Full size case on the way!

Chris Davis

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Mar 21, 2020, 2:17:59 PM3/21/20

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Maybe I'm a bit premature on this, but I have officially ordered a prototype of the full-size Kenbak-1 case. In an earlier post, I shared that Bud Industries, the original manufacturer of the "Gran Prix" case used for the Kenbak-1 was kind enough to share the engineering drawings for the case (from 1965!) I cleaned up the drawings, converted them to metric, and I'm having a company produce a prototype, including the CNC machined aluminum ends. I'll post pictures when it arrives!

BTW, it was cheaper than I had planned, so the kit may be in the same price range as the Altair-duino Pro.

Charley Jones

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Mar 21, 2020, 3:42:19 PM3/21/20

to Chris Davis, uKenbak-1

Good Man Chris, I’ll build another one full size!

Sent from my iPhone Xs!

On Mar 21, 2020, at 11:18 AM, Chris Davis <famousd...@gmail.com> wrote:

Maybe I'm a bit premature on this, but I have officially ordered a prototype of the full-size Kenbak-1 case. In an earlier post, I shared that Bud Industries, the original manufacturer of the "Gran Prix" case used for the Kenbak-1 was kind enough to share the engineering drawings for the case (from 1965!) I cleaned up the drawings, converted them to metric, and I'm having a company produce a prototype, including the CNC machines aluminum ends. I'll post pictures when it arrives!

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William Steele

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Mar 21, 2020, 6:46:24 PM3/21/20

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Oh, my... I will buy one the very second it is available... hell... I'll pre-buy one RIGHT NOW!!! :-D My home made jobby just doesn't do it justice enough.

Bill

Chris Davis

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Mar 21, 2020, 7:40:35 PM3/21/20

to uKenbak-1

Bill,

How did you design your kit? Did you have a schematic for the original?

William Steele

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Mar 21, 2020, 9:59:53 PM3/21/20

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It was based on the schematics from John Blankenbaker's original documentation. He included a Theory of Operation that described it in great detail, including every component.

Bill

William Steele

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Mar 21, 2020, 10:02:03 PM3/21/20

to uKenbak-1

And when you say design... It wasn't really designed... It's literally just wiring up the components on protoboards according to his docs. The only change I made was to add an automatic reset at start up. (Using a 555 timer.)

Bill

William Steele

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Mar 21, 2020, 10:04:22 PM3/21/20

to uKenbak-1

I would love to design a PCB based on it to fit your new case design.

Bill

Chris Davis

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Mar 21, 2020, 10:24:05 PM3/21/20

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Were there any "hard to find" components?

Chris Davis

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Mar 21, 2020, 10:24:37 PM3/21/20

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We might have to collaborate on that!

William Steele

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Mar 22, 2020, 6:26:42 AM3/22/20

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There were were a few semi hard to find... but nothing that was very difficult. The 1404 Shift Registers are pretty limited... but there are a little more modern replacements that work just fine.

Everything else was standard off the shelf 7400 series logic.

Bill

John Kennedy

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Mar 22, 2020, 1:15:25 PM3/22/20

to uKenbak-1

Wow fantastic!

On Saturday, March 21, 2020 at 11:17:59 AM UTC-7, Chris Davis wrote:

Maybe I'm a bit premature on this, but I have officially ordered a prototype of the full-size Kenbak-1 case. In an earlier post, I shared that Bud Industries, the original manufacturer of the "Gran Prix" case used for the Kenbak-1 was kind enough to share the engineering drawings for the case (from 1965!) I cleaned up the drawings, converted them to metric, and I'm having a company produce a prototype, including the CNC machines aluminum ends. I'll post pictures when it arrives!

Jim Manley

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Mar 22, 2020, 8:47:35 PM3/22/20

to William Steele, uKenbak-1

Hi Bill,

That sounds amazing! DId you go for complete authenticity and stick with original TTL series devices, or use more modern versions of low-power, CMOS, high-speed, etc., some of which require using that series in many, if not all, components to match fan-in, fan-out, and other signal compatibility characteristics?

A PCB would be really nice to have, so put another vote in the Yes column if you're keeping track.

All the Best,

Jim KJ7JHE

Lame Deer High School Amateur Radio Club KJ7JKU

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Vicente González

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Mar 22, 2020, 9:12:33 PM3/22/20

to Jim Manley, William Steele, uKenbak-1

Just to add momentum to the discussion, I am very interested in what is going on about a KEMBAK-1 full size kit :)

Virus-free. www.avast.com

To view this discussion on the web visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/ukenbak-1/CAD2R3ivMp-qWqaR3M_QsnVpLrcoRqxVrfvsO2GMXS07keftOug%40mail.gmail.com.

