Reviving A Projection Display From 1962

Part 1 of a weekend Double Header! Thanks to the viewer who sent in these cool displays for us to look at!
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- Music by Fran Blanche -
Fran's Science Blog - www.frantone.com/designwriting...
FranArt Website - www.contourcorsets.com

[@Defecato99]

This is why I LOVE you Fran. xxxxxx

[@Donna230]

That beat at the end is so beautiful.

[@mbn65]

Super smart and easy “cable dispenser” with the rubber strip. Great tips! I will build me one for my self any day now, thanks!

[@Donna230]

In school, we had a projector. I did not get to break it down to see how it works. Thanks for this production, Fran, I really appreciate it.

[@OC35]

My first job was at a NASA satellite ground station. We used only Teflon wire. When I used PVC wire later, I had to relearn how to solder as I kept melting the insulation!

[@aerodesic1]

Love those displays, too. As a student in 70s, was programmer on a CDC 3300. The console used a lot of these to display registers and status. Looked like something out of Star Trek.

[@ICanDoThatToo2]

I thought TOS used rear-projected slides, so yeah this thing is totally Star Trek!

[@picobyte]

Their visual effects where pretty stylish for their time. To me it's what Tom Paris told about feeling with your vehicle. Running everything from a glass plate (like our phones and electric cars) doesn't give the human feedback on system performance as it did when drivers had to get some engineering right (as in knowing physics) to run their cars and machines.

[@KeritechElectronics]

I was really surprised watching Big Clive's long Q&A and project build video. Being able to process two simultaneous streams of information, crimping small terminals while reading the text and coming up with answers? I couldn't pull that off. It's either this or that. No problem processing different sensory inputs (audio, visual, kinestetic), but when two of the same type coincide, my brain goes into overload, sometimes meltdown. Workplace safety is a big topic. Here in the EU it's pretty well regulated, but accidents still happen, same with hazardous materials exposure, or loss of hearing. If companies had an economic incentive in using proper safety gear and practices (even if you don't have to buy anything, you still can skimp on protection to increase productivity), they would choose safety. The problem is, they don't - greed wins... I've done my time working with small construction companies, doing wiring and plumbing in apartment renovations. Not going back. Dust, noise, no place to rest or wind down, not for me. As for soldering itself, I use 60/40, but Bob Darlington bought me over to the 63/37 camp. Next time I'll get some and compare it with the regular solder.

[@wdavem]

Nice gift! I just had to make a resistor network to test something for a client. Since these resistors themselves are heat syncs they needed so much heat tp solder them that I gave up on soldering indoors since I have no good exhaust fan right now. The best time to solder outside is when it's windy enough to keep that smoke away. Amazingly the soldering iron regulated the tamp jut fine. Never had to turn it up! Wasn't expecting that when soldering heat syncs in the wind (it wasn't very cold). I dig the tefflon wire also. One of my mentors said to always use tefflon wire when you've making test equipment, a rule which he follows religiously.

[@davidedgar2818]

We would call out "smoke test" when re energizing equipment after repair.

[@TooManyHobbiesJeremy]

I really like that number font ❤

[@hotseventyfive]

the font is Futura

[@tiga31]

Really cool display Fran thanks :D

[@Ro-Bucks]

I inhaled some lead solder yesterday, I can feel it today. and so funny, soon as you said if I was working on a production line or something "the how it's made" show popped in mind. I think it was one when they were making TV screens or phones or something.

[@ar_xiv]

That radiator video is the top result when you search for it. It doesn't appear that the worker welding bare-handed is directly next to the vat of molten lead, but it's also not clear that he's isn't! Gnarly stuff lol

[@picobyte]

You always have great vintage stuff, and like this item there is so much creative old tech I didn't know about.

[@jaminova_1969]

Frantastic!

[@TheLuizzon]

Fran love your videos !

[@mrbusdriversir]

I love seeing you doing this work, and I would be sad if you stopped making your videos. I will definitely up my Patreon membership. 😊

[@GinoACosta]

Fran, I was really hoping you could do something like FranStock, showing off your tech, having musicians, and yourself, playing guitar, selling your brand of guitar pedals and etc. I would LOVE to go!!

