time.

I recall the end-all and be-all was a color TV! Never got to quite that level!
 
What Heathkits have I built?

GR-64 4 band SW receiver (still have it, still works)
Q-Multiplier for the above (still have it, still works)
IM-17 TVM
21 inch TV (picture tube died, dumped it years ago, built it in 1975)
AA-32 audio amplifier (it's in a box in the garage, probably still works)

Others that I have -

Oscilloscope (don't remember the model number, a neighbor was going to trash it as it didn't work, I hate to tell him that I fixed it by re-setting the CB on the back panel)
SB-100 HF CW/SSB transceiver (in a box, needs new final tubes)
VTVM (don't remember the model number, it works)
SB-610(?) station console. The motor for the clock is making noise, otherwise it works fine)
 
LoneAspen said:
Bill S - Didn't find any calibration instructions online, but I did run across this very interesting article about a guy who restored one, just recently in 2013:

http://www.vacuumtubeaudio.info/project9.htm

Looks he went through extensive restoration on it, and got it working and in service, so I bet if anybody out there has current information on that device, he does.

I'd suggest contacting him and see if he can scan or email you the instructions you need. Seems like the kind of guy who would help a fellow hobbyist out.

I don't want to post his email here for privacy reasons, but if you're having trouble finding his email on the site, go to his home page, and scroll down until you see the text "...please let the author know" - that bit of text has a hyperlink on it that points to his email address.

Good luck!
Click to expand...

Thanks, I do see that. Will see what I can do.
 
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