PCB finished and waiting DHL pickup, case connector holes completed, preparing for ASR 33 Teletype restoration

FAB DONE EXCEPT FOR SHIPPING

The last inspections of the PCB were completed at 2PM today and the boards are boxed up waiting to be picked up by DHL Express later this morning, since it is still before 8AM in China. Once this is in the hands of DHL and they show some actual movement, I should have a better sense of when it will arrive in my mailbox. 

FINISHING THE HOLES IN THE 1130 EXTENDER BOX CASE

I ducked into the workshop today to finish up cutting all the holes in the rear of the case, where the various connectors will be mounted. It was not the most elegant of work but eventually I had all the connectors screwed into place.

rear of the 1130 extender box

The connectors are, from left to right looking at the rear, the USB to PC link, the 160 pin SAC cable to the 1130, the round hole to the left of the power socket will have the extension cable to the 1130, a power socket for the power cable and finally the 1130 power cable which brings the 24VAC power-up voltage and returns the power good line. 

I do need to make up some labeling for the box, indicating what it is, the various connector roles, and what the four LEDs indicate. These are, from left to right when looking at the front, this boxes power is on, the 1130 sequencing power is on, the meter is running (not in a wait state), and core parity error. 

Four LED indicators on front panel

I realized that this box has no air ventilation openings other than a few small holes I haven't used. I will need to drill some small holes in a grid pattern into the case to allow for cool air entry and hot air exhaust.

FELLOW HOBBYIST COMING WITH HIS ASR 33 TELETYPES TO WORK TOGETHER

I expect to spend the three days of the weekend working with a fellow hobbyist, David, who lives not too far from me. He has some teletypes and we will work together to get these up and working so he can use them with his own restored computers. 

In preparation, I set up a six foot table with protective moving blanket, printed out key schematics, and downloaded all the Teletype manuals for the machines. We should be able to make good progress on these.