Drop damage to a Leader 8101 scope - Page 1
Forum section: electronics / repair

author: thomsmith69
author_rank: Newbie
timestamp: February 24, 2015, 08:24:35 pm
content: Hello ladies and gentlemen,Does anyone here have an idea where I might get a replacement tube for a Leader 8101 scope?I purchased one off eBay for a good price and when it got delivered, the driver of the truck decided to save himself a few steps and bounced the box onto the porch.Functionally the scope seems fine. I inspected it for obvious damage after opening it up and once I had decided that it was alright I plugged it in and turned it on. No magic smoke escaped but the display is completely out of whack. I left it on for about an hour to see if it was just a quirk but it was still all messed up.Now, before anybody jumps on and wags their finger at me about buying from eBay, the ad did have pictures of the scope working properly. Also the seller packaged the scope very well. If he hadn't it would have been a complete write off. I did get my money back through PayPal so I'm not out of pocket on the purchase.I'd hate to see the thing go straight to e-waste. I purchased it because I didn't have a scope at all and was following Dave's sage suggestion to avoid the pocket scopes and go for at least a decent analog. I have since purchased a Kikusui 7101A, a DSO CRT scope, but as has been pointed out to me in my other post, it's not analog.Any suggestions on where I could look for a tube would be much appreciated. I did do a quick Google and only found ones out of Russia that were going for 300USD. Money better spent going towards a Rigol DS1054Z, I think. I don't know if the tube from the Kikusui is compatible with the Leader but I might have a closer look.Thanks in advance.Thom

author: radiomog
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: February 24, 2015, 08:49:12 pm
content: Why not just part it out, or offer it up as-is?Your costs have been recovered. anything you recover is pure profit.as you have seen, replacement parts are often more than a new purchase outright.something to consider.eta: there are a couple used units on ebay right now.. but factoring in the cost plus shipping, and you're back to just buy a new/newer certified unit.I was at a similar point with my HP3455a, I found a whole replacement unit for less than the price of a repair part.I can not spend any more money on this though, it's at the point where I would be better off having bought a newer-guaranteed unit.good luck

author: KJDS
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: February 24, 2015, 09:17:27 pm
content: Have you taken teh lid off and had a look to see if something obvious has shifted?Just be careful poking fingers anywhere, there's a lot of volts hanging about even after it's been turned off for a while.

author: Andy Watson
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: February 24, 2015, 09:43:29 pm
content: Quote from: KJDS on February 24, 2015, 09:17:27 pm+1 At least take the lid off and post some photos - it might be something blatantly obvious.

author: electr_peter
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: February 24, 2015, 10:12:24 pm
content: Big parts (bulky capacitors or inductors) may be ripped out if you were unlucky. Open and check for damages.

author: thomsmith69
author_rank: Newbie
timestamp: February 25, 2015, 12:38:25 am
content: I had already started dismantling the scope looking for further damage and I found it. Some damage I was already aware of from the first time I opened up the scope but I did find more today. I have attached pictures.The first picture is of what I presume to be the main input board. There is a hairline crack in the board along the black line in the photo. Nothing that couldn't be fixed with a little soldering and some jumpers.The second picture is towards the rear of the cabinet showing some more of the frame damage sustained from the landing as well as the damage to the transformer casing.Third is the tube itself with a circle showing an area of internal damage. The fourth picture is a close up showing the broken support rod inside the tube.Apart from the extensive impact damage to the frame and some of the larger parts that were shifted due to the impact and the one stress crack on the board and the damage to the tube, everything else seems to be in respectable shape.Hope this helps satisfy some of the curiosity. Near as I can tell from date codes on some of the ICs, it's an early 90's unit, around 1993.Cheers,ThomPS The part number of the tube is Panasonic 150VTM31, just in case you have one kicking around in a parts drawer somewhere.

author: SL4P
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: February 25, 2015, 01:59:36 am
content: OK, unless it was a really exotic scope worth the time- I think most of us agree that you were lucky getting your money back.Play with it all you like, but it willalwaysgive trouble if those are the 'visible' issues.Sad reality - and maybe the delivery guy learned something about those 'FRAGILE / GLASS' stickers!