Hello all!

I am working on a 2 meter (146 MHz) radio kit, and I am faced with
the need to adjust various coils and transformers in it. The
directions point out which ones can be adjusted with a metal tool,
and which ones really need a non-metallic tool. My first non-
metallic tool was a cheap plastic flat-blade screwdriver meant for
adjusting trimpots. It started out OK but the tip quickly got
chewed up and it started slipping. So, I get out the regular
(metal) screwdriver set, and managed to crack one of the cores with
my enthusiasm...

I have a new coil on the way and now I am looking at real, official
alignment tools. Basically, I see pure plastic tools of varying
materials, tools that are a metal core covered in plastic, and
some fancy ceramic ones. I'm pretty sure I don't want the ones
with a metal core. The plastic ones are inexpensive. The ceramic
ones sound like they would be more robust, but they also might be
more brittle. My immediate need is for a small flat-blade tip
about 1.5 to 2 mm wide, and a larger flat-blade tip about 4 to
6 mm wide. It seems like you can get a better deal on sets of
tools, which is fine, as long as it has the ones I need. In the
future I might be using them on other two-way radios, for sure
from 450 MHz down to 50 MHz, and then possibly on some radios
below 30 MHz. I don't anticipate using them much on AM or FM
broadcast sets, or television sets.

Are there any particular brands or features that are recommended,
or unfavored? Any sets that are particularly good for this
application? (I like the idea of the ceramic ones, but if they
break a lot they may not be worth the cost.)

Thanks for your help!

Matt Roberds

wrote:
Hello all!

I am working on a 2 meter (146 MHz) radio kit, and I am faced with
the need to adjust various coils and transformers in it. The
directions point out which ones can be adjusted with a metal tool,
and which ones really need a non-metallic tool. My first non-
metallic tool was a cheap plastic flat-blade screwdriver meant for
adjusting trimpots. It started out OK but the tip quickly got
chewed up and it started slipping. So, I get out the regular
(metal) screwdriver set, and managed to crack one of the cores with
my enthusiasm...

I have a new coil on the way and now I am looking at real, official
alignment tools. Basically, I see pure plastic tools of varying
materials, tools that are a metal core covered in plastic, and
some fancy ceramic ones. I'm pretty sure I don't want the ones
with a metal core. The plastic ones are inexpensive. The ceramic
ones sound like they would be more robust, but they also might be
more brittle. My immediate need is for a small flat-blade tip
about 1.5 to 2 mm wide, and a larger flat-blade tip about 4 to
6 mm wide. It seems like you can get a better deal on sets of
tools, which is fine, as long as it has the ones I need. In the
future I might be using them on other two-way radios, for sure
from 450 MHz down to 50 MHz, and then possibly on some radios
below 30 MHz. I don't anticipate using them much on AM or FM
broadcast sets, or television sets.

Are there any particular brands or features that are recommended,
or unfavored? Any sets that are particularly good for this
application? (I like the idea of the ceramic ones, but if they
break a lot they may not be worth the cost.)

Thanks for your help!

Matt Roberds


Hi Matt...

If you try not to laugh at a real old guy, back in
the olden days we used to get a couple of knitting
needles.

A few minutes with a pair of cutters and a file, and
we could have several flat blade ones for the price
of a single needle. Double ended, too. Different size
on each end.

Ken

"Ken Weitzel" wrote in message
news:audWd.576200$6l.466647@pd7tw2no...


wrote:
Hello all!

I am working on a 2 meter (146 MHz) radio kit, and I am faced with
the need to adjust various coils and transformers in it. The
directions point out which ones can be adjusted with a metal tool,
and which ones really need a non-metallic tool. My first non-
metallic tool was a cheap plastic flat-blade screwdriver meant for
adjusting trimpots. It started out OK but the tip quickly got
chewed up and it started slipping. So, I get out the regular
(metal) screwdriver set, and managed to crack one of the cores with
my enthusiasm...

I have a new coil on the way and now I am looking at real, official
alignment tools. Basically, I see pure plastic tools of varying
materials, tools that are a metal core covered in plastic, and
some fancy ceramic ones. I'm pretty sure I don't want the ones
with a metal core. The plastic ones are inexpensive. The ceramic
ones sound like they would be more robust, but they also might be
more brittle. My immediate need is for a small flat-blade tip
about 1.5 to 2 mm wide, and a larger flat-blade tip about 4 to
6 mm wide. It seems like you can get a better deal on sets of
tools, which is fine, as long as it has the ones I need. In the
future I might be using them on other two-way radios, for sure
from 450 MHz down to 50 MHz, and then possibly on some radios
below 30 MHz. I don't anticipate using them much on AM or FM
broadcast sets, or television sets.

