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  • Author Author: jw0752
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A Meeting with Make Electronics Author Charles Platt

jw0752

In my wanderings today I had the honor of spending an hour and a half visiting with the Author of the wonderful Make Electronics and Encyclopedia of Electronics Books Series. These are some of the best entry level books available for those who want to learn the basics of electronics or for those like myself who want to have some enthusiastic materials with which to inspire children and grandchildren. I have been a promoter of the Authors books for some time now and we have had a couple email exchanges over the last couple years. When my travels took me near his home he kindly invited me to visit.

 

Charles understands that there is more to teaching electronics than just putting the ideas and some parts on the table and he does an excellent job of teaching through the use of color and clear pictures and drawings as well as fun builds in his books.

 

We had the chance to visit some time and compare our different approaches and special focuses. I was pleased to find out that Charles also likes to label things just like I do. His electronics bench was well organized and very functional for the experiments and demonstrations that are necessary to produce the lessons and builds which he illustrates in his books. It is very rewarding to visit and share ideas with other people who share an interest in electronics. Since my  level of electronics ability isn't that great it seems that I always come away with more knowledge than I leave behind.

 

In case anyone is interested here are links to some sites where you can get Make Electronics, Make More Electronics, The Encyclopedia of Electronics Volume 1, 2, and 3 as well as the newest beginners book, Make: Easy Electronics.

 

https://www.amazon.com/s/?ie=UTF8&keywords=make+electronics&tag=googhydr-20&index=aps&hvadid=241605544532&hvpos=1t1&hvnetw=g&hvrand=6800277607575309026&hvpone=&hvptwo=&hvqmt=e&hvdev=c&hvdvcmdl=&hvlocint=&hvlocphy=9030317&hvtargid=kwd-13613260243&ref=pd_sl_479ao4hbx4_e_p20

 

https://www.google.com/search?q=make+encyclopedia+of+electronic+components&source=univ&tbm=shop&tbo=u&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwjg_u_Z5_nYAhXnhlQKHVodC6cQsxgIKA&biw=1366&bih=637

 

https://www.google.com/search?biw=1366&bih=637&tbm=shop&ei=plBtWvvwNdKkzwKhuau4AQ&q=easy+electronics+charles+platt&oq=easy+electronics+charles+platt&gs_l=psy-ab.3...7718.11086.0.11812.14.12.0.0.0.0.450.1886.0j3j1j2j1.7.0....0...1c.1.64.psy-ab..7.1.162...0.0.N1pfGHB8XTY

 

My next stop if I can catch up with him will be . I tried to meet him 4 years ago but the fates didn't cooperate that time. I hope I have better luck this year.

 

John

 

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  • I was pleased to find out that Charles also likes to label things just like I do.

     

    Hi John,

     

    Just wondering if you label any of your pre-terminated cables and if so, what technique you find works best ?

     

    I tend to find that the Dymo Rhino nylon type labels still tend to unpeel when used on cables around 6mm diameter or less. The 3M style write-on labels with clear plastic window tend to stay on ok but the ink tends to bleed into the adhesive after 6-12months. Cable tie solutions tend to snag when coiling the cable up after use. Heatshrink is not suitable as the shrink ratios are not great enough to get over larger connectors such as XLR and IEC.

     

    Dave

  • in reply to beacon_dave

    Hi Dave,

     

    I don't have a good solution either : (

    I use a Brother P-Touch intended for electrical work, but the tapes unpeel off small diameter cables, just as you say : ( The ink seems permanent though.

     

    Another option is paper labels, generally they don't peel off, in fact they are really hard to remove, but of course the label itself is not as robust as plastic. If you can get the printers that use a heat ribbon (i.e. not thermal, but thermal transfer) then the ink won't fade either.

  • in reply to shabaz

    Here is an interesting product.  It prints on heatshrink tubing, which works well with cabling. (Brother PT-E300 Shrink Tube Printer - $110, refills ~ $25)

     

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FOz1pliEz-k

    Gene

  • in reply to genebren

    Unfortunately the shrink ratio is only like 2:1 or 3:1 which tends to restrict it to applications where the cable hasn't yet been terminated. However it looks a nice solution if you are making your own cable assemblies.

  • in reply to genebren

    Hi Gene,

     

    That looks really interesting! It is the model replacement for the one I've got I think. I have the older PT-7600. Looks like the PT-E series can use the same (normal plastic tape label) cassettes, but also can use the heat-shrink cassettes.

    I like the PT series, they have easy-to-use software for creating custom symbols too. The electrician versions already have stuff like earth symbols and so on.

    In some ways the product is a bit clunky, but it gives really good print quality, at least on the normal plastic labels. I'm tempted to get just the heatshrink cassette and try it on the older PT-7600, but don't want to break it : (

  • in reply to shabaz

    I really like your review of the earlier product (PT-7600) .  It is hard to tell, but the PT-300E looks similar, but maybe even a little clunkier (wider on the lower grip).  Good to hear that they are easy-to-use.

    Thanks!

    Gene

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