Kits - Page 1
Forum section: electronics / beginners

author: daniel123
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: April 26, 2016, 12:06:40 pm
content: Hi! I was wondering if anyone knows what companies make kits like diy bench top power supply and test equipment like heathkit but modern.

author: amspire
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: April 26, 2016, 12:40:47 pm
content: There are problems with Heathkit-type kits in todays electronics world.First, electronics has gone to surface mount, and you cannot realistically sell kits to beginners with surface mount parts. The whole point of Heathkit is that beginners could learn electronics by building their kits.Secondly, modern circuits with micros, fpga's, and other LSI chips are much harder for the average person to debug then the circuits of the 60's.Third, back in the 60's, the profit margin of electronics manufacturers was so high that Heathkit could sell kits that were cheaper then the equivalent manufactured products. Today, manufacturing is so efficient that selling a kit can often be double or more the cost of manufacturing a completed item. If you want a large screen TV, do you want to pay $600 and get a TV that will probably work perfectly for 5 or more years, or do you want to pay $1800 for a kit that has a high chance of not working, probably will not be reliable and will probably be an out-of-date design?There are still people selling kits, but you will not find much with the class of Heathkit.You can find kits, like this one from Australia:http://www.altronics.com.au/p/k3218-dual-tracking-0-19v-power-supply-kit/but it is a 1980's type of supply in a creaky unshielded plastic case. Could easily be 240V only, but you would have to check the Silicon Chip magazine article the kit is based on to find out. You probably want to do better.

author: AF6LJ
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: April 26, 2016, 01:04:00 pm
content: Now that Ramsey electronics is gone , the only kits you will find are specialty kits aimed at ham radio and other niche hobbies.Having built more than a dozen Heathkits I can attest to how sorely many of us miss the experience.

author: dr.diesel
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: April 26, 2016, 01:18:59 pm
content: Quote from: AF6LJ on April 26, 2016, 01:04:00 pmI hadn't realized, had to Google,http://www.ramseyelectronics.com/legacy.htm

author: nowlan
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: April 26, 2016, 01:57:14 pm
content: BangGood and ebay have lots of small kits.Recommend watching the following youtubers.voltlogelectronics trivia w/ steve wagnerjulian illet

author: jitter
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: April 26, 2016, 02:31:00 pm
content: Yup, lots ofkitson eBay.

author: kerrsmith
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: April 26, 2016, 03:19:30 pm
content: As mentioned above Banggood have lots of kits available and they are all pretty cheap:http://www.banggood.com/Wholesale-Arduino-Compatible-Kits-and-DIY-Kits-c-3091.html?p=2D100314686672015046They have quite a range from clocks to oscilloscopes and power supplies - I have bought quite a few and they have been really fun to put together - my latest one was an inductance meter and it works really well and has been really useful when winding toroids.

author: daniel123
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: April 26, 2016, 09:26:01 pm
content: I still am wondering if any other people make these kinds of kits

author: alsetalokin4017
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: April 27, 2016, 12:00:53 am
content: Wow..that is really too bad about Ramsey. I've built several of their kits and they are (were) great.http://www.vellemanusa.com/products/list/?country=us&lang=enu&id=523008Elenco still sells a few kits:http://www.elenco.com/product/productdetails/power_supply=ODU=/same_as_xp720_in_kit_form=NTc4

author: rdl
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: April 27, 2016, 12:05:03 am
content: Yes, Velleman, Elenco, CanaKits and Chaney Electronics are some that still make kits. Places like MakerShed, Sparkfun and Jameco also have kits for sale, and there are others. There is even a web site selling kits at (believe it or not)www.electronickits.comJust google "electronic kits"and you'll get plenty of results. They haven't disappeared yet.