Are there any particular brands or features that are recommended,
or unfavored? Any sets that are particularly good for this
application? (I like the idea of the ceramic ones, but if they
break a lot they may not be worth the cost.)

Thanks for your help!

Matt Roberds


Hi Matt...

If you try not to laugh at a real old guy, back in
the olden days we used to get a couple of knitting
needles.

A few minutes with a pair of cutters and a file, and
we could have several flat blade ones for the price
of a single needle. Double ended, too. Different size
on each end.

Ken



I've never seen ceramic core twisters, i'd have thought them to be as harsh
on
ferrite recesses as steel blades.
I find the plastic shafts of broken darts stems a good starting point,
paring down with knife or small grind wheel.
Anyone any tips for the first shifting - i tendt to heat up with a soldering
iron
but any other ideas. Most tool/ ferrite damage is done trying to
overcome the varnishes or whatever introduced after factory alignment.
I just use a dab of hot-melt glue when done, theory being it should
look like hot-melt to anyone else coming across my fiddlings

electronic hints and repair briefs , schematics/manuals list on
http://homepages.tcp.co.uk/~diverse

Alignment tools are not always cheap. The good ones will not break or wear
out very easily. They are machine, and or moulded to fit exactly to the coil
core. A proper alignment tool will have a minimal effect on the coil's
performance, due to being inserted with the tool.


The links below should give you something to go on to find an alignment tool
kit.

http://www.oselectronics.com/ose_p62.htm

http://www.radiodaze.com/tooltool.htm

http://www.hmcelectronics.com/cgi-bi...duct/3480-0015



--

Jerry G.
======


wrote in message
news:7VcWd.215$Fy.156@okepread04...
Hello all!

I am working on a 2 meter (146 MHz) radio kit, and I am faced with
the need to adjust various coils and transformers in it. The
directions point out which ones can be adjusted with a metal tool,
and which ones really need a non-metallic tool. My first non-
metallic tool was a cheap plastic flat-blade screwdriver meant for
adjusting trimpots. It started out OK but the tip quickly got
chewed up and it started slipping. So, I get out the regular
(metal) screwdriver set, and managed to crack one of the cores with
my enthusiasm...

I have a new coil on the way and now I am looking at real, official
alignment tools. Basically, I see pure plastic tools of varying
materials, tools that are a metal core covered in plastic, and
some fancy ceramic ones. I'm pretty sure I don't want the ones
with a metal core. The plastic ones are inexpensive. The ceramic
ones sound like they would be more robust, but they also might be
more brittle. My immediate need is for a small flat-blade tip
about 1.5 to 2 mm wide, and a larger flat-blade tip about 4 to
6 mm wide. It seems like you can get a better deal on sets of
tools, which is fine, as long as it has the ones I need. In the
future I might be using them on other two-way radios, for sure
from 450 MHz down to 50 MHz, and then possibly on some radios
below 30 MHz. I don't anticipate using them much on AM or FM
broadcast sets, or television sets.

Are there any particular brands or features that are recommended,
or unfavored? Any sets that are particularly good for this
application? (I like the idea of the ceramic ones, but if they
break a lot they may not be worth the cost.)

Thanks for your help!

Matt Roberds

wrote in message
news:7VcWd.215$Fy.156@okepread04...

[snip]

In the
future I might be using them on other two-way radios, for sure
from 450 MHz down to 50 MHz, and then possibly on some radios
below 30 MHz. I don't anticipate using them much on AM or FM
broadcast sets, or television sets.


Regardless, in most newer TV's, AM and FM radios, you'll find no
place to use any of those tools. Those old coil days are gone forever!

--
An economist is an expert who will know tomorrow why the things
he predicted yesterday didn't happen today. Laurence J. Peter

"N Cook" wrote in message
...

Most tool/ ferrite damage is done trying to
overcome the varnishes or whatever introduced after factory alignment.
I just use a dab of hot-melt glue when done, theory being it should
look like hot-melt to anyone else coming across my fiddlings

I used nail polish. The color makes it easy to spot and it holds well but
breaks easily. It doesn't run down in the threads either.

N

wrote:
Hello all!

