Eagle K-140 Multimeter - UK Vintage Radio Repair and Restoration Discussion Forum

enquirium · 12th Sep 2013, 5:09 pm

Hi

Bought this at local car boot for a quid . The seller had no idea of its history .

Has anyone any experience with one of these meters ?

I'd say early / mid 70's . Reminds me of those 70's Japanese hifi seperates ' built like battleships ' I think the phrase went .

Excellently large scale , nice leather carrying strap and presumably it originally had a leather case with a space for carrying the test leads .

Unfortunately its reading slighly low on all scales , a consistant error although theres no 'sticky ' spots which indicates a duff meter mechanism . The needle swings smoothly across whole scale . Maybe a bit of friction in meter due to years of being unused .

Anyhows , I think it's a keeper if only for the sheer size of the beast

Cheers .

.

paulsherwin · 12th Sep 2013, 5:35 pm

Eagle made quite a lot of hobbyist test gear at that time. It's all quite well built though a bit crude. I have the TT145 transistor tester, which is actually still usable, though the hfe reading is pretty inaccurate once it gets over 200.

Radio Wrangler · 12th Sep 2013, 8:06 pm

Those were quite decent meters. If all ranges have shifted the same amount, it might be loss of magnetisation in the meter. If there isn't a single shunt resistor to take care of this, then you face changing every resistor in the beastie :-(

David

Alistair D · 12th Sep 2013, 9:25 pm

Paul, just to clarify, Eagle made very little - if any - themselves. They badge engineered most of it. The meter in question is a Kyoritsu K-140. They did not even change the model number.

I have an Eagle K-142 that looks almost identical to the K-140. You can find pictures of the K-142 as a Kyoritsu on the Radiomuseum site.

enquirium, you may be lucky. I had to replace a few resistors on my meter to get the accuracy back. Hopefully it is just a resistor that needs changing. I have just had a look at the last picture. The three pots on the board in the middle are almost certainly calibration pots.

If you succeed in getting it to full spec I have, somewhere, a bag of spare rubber feet and the US thread screws that you can have a couple from.

Al

enquirium · 13th Sep 2013, 4:29 pm

Many thanks folks .

They are indeed calibration pots Alistair D . As you can see below.

I'll have a twiddle and see if I can compensate for the error .

Cheers.

paulsherwin · 13th Sep 2013, 5:09 pm

Quote:

Originally Posted by Alistair D

Paul, just to clarify, Eagle made very little - if any - themselves.

I don't think they actually manufactured anything. They operated out of a small office / workshop round the back of the British Museum, very convenient for the Tottenham Court Road, and badged lots of consumer audio as well as test gear. They always seem to have obtained exclusivity for the British market and I don't recall ever seeing their stuff with someone else's name on it.

They chose their suppliers well, mostly from Japan, and had a reputation for good quality at an affordable price. I have one of their table radios in the loft somewhere, very similar to products from Roberts and Grundig of the same era.

Radio Wrangler · 13th Sep 2013, 6:09 pm

Taylor's (available) Ltd.... a component shop in Huddersfield stocked a lot of their stuff especially multimeters and components.

I came across their range of little audio mixers and PA amplifiers which were cheap, effective and very good value. I had some of their cheap microphones and a pair of stereo headphones. I agree with Paul that Eagle stuff was very good value, and it's interesting to hear a bit about who they were.

David

threeseven · 13th Sep 2013, 6:20 pm

Their catalogue was a source of great interest to me during my formative electrickery years! More than one home build speaker system issued from my adolescent bedroom workshop using drive units and crossovers from Eagle!

russell_w_b · 13th Sep 2013, 8:10 pm

Here's a one I was given a few years ago. The pointer is very sensitive to static when running a finger over the meter!

It's a 'KEW-33' but is badged up as 'Eagle'. It still has the price on the box: £8 - 12 - 0.

Alistair D · 13th Sep 2013, 9:31 pm

That was the first meter I ever owned. Bought it new around 1968. Eventually the case ended glued together from having been dropped a few times. It still worked when I gave it away years later.

