
The Potentiometer Handbook (1975) [pdf] - datenwolf
https://www.bourns.com/docs/technical-documents/technical-library/corporate/OnlinePotentiometerHandbook.pdf
======
bigtimber
Downloading from the link
[https://www.bourns.com/pdfs/OnlinePotentiometerHandbook.pdf](https://www.bourns.com/pdfs/OnlinePotentiometerHandbook.pdf)
produces a corrupted copy (many pages missing or out of order.) This is a
better link: [https://www.bourns.com/docs/technical-documents/technical-
li...](https://www.bourns.com/docs/technical-documents/technical-
library/corporate/OnlinePotentiometerHandbook.pdf?sfvrsn=182b1126_4)

~~~
gnu8
The pages seem to be sorted in alphabetical order. I saw 198, 199, 20, 200,
201 in there. I wonder how that happened...

~~~
codetrotter
Probably the pages were scanned one by one as individual files and then
finally all files were combined.

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csours
If any electronics youtubers are reading this:

I would love to see a series: _This Is What Electricity Looks Like to Me_
wherein you go through different components and talk about what the operating
parameters are, and what different voltages, amperages, etc etc mean for that
component.

~~~
cr0sh
Hate to break it to ya, but this isn't really possible.

I mean, you could have a series that explores and details the basics - ie,
what is a resistor, capacitor, etc - and what they are used for, how they
work, etc.

But what you are terming "operating parameters" are specific for each part per
manufacturer. Now - a carbon-film resistor made by just about any manufacturer
is going to be about the same from one to the other, as it's a basic
technology. Even so, certain parameters might be different (ie - how much does
the resistance change with temperature and humidity might vary between
manufacturers). Also, none of that applies if we are talking about wire-wound,
or some other kind of resistor (and different manufacturers).

Extrapolate this out to any other passive component, and you'll see the same
thing (heck, just capacitors would overwhelm the idea). Get into simple
actives (transistors, diodes, leds, etc) - and the amount of variation
increases a magnitude, maybe more.

Then drop into other components - integrated circuits, electric motors, light
bulbs - heck, even simple wire; you couldn't cover it all.

You'd know this, though, if you had any experience with electronics - which I
suppose you don't, or you have little of it - otherwise you wouldn't be asking
about such a youtube series.

Instead, you should start with the basics - and for that, you're going to need
to read some books (the best would be Horowitz's "Art of Electronics" and
Grob's "Basic Electronics"). While it might be possible to condense some of
those books into a video series, it won't be a small video series (and if you
want honest and in-depth explanations - such a series would not be the most
exciting to watch).

~~~
InitialLastName
Not to mention that lots of those parameters only apply to people doing
certain things with the component, so that two people who work in different
domains with the same part could have very different ideas of what the
important parameters are.

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pgrote
Thank you for this. I bought a lot of old electric devices in an auction and
finally figured out what the last one was a few weeks ago. It was a
potentionmeter. What confused me was the wood case it came in. The only
example I could find was in the radio museum's website. Reddit's what is this
thing subreddit identified it for me, but I was looking to learn more about
it.

It is a gorgeous piece from the early 1900s and shows the craftsmanship that
went into these earlier devices.

I appreciate you sharing this information.

~~~
cr0sh
Sure it was a potentiometer?

Usually, potentiometers utilize a carbon-style track for the wiper; a few used
a fine "wound wire" on a form for the wiper instead (they tend to handle
higher power).

If it is a potentiometer - it will have 3 connections - one to each side of
the main resistance element, and a third to the movable wiper. It might be a
rotary style, or it might be a linear sliding style.

If it only has two connections - one to the sliding piece, and one to an end
of the coil - then in that configuration it would be considered a rheostat (a
potentiometer acts as a variable voltage divider, whereas a rheostat acts as a
variable resistor/current limiter). If the coil is made of fairly substantial
wire - then it was meant for power-controlling usage (if it is a potentiometer
or a rheostat - usually a potentiometer can be used like a rheostat, but the
opposite isn't possible with modifying the rheostat).

It is also possible it could be a "tunable coil" \- similar to what was used
in early crystal radio sets; such a device is not a potentiometer or a
rheostat, and shouldn't be used or confused as one.

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S_A_P
Funny how this is timely for me. I have always had the desire to repair/bend
some of my old analog hardware, and one of my recent projects was adding a
"tune" feature to the bass drum of my Tr-808. The information on doing this is
widely available on the internet, but I didn't realize how difficult it would
be to source a 100k log pot. The Pot I did end up finding was Bourns branded.
Now that Ive performed the modification, Im ready to dig deeper into it. Ive
hired a TR-808 expert to provide me with some guidance through the process. I
will not share the information I purchased from him(promised him I would not)
but I can refer anyone looking to do the same to him and say this guy is the
real deal, and is probably the premier Roland TR analog drum machine expert.

~~~
cr0sh
> but I didn't realize how difficult it would be to source a 100k log pot

Huh?

[https://www.amazon.com/Alpha-Potentiometer-100K-Audio-
Log/dp...](https://www.amazon.com/Alpha-Potentiometer-100K-Audio-
Log/dp/B003G6L1QC)

That was done with a google search of "100k log potentiometer"...

Now - maybe you're in a different country or such where it's more difficult to
get parts?

~~~
S_A_P
I did that same search(~6 months ago) and there were none in stock or they
were 30USD a piece. I ended up going through an electronics supplier and
spending the 2-3 bucks it should have cost.

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2sk21
Really amazed that someone found it fit to write a whole book about the humble
potentiometer!

~~~
InitialLastName
It doesn't surprise me at all, but then again I have half a shelf in my office
dedicated to potentiometer catalogs.

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KineticLensman
> One of the most common digital applications of adjustment potentiometers is
> the control of time delay in an integrated circuit monostable (page 87).

My introduction to the humble potentiometer was when my father (in the
mid-1970s) became the first man in our street to have (home-made) variable-
speed windscreen wipers in his car. He would have loved this book!

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sonofgod
Skip to Chapter 9 for some lovely comic 70s artwork and a how-not-to guide of
how to abuse your potentiometers... :D

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amelius
My first encounter with potentiometers was in the game-paddles of my Apple ][.
Of course, I had to replace them by temperature sensitive resistors :) Fun
times ...

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purplezooey
How appropriate, pots are legal now.

