Classic Series security cradles? (82007A and 82015A)?

[John Ioannidis]

A few days ago an 82007A security cradle (fits HP35/45/80, maybe 55/70 too) showed up on The Auction Site. I didn't bid on time, and someone got it. Good for them, of course.

Now, I have a 3D printer, and it may be fun to make my own. Did anyone ever make mechanical drawings for them? Anyone willing to take detailed measurements and/or pictures and share them with me?

I do have the security cradle for the woodstock series. Not that I use it, of course, who has a proper office these days, but it's the cutest thing!

It's actually interesting to think that people would lock their calculator on their desk. I assume the threat model was colleagues borrowing them (or "borrowing" them) during the day, rather than leaving them overnight. I don't know about the classic-series cradles, but the lock on my woodstock cradle was trivial to pick (it didn't come with a key).

[rprosperi]

(05-26-2023 07:37 PM)John Ioannidis Wrote:  Now, I have a 3D printer, and it may be fun to make my own. Did anyone ever make mechanical drawings for them? Anyone willing to take detailed measurements and/or pictures and share them with me?

I absolutely am not willing to take all the measurements needed to model one of these, you must need 30-40 of them.

But, I'm happy to lend you one so you can not only measure it, but then measure it again and again, as is often needed for a good model. I see you're in NY, as am I, so even if not close enough to meet (which would be convenient), it should not take long by mail.

Contact me by email with your location, etc. and we can likely work something out.

[John Garza (3665)]

3D printed security cradle?

Yours can fab metal?

I remember the classic cradles had holes in the underside to bolt it to a desk.
Just make sure you have it in your favorite working position before drilling!

I too think these were just for 'working hours security'. Anyone spending time picking a lock, cutting cables, or taking drawers out of desks to unscrew bolts would have attracted attention.

Overnight security? Time enough for anything. Heck, they would just take the whole desk.

-J

[Siegfried]

I recently bought one (with box) and the biggest advantage of making it yourself must be that you don't have to deal with the dust that is all that remains of the foam padding inside.

My main reason for buying wasn't security but I think it's quite a curio as the need to protect pocket calculators from being stolen from your desk during the working day seems a bit strange these days. (But then, my HP15C left on a flight deck about 30 years ago, was never returned to me either.)

[Maximilian Hohmann]

Hello!

(05-29-2023 07:35 AM)Siegfried Wrote:  (But then, my HP15C left on a flight deck about 30 years ago, was never returned to me either.)

I guess your employer would have given you a hard time had you drilled holes into something around there for fixing a security cradle ;-)

Regards
Max

[Siegfried]

(05-29-2023 01:27 PM)Maximilian Hohmann Wrote:  I guess your employer would have given you a hard time had you drilled holes into something around there for fixing a security cradle ;-)

Probably so, although nobody removed the whiskey bottle sticker someone had affixed to an empty part of the instrument panel. Various clippings from "gentlemen's magazines" hidden in various nooks and crannies around the flight deck and a teddy bear installed in a recessed part of the glareshield were left unmolested either, including across a major maintenance check. I doubt this would be acceptable 30 years later.

[teenix]

(05-30-2023 02:36 PM)Siegfried Wrote:  Probably so, although nobody removed the whiskey bottle sticker someone had affixed to an empty part of the instrument panel. Various clippings from "gentlemen's magazines" hidden in various nooks and crannies around the flight deck and a teddy bear installed in a recessed part of the glareshield were left unmolested either, including across a major maintenance check. I doubt this would be acceptable 30 years later.

Would have been lovely for the passengers to see in the old days when the cockpit doors could be left open. :-)

cheers

Tony

[Siegfried]

(05-30-2023 07:41 PM)teenix Wrote:  Would have been lovely for the passengers to see in the old days when the cockpit doors could be left open. :-)

At the risk of carrying this topic far away from its beginnings, we actually invited passengers to the flight deck on long charter flights (with 2,5-3hrs flying time) as a kind of inflight entertainment once food and newspapers had been exhausted. Showed off how the instrument panel lit up when we used the warning light test or how the aircraft could talk testing the ground proximity warning. Most passengers only had a brief look round and the inevitable "how do you know what all the buttons do" but about 5-10% of conversations would be interesting with good questions or stories. Sometimes we even made impromptu invitations to bright teenagers to take the jumpseat for landing. Those were the days, inconceivable today.

I think the whiskey label was far enough outboard not to be noticed easily. I don't recall ever been asked about it.