I am working on a 2 meter (146 MHz) radio kit, and I am faced with
the need to adjust various coils and transformers in it. The
directions point out which ones can be adjusted with a metal tool,
and which ones really need a non-metallic tool. My first non-
metallic tool was a cheap plastic flat-blade screwdriver meant for
adjusting trimpots. It started out OK but the tip quickly got
chewed up and it started slipping. So, I get out the regular
(metal) screwdriver set, and managed to crack one of the cores with
my enthusiasm...

I have a new coil on the way and now I am looking at real, official
alignment tools. Basically, I see pure plastic tools of varying
materials, tools that are a metal core covered in plastic, and
some fancy ceramic ones. I'm pretty sure I don't want the ones
with a metal core. The plastic ones are inexpensive. The ceramic
ones sound like they would be more robust, but they also might be
more brittle. My immediate need is for a small flat-blade tip
about 1.5 to 2 mm wide, and a larger flat-blade tip about 4 to
6 mm wide. It seems like you can get a better deal on sets of
tools, which is fine, as long as it has the ones I need. In the
future I might be using them on other two-way radios, for sure
from 450 MHz down to 50 MHz, and then possibly on some radios
below 30 MHz. I don't anticipate using them much on AM or FM
broadcast sets, or television sets.

Are there any particular brands or features that are recommended,
or unfavored? Any sets that are particularly good for this
application? (I like the idea of the ceramic ones, but if they
break a lot they may not be worth the cost.)

Thanks for your help!

Matt Roberds


Cores break because of radial, outward force. A hex tool that fits
exactly exerts most of the force to rotate the core. If the tool is
ever so slightly too small or rounded, it will apply considerable
force to expand the core...at the weakest part of the core.

I've had some success with metal allen wrenches. Don't remember whether
it was SAE or Metric. Heat the coil slightly and loosen the core
with the allen wrench. Then adjust it with the plastic tool.

If you're talking about cores with a slot in the top, you have the same
problem with a flat-blade tool. You want it to fill the slot. Forces
go up rapidly as the tool gets smaller relative to the slot.
mike

--
Return address is VALID but some sites block emails
with links. Delete this sig when replying.
..
Wanted, PCMCIA SCSI Card for HP m820 CDRW.
FS 500MHz Tek DSOscilloscope TDS540 Make Offer
Wanted, 12.1" LCD for Gateway Solo 5300. Samsung LT121SU-121
Bunch of stuff For Sale and Wanted at the link below.
MAKE THE OBVIOUS CHANGES TO THE LINK
htremovethistp://www.geocities.com/SiliconValley/Monitor/4710/

wrote:
Hello all!

Fiberglass works best for most iron hex cores; plastic is an acceptable
substitute. Any 2-way radio shop in your town will have hundreds of
these tools and perhaps will give you one if you ask nicely. Or for $10
buy a set of your own.

http://www.oselectronics.com/ose_p62.htm

Travis Jordan wrote:
Fiberglass works best for most iron hex cores; plastic is an
acceptable substitute. Any 2-way radio shop in your town will have
hundreds of these tools and perhaps will give you one if you ask
nicely. Or for $10 buy a set of your own.

http://www.oselectronics.com/ose_p62.htm

Forgot to mention - you'll want to be sure to get a small steel blade
tip tool for those pesky little trimmer capacitors.

A GC Waldom # 8605 will do fine.

On the RadioDaze link, click on the picture of the Universal Color TV
Alignment Tool Kit and look at the white tool. Then click on the
picture of the CB Alignment Tool Kit, 8 Piece, and look at the first red
tool on the left. Both of these are plastic tools, with a tiny metal
blade fitted into the end. The piece of metal is small enough that it
doesn't appreciably alter the tuning, and tough enough that it will not
mush when you turn the core. I've had these tools for years, and they
seem to work well.

Bill
=====================

Jerry G. wrote:

Alignment tools are not always cheap. The good ones will not break or wear
out very easily. They are machine, and or moulded to fit exactly to the coil
core. A proper alignment tool will have a minimal effect on the coil's
performance, due to being inserted with the tool.


The links below should give you something to go on to find an alignment tool
kit.

http://www.oselectronics.com/ose_p62.htm

http://www.radiodaze.com/tooltool.htm

http://www.hmcelectronics.com/cgi-bi...duct/3480-0015

NSM wrote:

I used nail polish. The color makes it easy to spot and it holds well but
breaks easily. It doesn't run down in the threads either.