Frank Prindle

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Mar 22, 2020, 9:56:14 PM3/22/20

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Me too. But if it's based on the original hardware, I'd appreciate some way to load a program other than manually, even if only an ancillary processor that reads an SD card and pushes the buttons in the right order. Oh yeah, and emulates the serial port and RTC and EEPROM slots and all that. Oh yeah, and if you turn off that processor, it becomes identical to the KENBAK-1 (i.e.: the NOPs do just that, nothing; and the only input is the buttons and the only output is the lights). John Blankenbaker will love it.

On Sunday, March 22, 2020 at 9:12:33 PM UTC-4, Ardunaut wrote:

Just to add momentum to the discussion, I am very interested in what is going on about a KEMBAK-1 full size kit :)

Virus-free. www.avast.com

On Sun, Mar 22, 2020 at 8:47 PM Jim Manley <jim....@gmail.com> wrote:

Hi Bill,

That sounds amazing! DId you go for complete authenticity and stick with original TTL series devices, or use more modern versions of low-power, CMOS, high-speed, etc., some of which require using that series in many, if not all, components to match fan-in, fan-out, and other signal compatibility characteristics?

A PCB would be really nice to have, so put another vote in the Yes column if you're keeping track.

All the Best,
Jim KJ7JHE
Lame Deer High School Amateur Radio Club KJ7JKU

On Sun, Mar 22, 2020 at 4:26 AM William Steele <wjst...@hotmail.com> wrote:

There were were a few semi hard to find... but nothing that was very difficult. The 1404 Shift Registers are pretty limited... but there are a little more modern replacements that work just fine.

Everything else was standard off the shelf 7400 series logic.

Bill

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William Steele

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Mar 23, 2020, 9:46:31 AM3/23/20

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I used modern low power chips in my design. In fact. it's running off a small wall wart instead of the big power supply in the original one.

Bill

Chris Davis

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Mar 23, 2020, 3:26:13 PM3/23/20

to uKenbak-1

So how difficult do you think it would be to turn your work into a KiCad schematic? I looked at John Blankenbaker's technical documentation and unfortunately, it's too technical for me!

Chris Davis

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Apr 22, 2020, 9:29:31 AM4/22/20

to uKenbak-1

The manufacturer is sending the prototype out today. They sent a photo, I guess to prove it exists!

case.jpg

William Steele

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Apr 22, 2020, 9:33:49 AM4/22/20

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I'll take two!!! I need to start designing the main board, I guess. ;-)

Bill

John Kennedy

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Apr 22, 2020, 1:12:46 PM4/22/20

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Haha that's just fantastic! Can't wait to see them for sale on eBay as "museum quality" :-) :-) :-)

bmitchely

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Apr 25, 2020, 9:25:01 AM4/25/20

to uKenbak-1

Oh that is loverly! Where do I send my money?

Chris Davis

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May 4, 2020, 2:24:36 PM5/4/20

to uKenbak-1

It finally arrived. I am pleased with the result.

IMG_2716.jpg

IMG_0460.JPG

IMG_0461.JPG

IMG_0462.JPG

John Kennedy

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May 4, 2020, 3:37:59 PM5/4/20

to uKenbak-1

Amazing!

Vicente González

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May 4, 2020, 5:23:06 PM5/4/20

to John Kennedy, uKenbak-1

Yeeeeeeees!

On Mon, May 4, 2020 at 3:38 PM John Kennedy <johntk...@gmail.com> wrote:

Amazing!

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Tom Lake

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May 4, 2020, 5:28:00 PM5/4/20

to uKenbak-1

Looking good! The case ain't bad, either. :^)

You and Blankenbaker could almost be twins!
My fingers are itching to reach for my credit card.

Tom L

Tom Lake

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Oct 26, 2020, 6:59:32 AM10/26/20

to uKenbak-1

Is a full-sized case still in the works or has COVID killed it?

famousd...@gmail.com

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Oct 26, 2020, 3:57:56 PM10/26/20

to uKenbak-1

Actually warmer weather and busier days put it on hold. I actually just ordered a test batch of circuit boards today, so I might have a prototype finished in a week or so.

wjst...@hotmail.com

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Nov 22, 2020, 4:35:42 PM11/22/20

to uKenbak-1

Oh my... those look fantastic!!! I did mention I want two, right? ;-D

Bill

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