[@gregebert5544]

'327' bulbs were common in aircraft instrumentation and run on 28V. Some of them were designed & spec'd to last 100,000 hours, which is pretty amazing. Let the beast run a few minutes and see how warm it gets. Now imagine what it's like in the cockpit of a 747 when the A/C is off....been there, done that.....and yes it got uncomfortable. I've been retrofitting illuminated switches using this style of lamps to single-color LEDs, and I'm happy with the results. Next step is to try a 2-wire RGB LED so I can program the color. I'm wrapping-up a digital clock using a smaller version of that display (IEE 350), of course with smaller bulbs but the same idea.

[@mabus42]

It would be interesting to revive a display like this to use LED's so that it's power consumption isn't terrible. Use a three digit display like that for a speedometer on a custom car would be a great application. You could also take a six or seven element display of this type to give you a live view to your subscriber count, because that would be the nerd's word.

[@Dr_Mario2007]

I agree. Yet 3,200 Kelvins white LEDs should retain much of old-school looks in my opinion. You could find golden white LEDs too if you can look for them. 5mm LEDs may potentially fit in this display. You may want to play with either clear or frosted LEDs to find what looks correct in comparison to the old school incandescent bulbs. It's easy to copy the color temperature, yet it's hard to get the look you want to match exactly. Ideally you would want CRI 90+ version so it essentially matches what you see with the incandescent bulbs.

[@martindejong3974]

Today I learned that solder fumes DO contain lead, I always thought they were unhealthy because of the resin. Well 60 years to late... although I did always use a ventilator, or air sucking device. now I also get why I need to wash my hands after soldering. Thanks Fran!

[@patrickcardon1643]

Noone can text and drive for a long time, however everyone can sooner or later text and have an accident :p

[@billmathis9310]

I remember going through NAVY 2M certification (mini & micro-miniature repair). The fumes they warned us about quite strenuously were not from the flux/solder mixture, but rather from using electrical strippers on Teflon wire. Apparently, when Teflon insulation is melted it releases Phosgene. So Fran is wise to stick to the mechanical pair. And try to avoid the solder wicking underneath the insulation. We used solder breaks (very small aluminum clamps) to do that.

[@JT-hi1cs]

Hey Fran, perhaps in the future you could develop your own FranDisplay, just to sell as art?

[@GHILLIESARCADEANDMORE]

Cool

[@marjon1703]

I love the visceral charm of projection displays. Easy to read and not harsh to the eyes. Thanks for another entertaining video.

[@iamjadedhobo]

The major downside of teflon is that it crushes when you grip it with pliers. That is why you need special tools for stripping.

[@hippynurd]

Ive done the exact same thing with dupont pins to make connectors, and Ive reversed polarity so many times by accident (usually in the dark, trying to get my lights working again) that Ive switched up to JST connectors, I got a bunch of like 100 3 wire jst connectors just for little projects like this.

[@MrPinkStrat]

loved the video Fran but then I always do 😊

[@stevent3450]

I would always get a sinus infection inhaling the Solder fumes, now I always use one of those vents filtered fans above the boards I al soldering and rarely now get sinus infections

[@scottthomas3792]

I work near a college campus... texting while doing something else has led to a lot of accidents...not every Gen Z type can do it. Safety isn't Job 1 at many jobs.... that's been my experience.

[@MrsG7swr]

i know its i health risk but i do love the smell of soldering, lucky i dont do it often but still looking forward to the next time.

[@murtelbrunft]

Are there additional projection elements at the unoccupied lamp sockets? Perhaps comma or dot or minus sign?

[@hippynurd]

Ive done much electronic production, and yes, its mind numbingly boring. I used to do stuff like math exercises in my head, and do stuff like books on tape while working. It can also be kind of calming and satisfying when you just keep your hands moving and producing with out even thinking about it, half an hour later, you have a large pile of parts that are all nice and consistent, which is satisfying, then you move on to the next pile.

[@kasamialt]

Whether there's lead in flux fumes or not, there's a lot of other bad things in it that people probably shouldn't be breathing, so get some kind of ventilation if you can. Even if it's just working near an open window that's better than nothing. I personally doubt there's any significant lead content but will gladly be disproven.

[@mikegLXIVMM]

Wow, 666 thumbs up. Such an evil number. I have to change that!

[@wmrg1057]

16:29 does that mean that they are half wits