eprom eraser

[Glenn Roberts]

Any reason not to trust these $15 EPROM erasers I see on eBay?  They all look the same; lots of vendors sell them.

 

I used to have one from 30 years ago. The UV bulb blew.  I can’t find it, maybe I tossed it?  It was basically a steel shroud with a small UV fluorescent bulb.   Anyway the professional models seem to be $180.  The eBay el cheapo ones are probably all I need to erase the occasional EPROM?  They must use solid state UV emitters?

 

Appreciate any advice…

 

-          Glenn

 

[Peter Shkabara]

Years ago, I used to set the EPROM in the sun for a while. Talk about being cheap!

 

Peter Shkabara

Kol...@gmail.com

[Norberto Collado]

I bought this one in eBay in 2009 I believed and it worked fine and still!

[Lee Hart]

Glenn Roberts wrote:
> Any reason not to trust these $15 EPROM erasers I see on eBay? They all
> look the same; lots of vendors sell them.

I suspect the quality is pretty low, but so is the price. You get what
you pay for. I'm sure they use a UV tube (basically a mini fluorescent
light without the white coating). UV LEDs emit soft UV; EPROM erasing
needs hard UV. These lamps are available for $5 or so and used in
various germicidal sterilizers.

I have a Spectroline EPROM eraser. 30+ years old and still working. I
added my own 1-hour spring-wound timer from Home Depot. There's one like
mine on ebay for $25 (item# 121831464982).

--
The prime instinct of children at play is to build and to create.
They will make things of whatever materials are at hand, and use the
whole force of dream and fancy to create something out of nothing.
-- Alfred P. Morgan
--
Lee Hart, 814 8th Ave N, Sartell MN 56377, www.sunrise-ev.com

[Peter Clark]

I've had one of these for about 10 years I think, still going strong...  Not $15 though, and I can't remember what I paid for it... 

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Datarase-II-Walling-Co-Model-DII-UV-EPROM-Eraser-24VDC-1A-/191589484881?hash=item2c9b9f8951:g:uxAAAOSwBahVZhG3

[dwight]

The bulbs need to be made from quartz glass, so it is a little more than
just tubes without the florescent coating in side.
I have expensive ones and cheap ones. They all work just about as well.
I even have one of the older ones used for mineralogy. It comes
with a filter that I remove when doing EPROM erasing.
Having a timer is a good Idea. There is some degradation of the EPROMs
ability to hold data if you really cook them for too long a time.
I usually test them at intervals before I reuse them. After the check
erased, I usually go 2-3 times as long.
Each type has different times. I have some that are done in less than
10 minutes while others take 20 to 30 minutes ( mostly the older ones ).
Also, make sure the windows are really clean. Even finger prints can
block significant UV. Old stickum from labels is really bad.
Dwight

[Terry Gulczynski]

On 12/30/2015 11:40 PM, Peter Clark wrote:
> I've had one of these for about 10 years I think, still going
> strong... Not $15 though, and I can't remember what I paid for it...
>
> http://www.ebay.com/itm/Datarase-II-Walling-Co-Model-DII-UV-EPROM-Eraser-24VDC-1A-/191589484881?hash=item2c9b9f8951:g:uxAAAOSwBahVZhG3
>

Same model I have - more than 15 years now and still works perfectly.

Terry

[durgadas311]

I recall my boss built one out of a small fluorescent fixture, timer, and a crude wood box. I seem to recall some discussion of the UV wavelength and how much time is required to completely erase the EPROM, though. Using an "erase check" option for the EPROM programmer was an easy way to determine minimum erase time. The main reason for the box is to avoid any damage to eyes of a passerby. Getting the right kind of UV bulb/tube is probably the big issue.

Sent from my Samsung Galaxy Tab®|PRO

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[Chris Elmquist]

I replied to this thread earlier from my tablet but it seems to have
been lost in the Intertubes somewhere. Apologies if this becomes a dupe.

I built an eraser when I was a kid around 1976 or so. It used a
germicidal lamp like they used to put in washing machines and a wall
timer for a bathroom fan all built into a case that used to hold a dozen
8-track tapes :-)

I never, ever had that many but this thing could hold 50 PROMs at once.
Bulk erasing baby!

Anyway, it worked A-OK and I think you can still buy germicidal lamps
from outfits like McMaster-Carr should you be inclined to build your own.

There's also a ballast/starter that goes with the tube akin to any small
flourescent lamp configuration.

Chris

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[George Farris]

What, nobody here with the Heathkit eprom eraser.  I have one of those.  A
bit of a joke as a kit, I think it took me about 10 minutes to assemble it.

It has served me well all these years though.

Happy New Year all,
George

[Steven Hirsch]

On 01/04/2016 05:50 PM, George Farris wrote:
> What, nobody here with the Heathkit eprom eraser. I have one of those. A
> bit of a joke as a kit, I think it took me about 10 minutes to assemble it.

I thought I was the only one who had one of those. It's been working
faithfully for probably 30 years.

[w9gb]

Heathkit ID-4803 EPROM Eraser was an Odd Kit.
http://www.finck.net/arcade/Heathkit_4803_EPROM_Eraser_Manual.pdf

It used Metric and SAE hardware, metric for the UV bulb sockets.

[Glenn Roberts]

Wow. Perhaps the simplest heathkit ever?

-----Original Message-----
From: se...@googlegroups.com [mailto:se...@googlegroups.com] On Behalf Of w9gb
Sent: Monday, January 04, 2016 8:19 PM
To: SEBHC <se...@googlegroups.com>
Subject: Re: [sebhc] eprom eraser

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[Lee Hart]

Glenn Roberts wrote:
> Wow. Perhaps the simplest heathkit ever?

Hmm; that would make a good trivia question. :-) Is this the simplest
Heathkit? The "cantenna" amateur radio dummy load (basically a big
resistor in a 1-gallon paint can) was pretty simple. I also recall a
crystal radio kit that was pretty simple. Are there others?

Any pictures of the Heath EPROM eraser around?

--
Knowledge is better than belief. Belief is when someone else does
your thinking. -- anonymous

[Peter Clark]

Found on ebay.. 

[David Jones]

I have one of these and it's worked just fine for me.

On Wednesday, December 30, 2015 at 10:52:56 PM UTC-5, Norby wrote:

I bought this one in eBay in 2009 I believed and it worked fine and still!

On 12/30/15 6:48 PM, "Glenn Roberts"  wrote:

[Glenn Roberts]

Thank you all for your feedback.  I think I’ll get one of these and try it…

 

From: se...@googlegroups.com [mailto:se...@googlegroups.com] On Behalf Of David Jones
Sent: Thursday, January 07, 2016 12:12 PM
To: SEBHC <se...@googlegroups.com>
Subject: Re: [sebhc] eprom eraser

 

I have one of these and it's worked just fine for me.

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