Re: LCDs and the 'new to you' Milano

["Eric H." <ejham@domain.elided>]

To Kurt at Carnegie Mellon:

Alfa valves are usually 'ticky' -- this is referred to in literature
as 'a vocal' system. Don't advance too much, 2-3 degrees max. The plug
thing is strange. Perhaps the close tolerance of your plug socket was
to blame with this because they usually come out easy or wreck the
head. You might want to get a thinner socket and try it again as you
most certainly want to apply some anti-seize compound to the threads
of those plugs.

Sorry I have no data or help on the dimmer. I had my Milano only a
year and the dimmer worked perfectly.


Regarding LCDs:

Has anyone actually had one apart? I say this having a little
knowledge of the way the typical LCD readout is 'fed.' Usually LCDs
are powered by two strips of what looks like striped rubber. These
conductor strips are usually held in place by pressure and can squirm
around as they age. Dirt and dust can also work into the points of
contact creating resistance which disrupts the low voltage signals to
the display.

The driver chips usually need to supply very little power. I would not
suspect them as a likely failure point but anything is possible. The
mechanical contact points to the LCD glass are far more suspect.

Bear in mind that I've never seen or had apart one of the Alfa units
and am speaking from experience with calculators, products from a
former employer, and repairing my daughters' GigaPets after being left
in the rain. If you're feeling brave and wish to save the $2300, you
could try disassembling the failed unit and cleaning the contact area
with Windex and a Q-tip. Alignment is fairly crucial in assembly,
don't stretch the 'rubber' conductor or compress it unless that's the
only way to get it back together and be sure it's straight.

If someone nearby (in the Tampa Bay area) and has a failed unit,
contact me and we'll see if we can make some headway with this
problem.

The stepper-motor problem intrigues me as well...there must be a way
to correct this as well. Again, having never seen the assembly I have
no way of developing a fix.

Trying to do my part for Alfisti,

- - Eric H., Clearwater, FL

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