Posts: 5
From:
Registered: Nov 2010

posted 11-21-2010 02:55 PM            

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This is my first post here although I have come here many times in the past to read other's posts.

I have a question about a space related (at least I hope it is) item I bought on ebay several years ago (from ebay seller "spatial one"). It is a small plug in circuit board approximately 4.5" x 5". It was sold as being a surplus part that was intended for use in the Saturn Instrument Unit (IU) . Needless to say it is cool to have a part of a Saturn V but I've never been able to conclusively verify that it was indeed a part intended for a Saturn booster.

The board was made by Space Craft, Inc. (SCI) of Huntsville Alabama and is marked as being an "RD-2Z". It has several rows of resistors, 3 rows of Texas Instruments transistors, and gold plated contacts where it plugs in. I have downloaded every manual I could find online pertaining to the IU but none of what I have found goes into enough detail to show individual boards. I did confirm that SCI was a subcontractor to IBM for the IU and supplied five different sub-assemblies that were used on the IU... so far so good, but I haven't been able to establish anything beyond that.

What would be a good next step to try to find more in-depth info that might indicate if this board was ever used on the Saturns? I'd assume that more detailed parts lists, schematics, or more detailed manuals would still exist in some NASA archive somewhere...how would I gain access (I am a taxpayer after all)?

I realize that this part was never flown (obviously) and likely was never installed in a Saturn IU which is how it came to be sold off as surplus. Still I'd like to know if it were, in fact, built to be a working part of the moon rocket.

I'd deeply appreciate any insight anyone can provide towards finding out more info. Thanks!

Posts: 782
From:
Registered: Mar 2009

posted 11-22-2010 08:37 AM               

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Scott (SpaceAholic) may have better info but I own one of these spacecraft boards (or close at least, UFF-2Z) and have purchased a number of items from spatialone over the years. While these purchases have included Saturn IU boards, I've believed the item in question to be strictly ground support.

I also purchased from spatialone some RCA boards (longer, and from the RCA 110 launch computer system) and these are ground as well. The Saturn IU electronics are distinctly different, at least for the LVDC guidance computer.

Posts: 782
From:
Registered: Mar 2009

Posts: 5
From:
Registered: Nov 2010

posted 11-24-2010 10:02 PM            

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Thanks Dave, eBay seller spatialone did represent this thing to be a spare IU circuit board purchased at a NASA surplus auction and I bought it (not all that cheaply although for less than others have paid for similar items from him) based on that information. Of course what he was basing that statement on I do not know... but I tend to have faith in my fellow (space)man.

It's not the end of the world if it turns out to be a ground based board but of course that's not nearly as glamorous a thing to hold in your hand. SCI was making stuff to fly into space so at least it has the right pedigree in any case.

If the RD-2Z was ever used on a Saturn IU it was probably part of one of these IU subassemblies that were subcontracted to SCI by IBM...

CIU 501
command decode
frequency DC converter
410 multiplexers (2)
servoaccelerometer unit

So maybe this little board somehow fit into the workings of one of those, but so far I haven't been able to find any information on the "guts" inside these units. Nothing I've found available online goes into subassemblies in that depth, although the above listed units do sometimes merit mention in the text or a flow chart.

So I'd like to know how I can get to the next level of detail and see if an RD-2Z was used inside any of these. My main question being how to access information I assume is archived somewhere... Of course if your SCI guy knows anything that would be cool too.

Posts: 782
From:
Registered: Mar 2009