ETX TECHNICAL TIPS Last updated: 9 March 2000

Another Homemade Pedestal

I'd like that you publish in your beautiful site (in "ETX Technical Tips" page) the description of my last realization: a pedestal suitable for my ETX-125EC.

My ETX pedestal has been realized by a PVC (polyvinyl chloride) pipe for building use. The pipe has 20 cm in diameter, about 110 cm in length and 3.5 mm in thickness.
A joiner cut a piece of 12 cm that has been put in the base, larger for the joints. So the pedestal has been reduced in height and reinforced.
The base has been realized by three iron brackets. Three thin aluminium bars keep the "feet" 120^o apart one from each other. Three connecting rods strengthen the whole.
On the top it will be mounted a ply-wood table of 13 mm in thickness.
The column weights 6.3 Kg. This work required about 8 hours, excluded the time for buying the materials.
It cost me about 70 $.
Here below you can see it.

Each adjusting screw is so made (from high to low):
- 10 MA x 80 mm hexagonal head screw
- 10 MA wing nut for locking
- 12 MA nut acting as thickness
- bracket
- large 10 mm washer
- 10 MA nut glued to the washer by cyanoacrilic glue
- 10 MA cap nut

The washer is drilled in two points: two 3 MA screws prevent the washer/nut to turn when you adjust the screw.

Here below you can see a detail of the base.

As you can see in the above picture the feet of the pedestal have a blinking warning light.

Here below you can see the realization of the circuit to blink the three LEDs. It has been realized soldering the components one upon the other.
The little blinker box is screwed into the pipe (here is shown taken apart).

If you're interested in, an animated gif (190 KB) of one of the blinking LEDs it's available.

Here below the schematic of the blinker is presented. Its mean power requirement is negligible: about 1 mA.

Alberto Marturini
e-mail:  alberto.marturini@netit.alcatel.it
home page:  members.xoom.it/amarturini

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