trafalgar talking watch

[cte]

i got one of these trafalgars in the post today. mint condition with the box and manual. the only thing is.. IT DOESNT WORK! :( i knew this when i was buying it, so no shocks there. :)

i did want to test it with a battery though, but i dont have a clue what kind it takes. can anyone hazard a guess? there is no mention of it in the manual.

another thing is.. looking at the battery connectors, it appears that one of the contacts is missing? although to the side of where i presume the contact should be, there is a small metal prong sticking out. does anyone know if this is a usual formation for battery contacts? it also does not give any mention to which way round the polarity of the batteries should be... i presume the spring will be negative and the solid raised bumps will be positive?

lastly, there is what appears to be some kind of valve in there. anyone know if that is what it is? from the look of it, it is begging to be replaced. how hard would something like that be to identify, purchase (in the modern age), and then replace myself?

thanks guys! :)

[Led-Time]

This might help...

http://www.ledwatches.net/photo-pages/trafalgar7.htm

The valve that you mention, could this be the light for the display...

[cte]

hi Klippie mate! :)

the watch does not have a light feature according to the manual. the valve part im talking about is shown best in the last 2 pictures (before the exterior shot). glass with orange parts in the centre. it reminds me of a fuse or something.

in the pictures i have the black plastic protective cover over the module, and there is a specific hole so you can see the curious glass thing inside. maybe its for easy removal of the item, or maybe its for easy diagnostic of a burn out or something along those lines. i really have no clue.

[Old Tom]

What you have there is the second incarnation of the Trafalgar talking watch (the M306) from about 1982- it takes four 392 cells and that strange contact configuration with the side contact is normal (shouldn't have the piece of silver paper in there). The glass thingy is a small diode used in the output circuit to recover smooth analog audio from the digital output of the chip. Usually the timekeeping/speech chip works fine in these and it is the final audio stage that dies. It is one of the few digital watches where a lot of diwscrete components are used so sometimes possible to repair if timekeeping display comes on. If totally "dead" then probably the contacts where they join to the circuit board- not an easy watch to get apart without damage, the screws come out OK but there are tiny plastic latches on the back plate to frustrate you (however a lot easier than the original model with the front slide switches).

[cte]

great stuff!! :)

thanks for that old tom! you led me in the right direction when i was looking for this watch a while ago... the one with the extra bit stuck on lol?!



it looks so convincing with the pad on top. same gold/brass colour around the edges. i wish they had made calculator one like that! i love it!

thanks again mate! i will try and search out some batteries, and see how i go from there.

[Old Tom]

My typing! Walking down the street today I was thinking about my reply and had a horrible thought- I had written 392 when I meant 393 (the short fat cell not the flat skinny one). The correct cell is the 393 (four off). Sorry about that, hope you haven't bought your cells yet- I notice you say you are in London (England?) in which case then Lynco in Farringdon Road EC1 are about the cheapest for a box of ten over the counter.

[cte]

no worries lol! :)

i have ordered 4x 392's from ebay, but the total cost was only £2, so no biggie! ;) im about to buy some 393 renata's from there now .

i moved from london in march. im in cambridgeshire now. i must change my location. too tired though now. must sleep.

thanks for your invaluable help my man! will post if i get any life out of the thing.

[cte]

just another big thank you to you old tom.

i got some 393's in the post today and the watch works! speech and all!

the person who sold it described it as not working too. i got it for a decent bargain. they must not have been trying the right batteries in the thing! will post some working pics. cheers mate!