N


I used a drop of canning wax. If you need to realign it later its
easy to melt with the tip of a soldering iron, and lubricates the
threads while its still soft.

--
?

Michael A. Terrell
Central Florida

"Do Litlle Jr." wrote:

Regardless, in most newer TV's, AM and FM radios, you'll find no
place to use any of those tools. Those old coil days are gone forever!


Not in transmitters and commercial radios.

--
?

Michael A. Terrell
Central Florida

Take a look at
http://www.gcwaldom.com/catalog/css/catalog_179.html

wrote:
Hello all!

I am working on a 2 meter (146 MHz) radio kit, and I am faced with
the need to adjust various coils and transformers in it. The
directions point out which ones can be adjusted with a metal tool,
and which ones really need a non-metallic tool. My first non-
metallic tool was a cheap plastic flat-blade screwdriver meant for
adjusting trimpots. It started out OK but the tip quickly got
chewed up and it started slipping. So, I get out the regular
(metal) screwdriver set, and managed to crack one of the cores with
my enthusiasm...

I have a new coil on the way and now I am looking at real, official
alignment tools. Basically, I see pure plastic tools of varying
materials, tools that are a metal core covered in plastic, and
some fancy ceramic ones. I'm pretty sure I don't want the ones
with a metal core. The plastic ones are inexpensive. The ceramic
ones sound like they would be more robust, but they also might be
more brittle. My immediate need is for a small flat-blade tip
about 1.5 to 2 mm wide, and a larger flat-blade tip about 4 to
6 mm wide. It seems like you can get a better deal on sets of
tools, which is fine, as long as it has the ones I need. In the
future I might be using them on other two-way radios, for sure
from 450 MHz down to 50 MHz, and then possibly on some radios
below 30 MHz. I don't anticipate using them much on AM or FM
broadcast sets, or television sets.

Are there any particular brands or features that are recommended,
or unfavored? Any sets that are particularly good for this
application? (I like the idea of the ceramic ones, but if they
break a lot they may not be worth the cost.)

Thanks for your help!

Matt Roberds

"Michael A. Terrell" wrote in message
...
"Do Litlle Jr." wrote:

Regardless, in most newer TV's, AM and FM radios, you'll find no
place to use any of those tools. Those old coil days are gone forever!


Not in transmitters and commercial radios.

True, however, if one compares an old Collins auto-mechanical
transmitter / receiver (the one with brass gears) from end WWII era,
with the latest designs than you have to admit that alignment / tuning
has also changed dramatically. Now with all crystal controlled PLL
frequency synthesizes, pre-tuned ceramic/crystal devices and cavity
resonators, the need for realignment / tuning has really been
minimized, specially in the IF sections.

"Do Litlle Jr." wrote:

"Michael A. Terrell" wrote in message

Not in transmitters and commercial radios.

True, however, if one compares an old Collins auto-mechanical
transmitter / receiver (the one with brass gears) from end WWII era,
with the latest designs than you have to admit that alignment / tuning
has also changed dramatically. Now with all crystal controlled PLL
frequency synthesizes, pre-tuned ceramic/crystal devices and cavity
resonators, the need for realignment / tuning has really been
minimized, specially in the IF sections.

A lot of old equipment is still in daily use, in some fields. I have
worked on transmitters up to 130 KW Visual and 65 KW aural. You don't
replace these every year or two.

I worked on the production line for an $80,000 (US) telemetry
receiver (RCB2000)and there were still a lot of adjustments to be made
even though it had a dual DSP front end, massive FIR filtering, digital
signal combining and 12 microprocessors. I had a set of ceramic
alignment tools that cost a couple hundred dollars issued by the test
department. The replacement tips were around $45 and would shatter if
dropped to the floor the wrong way.

--
?

Michael A. Terrell
Central Florida

Michael A. Terrell wrote:
I worked on the production line for an $80,000 (US) telemetry
receiver (RCB2000)and there were still a lot of adjustments to be made
even though it had a dual DSP front end, massive FIR filtering,
digital signal combining and 12 microprocessors. I had a set of
ceramic alignment tools that cost a couple hundred dollars issued by
the test department. The replacement tips were around $45 and would
shatter if dropped to the floor the wrong way.

Classic government contracting stuff, eh?

Is Microdyne still around?

