Ken's nerd repair, construction, and engineering info page

I'm not going to waste time formatting this page correctly just yet. This is just a place to dump information that others may find useful, and that I will likely forget 5 minutes after completing the project.

Also, I am Ken. If you are looking at this website, I probably either made you mad enough arguing about jeeps or politics on the internet to web-stalk me, in which case I'm laughing at you, or you are one of like maybe six people I actually talk to on this planet, in which case hi, I'm sorry my website looks like it's 1989. Or possibly (but not likely) you own an obsolete Tektronix oscilloscope, certain pellet stoves, or other equipment I have found lacking and published repair information for, in which case, you're in the right place!

Tektronix info

First of all, you need to look at W140 TekWiki before digging through this page. It almost certainly contains the info you're looking for.

I own way too many Tek scopes. I've owned still more in the past but for one reason or another don't have them anymore. Here's a partial list:

  • Tek 2213A - I had nine of these at one point that I dumpster dived at the community college I went to. I'm down to one, having given most of the rest away and sold a few. It's a decent 60MHz dual channel analog CRT scope, I use mine as my "beater" scope when working on auto EFI systems in the shop.
  • Tek 465A - I've got one of these somewhere. Where? Who knows.
  • Tek 465B - got one of these here too. Also a decent scope. 100MHz dual channel. I normally lend this to people who ask to borrow a scope for a while.
  • Tek 7904 - my 900lb gorilla. It's not much by todays standards but it cost more than a house in the early 70s when mine was built. I have done extensive repairs on it. They are detailed here:Tek 7904 common issues and repairs
  • Tek 7A26 - this is actually just a vertical input card for the 7000 series scopes. I have seen many people posting common problems and repairs but they were lacking some info so I will post what I have as well: Tek 7A26 common issues and repairs

    Mount Vernon Quadra-Fire AE info

    Recently I was contacted by an old friend to see if I could repair the (very expensive) control board for his fancy pellet stove. After a short conversation I agreed and he sent the board to me. In researching what caused the failure I found that he is far from the only person to experience this and decided that the world needed more information on how to fix this without spending $600-800 on a new board. So if you came here looking for info on repairing a SRV7000-456 or Bergquist 450-15-0031 pellet stove control board, here's the page for you! Mt Vernon Quadra-Fire AE control board repair.

    If your wood stove or other equipment with a PCB in it is not behaving correctly, feel free to contact me, especially if you are in the Bremerton WA area. Even if it's not on this list. I may, or may not be able to repair it for you, and I do enjoy a good engineering puzzle. My email is kastein (at) W1KAS.net. Please put something about the equipment you are having a problem with in the email subject so I know you aren't a spambot.

    Ham Radio info

    I am, of course, a ham radio nerd. Where else are you going to find poor formatting, piles of disorganized information literally no one cares about, and long winded rants, tangents, and distractions from the subject of the page?

    Useful References:

  • Magnet Wire Specs
  • Basic Coil Inductance Calculator

    Junk I've worked on:

  • Vietnam era 6m milspec handheld/helmet radios

    Jeep Junk

    I own way too many jeeps. I have owned even more in the past. Jeep related resources and info will go here. Eventually I might actually start selling some of the things I've designed, but don't count on it. As of late 2023, I have begun moving the products listed below to my EWAF Motorsports website, but you might see something I missed below.

    Here's a list of things I have half-finished designs of. If you see something on the list you want, email me, I might be willing to finish it for you:

