On Thu, 22 Oct 2015, Oscar Vermeulen wrote:
Hi,
> Oscar is already working on another very
promising product.
> [..]He will
also pay a visit to my "museum" to take a few
measurements.
Sorry, can't say more
> I'll leave that up to Oscar. Perhaps he
want to stay "below the radar" until that project is finished ...
Thanks for the kind words on my strange replica mania! We all need to do
silly things at some point in our lives.
No secret... I'd love to do an "Open Source Hardware" PDP-11/70 replica
(or remake - whatever choice of words is preferred). Electronically, it
would a simple variation on the PiDP-8 (i.e., simh brains on a Raspberry
Pi, hiding behind a front panel PCB). It's just a different emulator
from the simh stable with less LEDs.
But a 11/70 replica needs two physical 'cosmetic elements': proper
switches, and the white bezel/frame. The switches *seem* to be feasible
to produce cheaply (I will know in a month with PDP-8/I switches...).
The white bezel though brings me into unknown territory. 3D CAD (based
on Museum Measurements), then injection molding or vacuum forming. Or
any technique to produce a plastic object in medium quantities. All I
know so far is that it's very feasible - and much cheaper to do than
just a few years ago.
If anyone here *does* have know-how in this field, I'd love any advice.
I got some preliminary quotes and recommendations on making a case
replica using vacuum forming. Which is relatively cheap. Not perfect,
but low cost is very important for such a gadget.
I'd love to get my hands on one or two bezels for the 11/70 front panel.
Invariably, whenever a front panel shows up for sale, the bezel is
missing.
--
David Griffith
dave at
661.org
A: Because it fouls the order in which people normally read text.
Q: Why is top-posting such a bad thing?
A: Top-posting.
Q: What is the most annoying thing in e-mail?