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Author: Subject: new toys
Magpie
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[*] posted on 25-12-2015 at 14:15
new toys


Here's a picture of some long sought after lab equipment I gave myself for Christmas:
drierite.jpg - 77kB

This is indicating Drietite. No more use of swimming pool CaCl2.

Also shown is a small Brazilian agate mortar & pestle for use in preparing solids for a melting point. No more using my huge 4" Coors porcelain mortar & pestle.




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Magpie
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[*] posted on 4-1-2016 at 21:00


Here's a picture of an Atago Abbé refractometer I recently acquired off eBay for $150 including shipping. Atago thinks it was made ca 1963. It came in a nice wood case which included a small crystal block labeled ND= 1.5163.

Although I've had to do some calibration it seems to be working fine. I always worry about buying something that old and complex from an antique dealer.

I calibrated it with water at ND=1.3329. When I checked glycerol it read very close to the Wiki value of ND=1.4746. I don't yet know how to measure the ND of the supplied crystal.

If you have any questions about this instrument I'll try to answer them.

Atago refractometer.jpg - 15kB




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[*] posted on 5-1-2016 at 18:34


Wow! The refractometer looks beautiful. @ $ 150 delivered it is a steal.
I am bit confused about the first picture though. what is the Christmas Present - the Pestle & Mortar or the Drierite Bottle? ;-)

gsd
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JJay
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[*] posted on 5-1-2016 at 19:04


Here is my new flask.

20160105_175653.jpg - 766kB
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Magpie
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[*] posted on 5-1-2016 at 19:47


Quote: Originally posted by gsd  
Wow! The refractometer looks beautiful. @ $ 150 delivered it is a steal.
I am bit confused about the first picture though. what is the Christmas Present - the Pestle & Mortar or the Drierite Bottle? ;-)

gsd


Thank you gsd. I'm glad someone has an appreciation for these old instruments. Atago USA trying to find some more information on this item.

The Drierite and the mortar/pestle are both new items.




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Morgan
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[*] posted on 8-2-2016 at 15:36


Quote: Originally posted by Magpie  
Here's a picture of some long sought after lab equipment I gave myself for Christmas:


This is indicating Drietite. No more use of swimming pool CaCl2.

Also shown is a small Brazilian agate mortar & pestle for use in preparing solids for a melting point. No more using my huge 4" Coors porcelain mortar & pestle.


I have sort of the same problem, a mortar and pestle my sister gave me that she no longer wanted that was for her kitchen presumably. It's nice to look at but what might it best be used for? It's 11 inches across and 6 high and the pestle about 10.5. It's marked Coors 520-6.

003.JPG - 263kB 004.JPG - 259kB 011.JPG - 180kB

[Edited on 8-2-2016 by Morgan]
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Dr.Bob
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[*] posted on 8-2-2016 at 16:52


It (huge mortar and pestle) would best be used to grind up a huge amount of anything. It is nice to have a few of them, so you can handle any amount of stuff. I have a nice one that is great for grinding up NaOH or K2CO3 into powder for reactions where you need a fine powder.

The agate ones are nice as they are not porous, so they are easier to clean and you don't loose material in their pores. They are great for small samples.
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[*] posted on 8-2-2016 at 17:17


Quote: Originally posted by Magpie  

Thank you gsd. I'm glad someone has an appreciation for these old instruments. Atago USA trying to find some more information on this item.

The Drierite and the mortar/pestle are both new items.


I luuuurrve these old instruments. I bought an old spectroscope a year ago.

Try working out the range of nD that it can handle?




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Magpie
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[*] posted on 8-2-2016 at 19:09


Quote: Originally posted by blogfast25  

Try working out the range of nD that it can handle?


Is that a question for me? My instrument reads from ND 1.3 to 1.7, which I think is typical for an Abbé.

[Edited on 9-2-2016 by Magpie]

edited to correct the range to 1.3 - 1.7.

[Edited on 9-2-2016 by Magpie]




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[*] posted on 8-2-2016 at 19:16


Quote: Originally posted by Magpie  
Quote: Originally posted by blogfast25  

Try working out the range of nD that it can handle?


Is that a question for me? IIRC my instrument reads from about ND 1.3 to 1.5, which I think is typical for an Abbé.


Yes, it was, thanks. Quite narrow range in a sense (but I'm no expert on refractometry).




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biggrin.gif posted on 18-4-2017 at 13:37


Recently I burned out my 5/12vdc power supply (salvaged from an old computer) by exceeding its 145w power limitation. This gave me the justification to buy what I've always really wanted anyway: a regulated linear power supply capable of holding up to 30vdc or 30adc. It just arrived today, as shown below:



Mastech DC power supply.jpg - 143kB




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[*] posted on 18-4-2017 at 14:08


That is a nice power supply!

I got a vacuum pump. Now I just have to figure out how to connect the flare fittings to a hose barb... it can't be that hard, right?

IMG_20170418_140431.jpg - 386kB




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[*] posted on 18-4-2017 at 14:52


Quote: Originally posted by JJay  
I got a vacuum pump. Now I just have to figure out how to connect the flare fittings to a hose barb... it can't be that hard, right?
Not hard at all. Home Depot sells the part you need in the plumbing section. Wrap the threads with PTFE tape for a nice tight seal and you're good to go.



