[sdiy] Alpha pots group buy

[David G. Dixon]

This latest message has got me wondering, what is the consensus among other
diy'ers concerning:

Panel-mounted (as opposed to pcb-mounted) pot size (12, 16, 17, 24 mm)
Pot type (Alpha cheapo vs Bourns/Spectrol break-the-bank)
Pot shaft length
Pot shaft style (smooth, knurled, split, D-profile, etc)
Knob installation style (tension or set-screw)

Are these things a matter of choice, or more often a matter of expediency
vis-a-vis what is available?

Finally, I'm curious, do most diy'ers clip off the positioning tab and rely
just on nut tightness to keep pots aligned, or do they drill auxiliary holes
in their panels to accommodate the tabs, and if so, are these holes drilled
clear through or not.

I'm still trying to decide these basic issues for my own stuff.  Any helpful
tips would be most appreciated.

David G. Dixon
Professor
Department of Materials Engineering
University of British Columbia
309-6350 Stores Road
Vancouver, B.C.  V6T 1Z4
Canada
 
Tel 1-604-822-3679
Fax 1-604-822-3619
 
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-----Original Message-----
From: synth-diy-bounces at dropmix.xs4all.nl
[mailto:synth-diy-bounces at dropmix.xs4all.nl] On Behalf Of Tom Arnold
Sent: Wednesday, October 22, 2008 3:15 PM
To: synth-diy at dropmix.xs4all.nl
Subject: Re: [sdiy] Alpha pots group buy

On Wed, Oct 22, 2008 at 11:29:27AM -0700, flightofharmony wrote:
> Yeah, I have looked at CTS but, as you said, they cost substantially more
> than Alpha pots from Futurlec. Mouser also carries the 16mm pots I need -
> but only in audio taper. WTF???? This has always been excruciatingly
> frustrating.

I order my pots these days from Small Bear.  He's got a much better
selection of the pots and shafts we want then Mouser or Digikey.

I have recently become very enamored with these pots in particular :
Http://www.smallbearelec.com/Detail.bok?no=693

They run about 50cents more in quantity over the normal 16mm Alphas but have
a major advantage...  They have the same pin spacing as MOTM-Quality pots (
Bourns/Spectrol Conductive plastic ).  This lets you have the flexibility of
pot choice while still having a low cost option.

Sadly, if you use the splined push-on knobs, they arnt stocked but my
favorite knob is available cloned from Small Bear also ( good'ol 1900H )
cheaply Http://www.smallbearelec.com/Detail.bok?no=707.

No, I have nothing to do with Small Bear, just a fan-boy happy customer.

-- 
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 - Tom Arnold       -  Free Synth DIY webspace http://www.sdiy.org 
 - SynthGeek        -
 - BBD Fanatic      -  "...is it a virus, a drug, or a religion?" 
 - echo evho wjxo   -    Juanita Shrugs. "What's the difference?" 
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