Re: Tek P6015 thoughts - Re: Very nice High Bandwidth 75MHz HV Probe on EBAY ! ! !

["Tesla list" <tesla-at-pupman-dot-com>]

Original poster: "Terry Fritz" <teslalist-at-qwest-dot-net>

Hi Dan,

At 10:22 PM 6/17/2003 -0400, you wrote:
>One may "dream" of using other freons but forget it.  Most will
> > remember this funny picture I took ;-))
> >
> > http://hot-streamer-dot-com/temp/P5200028.jpg
>
>Terry,
>
>That *is* a very funny picture.  You have about 20 EPA violations going on
>in that picture alone!

When I worked at HP, we used to spray desk tops off with freon compounds 
that would cascade off the edges all over the floor and eat off the floor 
wax ;-))  I am still fine and so is everyone I worked with and their 
kids...  In retrospect, that freon hole should be the size of a dime now 
days :o))  Of course, I have friends that spent the night of Dec 31, 1999 
watching over vacuum tube based equipment in fear of Y2K :o)))  I just 
bought an electric tooth brush that fills internally with water due to a 
design defect that fills the AC line areas with water such that steam comes 
out of the frying AC electrical circuits being flooded with water.  "Guess" 
how many people listen to complaints to the manufacturer and the CPSC for a 
problem that will directly produce bodies...  So, CFCs are sort of last on 
"my" list of public dangers... ;-))

>I did recheck the probes at work today and they aren't the old style P6015.
>They are the newer P6015A which have the mineral oil
>in them.  Anyways, with transmitter work, we do use these probes frequency
>especially when doing "quick-on-the-fly" measurements where we
>don't have time to set-up a high quality voltage divider for measurement.

There is a chance the "new" "box" works much much better now!!  It was 
redesigned in "modern times" so maybe the bandwidth stuff is fixed.  The 
big fat probe is terrible near a toroid where its big fat grounded body 
shifts the frequency dramatically (like 15pF), not a problem for low Z 
circuits....  The modern 5200 probe shifts only 1pF!!!!


>Dan


>We use these probes all the time where I work with zero problems.  I think
>Terry's problem was basically a fluke or faulty probe.
>
>The Captain

No, my probe is perfectly fine.  I was just using it in situations that 
would really show up odd things, and the probe did.  Low Z steady state 
conditions would be "perfect" for this probe.  But take it over rated 
voltage, high speed step to 0.1% (3kV to zero step and looking for 3 volt 
DC stuff...) , High Z electrostatic sources...., and it fails 
miserably...  Tough situations indeed, but 60 years latter, Tek "can" fix 
that...  There is a growing "rumble in the wilderness" for a "real" modern 
~50 kV RF scope probe that would replace the P6015 series.  Safe, reliable, 
and true...  That old design of 60 years ago is ancient now...  So, we are 
"poking" Tek to make a us a nice new one ;-)))  Tesla coil spark gap 
measurements are right smack in the "bad" area for the P6015 series probes 
:-(     We need a better probe........

Cheers,

         Terry