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JJay
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[*] posted on 18-4-2017 at 17:14


Quote: Originally posted by zts16  
Quote: Originally posted by JJay  
I got a vacuum pump. Now I just have to figure out how to connect the flare fittings to a hose barb... it can't be that hard, right?
Not hard at all. Home Depot sells the part you need in the plumbing section. Wrap the threads with PTFE tape for a nice tight seal and you're good to go.


That is what I was thinking, but if you talk to a professional supplier of such parts, they treat as though you are doing some sort of dark sorcery that is officially frowned upon by the Plumbers Guild, the Heating Installers Conclave and the Refrigeration Coven.

I'll stop by Home Depot later.




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[*] posted on 20-4-2017 at 06:15


Quote: Originally posted by JJay  
Here is my new flask.

Looks like a deschem offering to me. So far so good on my end with them but I stopped buying large flasks awhile ago with small center joints. Try a 2 0r 3 liter with a 45/50 or similar joint in the middle& a reducing adapter. With the adapter I never looked back.




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[*] posted on 20-4-2017 at 17:13


Quote: Originally posted by Funkerman23  
Quote: Originally posted by JJay  
Here is my new flask.

Looks like a deschem offering to me. So far so good on my end with them but I stopped buying large flasks awhile ago with small center joints. Try a 2 0r 3 liter with a 45/50 or similar joint in the middle& a reducing adapter. With the adapter I never looked back.


It's a Deschem flask. I posted about it a long time ago before there was a glassware thread, but that is my favorite flask, and I have used it in dozens of reactions and distillations. Right now it has a thin layer of clay on the bottom that has defied removal with all common measures, so I am going to try scrubbing it and bought some copper scrubbers for the task. Eventually the flask will probably break, and I use it a lot, so I picked up a 4-neck 3L from Nanshin as a backup.

I actually have a 40/50 reducing adapter, but I just use it for my Soxhlet and my distillation bulb. I certainly wouldn't mind having one of those reaction vessels with a clamp-on top, though. In general, I try to avoid using adapters unless they are absolutely necessary.

The parts I picked up at Home Depot didn't quite fit the small valve on my pump (I think it's metric or something), but I did find a brake fitting that connects to the large one at Napa Auto Parts. It also connects nicely with the Home Depot hose barb. I used lots of plumber's tape and tightened the fittings onto the pump tightly enough that they will be hard to remove.


[Edited on 21-4-2017 by JJay]




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[*] posted on 21-4-2017 at 01:14


"Right now it has a thin layer of clay on the bottom that has defied removal with all common measures"

I would try swirling and shaking (or better, mag-stirring) sand, water and a little NaOH in the flask




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[*] posted on 21-4-2017 at 03:51


I just made a 105 dollar order from deschem, so far they been a seemingly good quality source (Good quality being relative to Chinese suppliers!)

His stuff fits for the most part and is priced to its value so can't complain there!

The Alanhin condenser I got has held up very well as have the 500ml flask I ordered.

Will post pics when it arrives in a month.
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[*] posted on 21-4-2017 at 09:59


Here are a couple of things i recently acquired. A Hamilton gas syringe, and some nitrocellulose filters. I am going to try to sell the filters on ebay as i have no use for them.

20170421_124452.jpg - 2.1MB 20170421_124540.jpg - 2.3MB
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[*] posted on 23-4-2017 at 12:10


I happened across a yard sale today and found some good stuff!

A central scientific hotplate

image.jpg - 1.5MB

A heat gun

image.jpg - 1.8MB

Fisher Pasteur pipets

image.jpg - 1.8MB

And best of all...

image.jpg - 1.4MB

Fischer technical LAV-3 vacuum pump, holy crap it's $600 for a new one on Amazon. It works and is in very good condition, other than a bunch of dust.

I got everything here for a grand total of $8
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[*] posted on 23-4-2017 at 23:56


Score! Well done, Geo. I'd do that for eight bucks too if I had the chance.

My latest purchase:
s-l500.jpg - 24kB

I have had one of these on my ebay wish list for about a year but always the price has been exorbitant and the shipping ridiculous: in some cases more than the purchase price. This was 33 aussibucks with free shipping.
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[*] posted on 24-4-2017 at 00:48


I have one of those, but I bought the absolute cheapest one on eBay and ended up with one that needed some repairs and didn't have a coaster and doesn't always go up and down smoothly... still, I do use it a lot.

I also have a smaller one that is high quality, but I hardly ever use it.

Eight bucks for that stuff was a fantastic deal!

[Edited on 24-4-2017 by JJay]




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[*] posted on 25-4-2017 at 23:28




IMG_20170425_232139[1].jpg - 578kB IMG_20170425_232202[1].jpg - 475kB




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[*] posted on 26-4-2017 at 14:03


Milligram scale.

IMG_20170426_135741[1].jpg - 494kB




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[*] posted on 30-4-2017 at 13:16


I have that exact balance. :)



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