"Travis Jordan" wrote in message
...
Michael A. Terrell wrote:
I worked on the production line for an $80,000 (US) telemetry
receiver (RCB2000)and there were still a lot of adjustments to be
made
even though it had a dual DSP front end, massive FIR filtering,
digital signal combining and 12 microprocessors. I had a set of
ceramic alignment tools that cost a couple hundred dollars issued by
the test department. The replacement tips were around $45 and would
shatter if dropped to the floor the wrong way.

Classic government contracting stuff, eh?

Is Microdyne still around?


NASA sites still use some Microdyne receivers and a lot of Harris
Multifunction receivers (MFR) for telemetry.

wrote:
I have a new coil on the way and now I am looking at real, official
alignment tools.

Thanks for all the responses!

I ended up ordering some tools from Digi-Key, as I was ordering some
other parts from them as well. I got their 25-piece set from Aven Tools
(243-1017, Aven 13.500) and also the four-blade ceramic adjuster from
Aven (243-1014, Aven 13.230). Both items were made in Taiwan. The
25-piece set seems to be a reasonable mix of tools for the price, but
I'm not quite as happy with the ceramic adjuster; it just looks cheap.
Time will tell.

To answer some other points that were raised, my metal screwdriver was
not a very good fit in the coil slug. It tended to contact just the
sides of the slug's rectangular recess; / is the blade:
___
| |
| /|
| / |
|/ |
|___|

The crack started at one of the corners of the recess. The new 25-piece
set has enough different variations on a flat-bladed screwdriver tip
that I think I'll be able to find one that fits the recess nicely.

These coils were brand new and had no Glyptal or other sealer on them,
but I have seen such sealers used on coils, pots, and screws on factory-
built gear. Before I soldered the coils onto the board, I ran the cores
all the way up and down to make sure they would turn easily; the
manufacturer's instructions mentioned that they might be stiff. One of
them was a little stiffer than the others, but not markedly so. Still,
one of them got very stiff after I soldered it to the board.

Thanks again!

Matt Roberds

Derelict wrote:

"Travis Jordan" wrote in message
...
Michael A. Terrell wrote:
I worked on the production line for an $80,000 (US) telemetry
receiver (RCB2000)and there were still a lot of adjustments to be
made
even though it had a dual DSP front end, massive FIR filtering,
digital signal combining and 12 microprocessors. I had a set of
ceramic alignment tools that cost a couple hundred dollars issued by
the test department. The replacement tips were around $45 and would
shatter if dropped to the floor the wrong way.

Classic government contracting stuff, eh?

Is Microdyne still around?


NASA sites still use some Microdyne receivers and a lot of Harris
Multifunction receivers (MFR) for telemetry.

Don't you have that backwards? The government was buying Microdyne
equipment to replace aging Harris systems. We built a turnkey system
for NOAA at Wallops Island to replace a Harris system they couldn't keep
up and running. We were allowed two weeks after delivery to get it to
meet specs. The engineers arrived a day early, uncrated the racks that
night and wired them together. The next morning the facility's manager
took one look and told our team they could go home, it was perfect.


We also built a turnkey system for the Italian space program,
including a portable system in a large trailer that was to be towed
behind a two ton truck, followed bu a diesel generator. We also built a
one of a kind modified 700 series KU band receiver for the International
Space Station. I was involved in all three projects, as well as
preparing the RCB-2000 for the production floor.

Most Microdyne products were built with the tech in mind because we
had to do so much custom work on every unit. There were pages of
options, and we were always adding new items that customers requested.

--
?

Michael A. Terrell
Central Florida

"Michael A. Terrell" wrote in message
...

The L3-Com prototype was so poorly designed we kept the mockup on
display in the Manufacturing Engineering office for everyone to see how
not to do things. It was flimsy, poorly laid out and would have been a
nightmare on the production floor.

A lot of the software out there is not designed any better. I worked for
three years on very large database systems. Occasionally, for amusement, I
would tell my co-workers that as I walked in the door on my first day I was
concerned that I would be unable to measure up to the knowledge and skill of
the other people there. Inevitably they would break out in hysterical
laughter, tears streaming down their faces.

N

"To retain respect for sausages and laws, one must not watch them in the
making.". Otto von Bismarck

NSM wrote:

"Michael A. Terrell" wrote in message
...

The L3-Com prototype was so poorly designed we kept the mockup on
display in the Manufacturing Engineering office for everyone to see how
not to do things. It was flimsy, poorly laid out and would have been a
nightmare on the production floor.

