End of an (electrical) era

[timo_gross]

View attachment 159467

Just about every HP printer has one of these slotted optical sensors. Basically a pair of LEDs. Some of the print heads have a more complex one.

That stuff is really not expensive e.g. a TCST2103. Salvaging them from old printers can be frustrating, LEDs burn ( ) with wrong current, pinout is sometimes not clear. Extracting them from an old device is extra work.
I doubt that making the light barrier mechanically work is less hassle than fitting a hall sensor The automotive people seem to have settled on the Hall sensors.

 

[BaronJ]

That stuff is really not expensive e.g. a TCST2103. Salvaging them from old printers can be frustrating, LEDs burn ( ) with wrong current, pinout is sometimes not clear. Extracting them from an old device is extra work.
I doubt that making the light barrier mechanically work is less hassle than fitting a hall sensor The automotive people seem to have settled on the Hall sensors.

Hi Timo,

I've never had any problems extracting dual or single opto devices from scrap equipment. I use a hot air paint stripper gun. Aim the hot air at the solder side !
However I have noticed that the lead free solder is a lot harder to melt.

 

[TonyM]

I've got a couple of these on the way to test. https://www.aliexpress.com/item/1005006704153203.html?search_direct=true&spm=a2g0o.productlist.0.0

Just arrived. I hope they work as good as they look. Even come with a 1/4 32 size plug cap. Hopefully on test this week.

 

[Gordon]

I bought these a while back. I have not used one yet but they seem to be OK and the price is good. Delivery from China takes a while.

http://www.microcosm-engine.com/10x-spark-plug-protection-cap-accessories-p-330.html

 

[TonyM]

Not impressed. Tried using 9V smoke detector battery and the spark only discernible by a slight click. Very weak visible spark at 9V. They are supposed to be 6 - 12V so will probably be only OK with 12V.

 

[Gordon]

For the cost of a spark generator off ebay at less than $10 you may as well just buy one of those. No hall sensors to go wrong. And it's a buzz type rather than a single spark

Simple 4 wires - Positive, Negative/ground, sparkplug and the last wire just needs simple make and break contact to ground. Seen here just as a wire touching a revolving contact.

I received one of these a while back and finally got around to trying it. There is no doubt that it puts out a powerful spark and if you get in the way it really grabs you attention. My problem seems to be that it is too good. The spark will jump a good 1/2". When I wire everything up I have sparks flying all over the place to any metal part within 1/2". I am wondering if I have wired it wrong. I have 6 volt power into the red+ and white- on what I would assume is the input end. I have the large wire going to the spark plug and I am using the white wire on that end as the trigger. Am I wiring that wrong? Your setup does not seem to be throwing sparks to everything in the area.

 

[Vietti]

I ordered one of these based on recommendations from here. Came from Ali-Express but only received a spark plug!

Anyone else had a problem or another more reliable source??

 

[Gordon]

I ordered one of these based on recommendations from here. Came from Ali-Express but only received a spark plug!

Anyone else had a problem or another more reliable source??

This is what I got.

https://www.ebay.com/itm/166649476461

 

[L98fiero]

I ordered one of these based on recommendations from here. Came from Ali-Express but only received a spark plug!

Anyone else had a problem or another more reliable source??

Things like that happen, most times they will just send what you asked for with no argument and you'll have a free sparkplug as well.

 

[Jasonb]

Sometimes on Ali they show the photo and image of the most expensive option but the price of the least expensive. You have to make sure you select the actual item you want and then the price will likely go up as well. For example you may see an image of a vice fot $10. But the $10 is actually just the option of some vice jaws. Select the actual vice and that will be $100.

Red wire Positive to battery
White wire that is next to the red is the insulated contact
Thick HT wire obviously to plug
White wire next to that ground to engine frame
Engine frame also connected to the negative battery

 

[L98fiero]

Sometimes on Ali they show the photo and image of the most expensive option but the price of the least expensive. You have to make sure you select the actual item you want and then the price will likely go up as well. For example you may see an image of a vice fot $10. But the $10 is actually just the option of some vice jaws. Select the actual vice and that will be $100.

That's annoying but it happens on Ebay, too. I was looking at some cheap crucibles on Ali, at $6 .... and $35 freight(Canadian prices). No, I wasn't expecting that kind of price and I do little casting so wasn't expecting the best quality either.

 

[TonyM]

I ordered one of these based on recommendations from here. Came from Ali-Express but only received a spark plug!

Anyone else had a problem or another more reliable source??

Did you select the item on the order page. There is a choice of items. I wouldn't recommend the small unit I mentioned as it has a very weak spark.