  • 97 & 98-01 XJ 4.0L AW4 TCU - a drop-in replacement PCB for the factory housing that allows anyone to create custom shift control firmware for the AW4, supporting a gear display, CAN bus, factory CCD bus, tiptronic and Winters/RADesigns inputs for manual shift controls, etc etc. This is done as far as hardware design but lacking firmware. I may redesign it to use a different MCU and support an easier user interface for configuration but haven't decided yet.
  • Link Miata Supercharger Kit Replacement IAT sensor - now available! Expect 2-3 week ship time as this is a low volume product.
  • Resistive Multiplexed to GM Style Cruise Control Adapter - this product is what you need if you are attempting to LS swap a 96 or later Jeep and keep your factory cruise control buttons on the steering wheel functional. It should work for all 96-01 Cherokees, possibly 96-98 Grand Cherokees, 99-04 Grand Cherokees, 96-06 Wrangler, and likely certain years of 07+ Wrangler as well as a variety of Dakota, Durango, 05+ Grand Cherokee, and other vehicles using a resistive multiplexed cruise control button panel. If you do not see your vehicle on the list and are interested, contact me and I will determine if supporting your vehicle will require a hardware revision or a software update. This product will be available very shortly - hardware design is complete and parts for the prototype are on order.
  • FSJ LS swap gauge interface - I'm very picky about how my dashboards on my jeeps look. I don't like aftermarket gauges, I want the interior to look as close to factory as possible even with a swapped engine. Since I have an LS engine with a factory LS ECU running it in my '79 J10, that means either doubling up on all sensors or building a device that converts from the LS ECU serial data output format to run the factory analog gauges off it.
  • XJ daytime running lamp auto-on controller - this will turn the headlights on automatically when the vehicle exceeds a certain speed.
  • "one wire" power window/door lock/mirror control system. Jeeps are plagued with door wiring harness breakage and I'm tired of it. Also, many of us want to be able to go doorless but don't want to deal with unplugging and reconnecting big clunky factory door wiring harness connectors every time, and there are no clean solutions to the problem. This product will make it possible to run any and all factory door switches and locks/window motors/mirror controls (as long as they are hardwired style not LIN or CAN bus) directly off one small module that installs in each door with a single power and ground wire, so you can use a simple high flex silicone RC car battery cable with 2 pins (power and ground) from each door to the chassis.
  • fuel gauge recalibrator - this will allow nearly any fuel gauge sender to work with nearly any Jeep fuel gauge or ECU. RENIX sender with 91+ MJ gauge? Got it. Opposite problem? Sure. Either one with a 97+ ECU and 97+ instrument panel without having to chop up a Dakota fuel tank? Yeah, that's possible too.
  • 00-up XJ P0303/P0304 fuel rail vapor lock got you down? How about a custom fan timer that you simply plug in between the factory electric fan and the harness, then connect one wire to the battery and forget about it? Sure, you can use an ELK960 timer, and that's been my recommendation for years now, but I can make a much more hassle free, waterproof, temp rated module for those who don't feel like futzing around with wiring... and I can probably do it for around the same price, too.
  • 87-90 XJ 4.0L RENIX TPS - bulletproof edition. I have had to replace mine personally several times and I'm getting tired of it. It's just a matter of time until I get frustrated enough with that to make a bulletproof, waterproof, self-calibrating one. Interested? Peer pressure me into doing it sooner.
  • Custom drop-in PCB for intermittent wiper control module in XJs and MJs with 94-down GM steering column - I just heard a few weeks ago that the timer module for this, while factory optioned, is no longer available new. I also just swapped one of these into my J10 only to have it fail, so I will be looking into what it takes to fix them. If yours needs repair and I determine I can do that, I will do it for a nominal fee, but I am also looking at designing a replacement that should be a bit more intelligent (hopefully) than the factory one when it comes to intermittent timing. It's always bugged me how there is never the perfect intermittent wiper speed for a foggy misty morning...

    Useful References:
  • International Full Size Jeep Association
  • NAXJA
  • XJJeeps.com
  • The archive.org copy of Mr. N's old dana 44 and dana 60 info page. It appears this went down sometime in 2017 and the owner's domain expired in 2019... so if you want this info save it.
  • The archive.org copy of kolumbus.fi ks9292 CCD bus viewer page. It appears this went down sometime in the last year or so, so if you want to have access to this info save it. He also has an excellent page on Chrysler's PCI bus (a variant of SAE J1850) interfacing linked within the CCD bus page here.
  • BillaVista's tech bible, though it's missing a few files since its move from the old Pirate4x4 tech area.
  • Not to be outdone by the last two, I will be collecting my own research on factory rear 60/70/80 axleshaft availability here
  • the MNet Tire Size Calculator
  • the GrimmJeeper Gear Ratio Calculator
  • easily the best LS swap factory header listing thread I've ever seen. If you are allergic to aftermarket speed parts like me, go look at this thread immediately. (local backup in case of photofuckening)
  • Peter's webshop and software page - has excellent resources for users of the Shenzhen Stager Electric Co "Genius G540" EPROM/EEPROM/flash/MCU/PLD/GAL/PAL programmer, which has been abandoned by its manufacturer. He has actually improved the factory software's user interface text, updated the drivers included in the package, etc.