HP Forum Archive 12

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So, you think you like Classic hp calculators? Message #1 Posted by Jeremy on 15 Apr 2003, 8:05 p.m. I have just come to the conclusion that to really appreciate them, you have to at least take one apart. It would also help to have some newer, disposable calculator apart next to it. It was a whole different world back then. They had built something that would have cost $1,500 in today's dollars. I have just disassembled a 32E, and although it is very nicely made compared to newer calculators, it is not very 'technician-friendly' compared to the Classic series. That snap-together enclosure at the bottom is a terrible idea. Would it really kill them to just use two more screws and make it come apart without any drama? I don't think so. You could argue that the cost would really add up, but I don't think HP was ever shy about transferring that to the consumer, hehe. (Rightfully so.) The 45 I have had apart though was an absolute dream to work on. The screws came right out. You didn't have to undo anything that couldn't be redone to take it apart. After that, it was pretty intuitive if you just looked at how it went together. One improvement I will comment on though. The contacts for the keypad on the 32E were pretty much sealed from the outside world, which is a good thing. You could probably spill a Coke right on the keypad and it would still work. They keys would be all sticky and nasty, but since the actual contacts are hermetically sealed from the outside world, everything would be OK. I do love the features of my 32SII and 48G. The construction is also good. That they cannot be easily taken apart does not make them suffer much, it's just that they're only beautiful on the outside now. They are built once very well, and if anything goes wrong, down the road, tough luck. I think that they have come so far that something is less likely to go wrong on these newer ones than on the older ones. Still, that is only half the beauty. To design something that is rugged, functional, AND reparairable the way the Classic series was designed is truly becoming a lost art. On that happy note, I hereby urge all owners, (even the non-technically inclined ones) to grab your #1 philips screwdriver and take your classic HP apart. There is an article provided elsewhere on this site that will walk you through it and hopefully prevent too much drama. -Jeremy

Re: So, you think you like Classic hp calculators? Message #2 Posted by Les Bell [Sydney] on 15 Apr 2003, 9:54 p.m., in response to message #1 by Jeremy You mean, like: If'n it ain't broke - keep fixing it until it is? <grin> Best, --- Les [http://www.lesbell.com.au]

taking apart Message #3 Posted by Norm on 15 Apr 2003, 11:08 p.m., in response to message #2 by Les Bell [Sydney] Interesting post. It seems impractical to take apart a 32S, after reading material from those who had done so, they're really talking some difficult brain surgery on a disposable item. Reminds me of when the vets at the zoo tried to operate on a tarantula spider (you can't do it, they don't heal). Yes, a spice series (34C) is atrociously designed plastic down at the lower edge. It looks great cosmetically, but its a time-bomb for anybody who feels a need to open it up. Typically they start fracturing the plastic. Therefore, that piece of plastic is an example of malicious design engineering, putting a characteristic into a manufactured instrument that is helpful to nobody. I've got a favorite topic about that lower edge. If you take a sharp X-acto knife, you can delicately shave away a bit of the plastic so that it would come apart easier in the future. We're talking about just .005" of plastic, or maybe .010" absolute max. Very faint little shavings. It's hard to describe exactly where you do it. Sure I know where, its on the bottom-half that the unit sits on. There's two ledges that can be trimmed (not necessarily at a 90 degree angle, you can 45 it to help the parts slide past). Other than that, can't really get it into words but I did this already and it can be trimmed and the future disassemblies bcome easier. And that type of X-acto trimming job can be done on other various bits of cantankerous plastic designs also. - Norm

Re: taking apart Message #4 Posted by Howard on 16 Apr 2003, 1:59 a.m., in response to message #3 by Norm Does anybody have a copy of the drawing that Luis had about the makeup of that lock system on the 34C? I can get a copy of the post but the drawing did not come out in my copy. Thank you.

Re: So, you think you like Classic hp calculators? Message #5 Posted by Vassilis Prevelakis on 16 Apr 2003, 4:14 a.m., in response to message #1 by Jeremy HP throughout the history of its calculator line tried to keep customers from opening their calculators (or if they did open them to leave evidence behind). [1] I would count the infuriating little covers and the screws under the instruction label on (most? - all?) classic series models as a greater act of sabotage than the snap-on cover. **vp [1] OK not 100% true, you can open a 41, 71B, 75C/D and no one will know, although the 41 card reader also hides screws under the label.

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