 

[Gordon]

Sometimes on Ali they show the photo and image of the most expensive option but the price of the least expensive. You have to make sure you select the actual item you want and then the price will likely go up as well. For example you may see an image of a vice fot $10. But the $10 is actually just the option of some vice jaws. Select the actual vice and that will be $100.

Red wire Positive to battery
White wire that is next to the red is the insulated contact
Thick HT wire obviously to plug
White wire next to that ground to engine frame
Engine frame also connected to the negative battery

Thanks. I thought that I had tried all combinations but this seems to work.

 

[Richard Hed]

The problem with the Chinese stuff, (alibaba etc), is the tricks they do are NOT done by accident. Them showing a high quality item when the actual item is a low quality piece is done on purpose. carpe deum. It's happened to me many times too. HOwever if you are in Asia, you can get on a thing called Shopee. This does the same thing, but the prices are about a quarter the prices here, and the item is delivered to YOUR DOOR in a few days. I've managed to get some pretty high quality HSS tools and various other things while in Philippines. Even a jackhammer for 100$ that is very good quality. While 20 years ago, I bot a larger jackhammer for 1300$ USD which would be more like 2500USD in todays $$s. These small cheap jackhammers were so good that I bot two and an extra one for my brother-in-law whom I am no longer on speaking terms with.

I figure that two jackhammers might last as long a one of the larger type and that the price is WELL worth it. We have jacked up plenty of large rocks and the hammers are fine. Same with the HSS which, when I got back to USA was able to test--It's fine! For years now, I have been complaining (to myself) about the high price of HSS cutoff blades so I managed to get some from Shopee--they are fine also! and a much more reasonable price. When I go again, I'm gonna load up on everything I can find.

But, I have to say, it is a shameful practice they do of "bait n switch", because that is really what it is.

 

[minutemenus]

The problem with the Chinese stuff, (alibaba etc), is the tricks they do are NOT done by accident. Them showing a high quality item when the actual item is a low quality piece is done on purpose. carpe deum. It's happened to me many times too. HOwever if you are in Asia, you can get on a thing called Shopee. This does the same thing, but the prices are about a quarter the prices here, and the item is delivered to YOUR DOOR in a few days. I've managed to get some pretty high quality HSS tools and various other things while in Philippines. Even a jackhammer for 100$ that is very good quality. While 20 years ago, I bot a larger jackhammer for 1300$ USD which would be more like 2500USD in todays $$s. These small cheap jackhammers were so good that I bot two and an extra one for my brother-in-law whom I am no longer on speaking terms with.

I figure that two jackhammers might last as long a one of the larger type and that the price is WELL worth it. We have jacked up plenty of large rocks and the hammers are fine. Same with the HSS which, when I got back to USA was able to test--It's fine! For years now, I have been complaining (to myself) about the high price of HSS cutoff blades so I managed to get some from Shopee--they are fine also! and a much more reasonable price. When I go again, I'm gonna load up on everything I can find.

But, I have to say, it is a shameful practice they do of "bait n switch", because that is really what it is.

 

[Gordon]

I got my spark generator wired up correctly thanks to Jasonb. I had a good spark but could not get the engine to run. It ran previously with the electronic unit with a hall sensor I had a rather wide gap on the spark plug and looked great outside of the engine but would not run. I finally narrowed the gap and it now runs. I assume that it was not firing well under compression.

 

[L98fiero]

The problem with the Chinese stuff, (alibaba etc), is the tricks they do are NOT done by accident. Them showing a high quality item when the actual item is a low quality piece is done on purpose. carpe deum. It's happened to me many times too. HOwever if you are in Asia, you can get on a thing called Shopee. This does the same thing, but the prices are about a quarter the prices here, and the item is delivered to YOUR DOOR in a few days. I've managed to get some pretty high quality HSS tools and various other things while in Philippines. Even a jackhammer for 100$ that is very good quality. While 20 years ago, I bot a larger jackhammer for 1300$ USD which would be more like 2500USD in todays $$s. These small cheap jackhammers were so good that I bot two and an extra one for my brother-in-law whom I am no longer on speaking terms with.

I figure that two jackhammers might last as long a one of the larger type and that the price is WELL worth it. We have jacked up plenty of large rocks and the hammers are fine. Same with the HSS which, when I got back to USA was able to test--It's fine! For years now, I have been complaining (to myself) about the high price of HSS cutoff blades so I managed to get some from Shopee--they are fine also! and a much more reasonable price. When I go again, I'm gonna load up on everything I can find.

But, I have to say, it is a shameful practice they do of "bait n switch", because that is really what it is.

YMMV but I've not found Aliexpress any worse than Ebay and freight charges on small parts is negligible from them but definitely not from Ebay if sold by a US seller, to Canada. Anything with any amount of weight and things from China the freight price get insane pretty quickly.