On 9 Jul 2005 07:25:51 -0700, "
wrote:

I can't disagree with your logic. I am sure it is true for you. For
me a trip to the Harbor Freight Store is 7 miles to the Ferry, a fourty
minute ferry ride, and about twenty more miles to Harbor Freight.

Some years ago, I put a light dimmer in a double wide steel junction
along with a duplex outlet and a line cord. I mostly use it for
controling the temperature of soldering irons, lowering the line
voltage when troubleshooting TV's, etc. It did take a little time to
put it together, but less time than it takes to catch the ferry.

So what are the extra features of the Harbor Freight unit?

It uses a circuit that purports to be responsive to motor back EMF,
thus providing better speed control of a motor. That's a bit of a
reach because it s a dirt simple circuit, but this circuit is
documented in the old GE SCR manual circa 70's or so.