Al

12th Sep 2013, 5:09 pm	#1
enquirium Triode Join Date: Jan 2008 Location: Bangor, Northern Ireland, UK. Posts: 44	Eagle K-140 Multimeter Hi Bought this at local car boot for a quid . The seller had no idea of its history . Has anyone any experience with one of these meters ? I'd say early / mid 70's . Reminds me of those 70's Japanese hifi seperates ' built like battleships ' I think the phrase went . Excellently large scale , nice leather carrying strap and presumably it originally had a leather case with a space for carrying the test leads . Unfortunately its reading slighly low on all scales , a consistant error although theres no 'sticky ' spots which indicates a duff meter mechanism . The needle swings smoothly across whole scale . Maybe a bit of friction in meter due to years of being unused . Anyhows , I think it's a keeper if only for the sheer size of the beast Cheers . . Attached Thumbnails

12th Sep 2013, 5:35 pm	#2
paulsherwin Moderator Join Date: Jun 2003 Location: Oxford, UK Posts: 27,966	Re: Eagle K-140 Multimeter Eagle made quite a lot of hobbyist test gear at that time. It's all quite well built though a bit crude. I have the TT145 transistor tester, which is actually still usable, though the hfe reading is pretty inaccurate once it gets over 200. Attached Thumbnails

12th Sep 2013, 8:06 pm	#3
Radio Wrangler Moderator Join Date: Mar 2012 Location: Fife, Scotland, UK. Posts: 22,901	Re: Eagle K-140 Multimeter Those were quite decent meters. If all ranges have shifted the same amount, it might be loss of magnetisation in the meter. If there isn't a single shunt resistor to take care of this, then you face changing every resistor in the beastie :-( David __________________ Can't afford the volcanic island yet, but the plans for my monorail and the goons' uniforms are done

12th Sep 2013, 9:25 pm	#4
Alistair D Nonode Join Date: Jan 2010 Location: Edinburgh, UK. Posts: 2,008	Re: Eagle K-140 Multimeter Paul, just to clarify, Eagle made very little - if any - themselves. They badge engineered most of it. The meter in question is a Kyoritsu K-140. They did not even change the model number. I have an Eagle K-142 that looks almost identical to the K-140. You can find pictures of the K-142 as a Kyoritsu on the Radiomuseum site. enquirium, you may be lucky. I had to replace a few resistors on my meter to get the accuracy back. Hopefully it is just a resistor that needs changing. I have just had a look at the last picture. The three pots on the board in the middle are almost certainly calibration pots. If you succeed in getting it to full spec I have, somewhere, a bag of spare rubber feet and the US thread screws that you can have a couple from. Al __________________ I won't tell you how I discovered that. Last edited by Alistair D; 12th Sep 2013 at 9:36 pm. Reason: Added paras

13th Sep 2013, 4:29 pm	#5
enquirium Triode Join Date: Jan 2008 Location: Bangor, Northern Ireland, UK. Posts: 44	Re: Eagle K-140 Multimeter Many thanks folks . They are indeed calibration pots Alistair D . As you can see below. I'll have a twiddle and see if I can compensate for the error . Cheers. Attached Thumbnails

13th Sep 2013, 6:09 pm	#7
Radio Wrangler Moderator Join Date: Mar 2012 Location: Fife, Scotland, UK. Posts: 22,901	Re: Eagle K-140 Multimeter Taylor's (available) Ltd.... a component shop in Huddersfield stocked a lot of their stuff especially multimeters and components. I came across their range of little audio mixers and PA amplifiers which were cheap, effective and very good value. I had some of their cheap microphones and a pair of stereo headphones. I agree with Paul that Eagle stuff was very good value, and it's interesting to hear a bit about who they were. David __________________ Can't afford the volcanic island yet, but the plans for my monorail and the goons' uniforms are done

13th Sep 2013, 6:20 pm	#8
threeseven Octode Join Date: May 2010 Location: Worcestershire, UK. Posts: 1,880	Re: Eagle K-140 Multimeter Their catalogue was a source of great interest to me during my formative electrickery years! More than one home build speaker system issued from my adolescent bedroom workshop using drive units and crossovers from Eagle! __________________ BVWS member

13th Sep 2013, 8:10 pm	#9
russell_w_b Dekatron Join Date: Jul 2007 Location: Penrith, Cumbria, UK. Posts: 3,687	Re: Eagle K-140 Multimeter Here's a one I was given a few years ago. The pointer is very sensitive to static when running a finger over the meter! It's a 'KEW-33' but is badged up as 'Eagle'. It still has the price on the box: £8 - 12 - 0. Attached Thumbnails __________________ Regds, Russell W. B. G4YLI.

13th Sep 2013, 9:31 pm	#10
Alistair D Nonode Join Date: Jan 2010 Location: Edinburgh, UK. Posts: 2,008	Re: Eagle K-140 Multimeter That was the first meter I ever owned. Bought it new around 1968. Eventually the case ended glued together from having been dropped a few times. It still worked when I gave it away years later. Al __________________ I won't tell you how I discovered that.