A lot of the software out there is not designed any better. I worked for
three years on very large database systems. Occasionally, for amusement, I
would tell my co-workers that as I walked in the door on my first day I was
concerned that I would be unable to measure up to the knowledge and skill of
the other people there. Inevitably they would break out in hysterical
laughter, tears streaming down their faces.

N


My first day on the job I was assigned a "Trainer" to bring me up to
speed and warned that I only had six weeks to get up to at least 70% of
the work produced by the existing techs. By the end of the first day I
was repairing modules the trainer thought were scrap. The start of the
next week I got my test stamp five weeks early, and the following Monday
a "Committee" of angry techs arrived at my bench and threatened me.
They ordered me to reduce my output, because I was making everyone else
look bad. I smiled and gave them three options. They could work
harder, they could work faster, or they could get out of my face because
I wasn't working up to my ability yet and they weren't going to stop
me. I made some enemies, and a lot of friends. I offered to teach them
better techniques and logical troubleshooting. Some took the offer and
got better, while others just grumbled and insisted they were the best
techs because they had been there for 15 years or more.


--
?

Michael A. Terrell
Central Florida

"Michael A. Terrell" wrote in message
...

My first day on the job I was assigned a "Trainer" to bring me up to
speed and warned that I only had six weeks to get up to at least 70% of
the work produced by the existing techs. By the end of the first day I
was repairing modules the trainer thought were scrap. The start of the
next week I got my test stamp five weeks early, and the following Monday
a "Committee" of angry techs arrived at my bench and threatened me.
They ordered me to reduce my output, because I was making everyone else
look bad. I smiled and gave them three options. They could work
harder, they could work faster, or they could get out of my face because
I wasn't working up to my ability yet and they weren't going to stop
me. I made some enemies, and a lot of friends. I offered to teach them
better techniques and logical troubleshooting. Some took the offer and
got better, while others just grumbled and insisted they were the best
techs because they had been there for 15 years or more.

What is it the Marines say? "Lead or follow but get out of my way"? I once
got a new job and was sent to head office for a week's training as a HVAC
estimator. On Wednesday they told me I could leave now, since in two days
I'd learned everything I could be taught and I hadn't been too subtle about
it.

N

NSM wrote:

What is it the Marines say? "Lead or follow but get out of my way"? I once
got a new job and was sent to head office for a week's training as a HVAC
estimator. On Wednesday they told me I could leave now, since in two days
I'd learned everything I could be taught and I hadn't been too subtle about
it.

N


I wrote software to calculate the cost of retrofitting older homes
with better insulation and storm windows in 1986. It also created a
B.O.M. and a sheet of calculations on how long it would take to pay back
the cost to upgrade.

There was already one commercial product on the market. It took two
or three hours to enter all the data into the forms, and reloading three
different paper forms into the printer. It leased for $1,000 a month.
I did it on a Commodore 128 with three printers, and you could enter the
data and do the calculations in under 15 minutes. Total cost was a
couple hundred dollars. It was fun to see people jump when three
different dot matrix printers started spitting out paper on the shelves
behind them.

--
?

Michael A. Terrell
Central Florida

Michael A. Terrell wrote:
The prices are high because the production numbers are low. On the

And because there is a tremendous amount of overhead in the bidding and
contract management process. And then you have the 'added value' from
DCAA, DCAS, DCMA, DCMC, and of course the ACO. Thank you, taxpayers.

Travis Jordan wrote:

Michael A. Terrell wrote:
The prices are high because the production numbers are low. On the

And because there is a tremendous amount of overhead in the bidding and
contract management process. And then you have the 'added value' from
DCAA, DCAS, DCMA, DCMC, and of course the ACO. Thank you, taxpayers.


We were so niche that we usually got the frantic phone call asking,
"Is there any way you can make model # XX do this?" Some systems took a
lot of time to bid, but they were usually sure they would get it before
spending much time preparing a bid.

--
?

Michael A. Terrell
Central Florida

Michael A. Terrell wrote:
We were so niche that we usually got the frantic phone call asking,
"Is there any way you can make model # XX do this?" Some systems
took a lot of time to bid, but they were usually sure they would get
it before spending much time preparing a bid.

I remember a few times where a contract went to a lower bidder, and then
later the contracting agency would come back to us with their hat in
their hands and ask if we'd be interested in submitting a new bid for a
slightly modified system. That was a clear sign that the low bidder
couldn't deliver, and you can be sure the folks involved in the rebid
knew that there wasn't going to be any competition..