Mismatch Airline Calibration

[briansalomon]

I have an 85053B verification kit that has been calibrated by HP/Agilent regularly for over 15 years.

It has not been used as it was intended (automated self verification) for many years and the only component I think I need from that kit is the 25 ohm mismatch which is used for S-Parameter test sets for reflected power.

I'd rather not pay $2150 to certify a kit when only one component is used.

Does anyone know of a reliable ISO accredited lab who will certify a mismatch airline  with data? Keysight is understandably reluctant to do this.

[Hawaii596]

They can get pretty fussy about kits.  I even had one where among the various components, I think one was a different serial number, and they wouldn't calibrate it.  These aren't definite matches, but a couple of places that come to mind are US Army Primary Standards Lab (not sure if they do them or not), and Maury Microwave (not sure if they are accredited - but I think perhaps they would do a good calibration).  The tough thing about being accredited to do cal kits is that you need accredited "Golden" kits.  That thins the possibilities considerably.

[briansalomon]

I did have a long and productive conversation with a Keysight Engineer yesterday. They do sell the 25 ohm mismatch as a component (P/N 85053 BR04) so he thought they should be willing to certify them but he hasn't responded with a definite answer yet.

Calibration the whole kit is of limited use to me as I only need the data from the mismatch.

[USMCPMEL]

Well if they refuse then wouldn't the obvious answer be to just buy the 25 ohm from them that way it would be calibrated? It would have to be cheaper then getting the whole kit calibrated. Hell even if you bought a new one every year it would still probably be cheaper.

[briansalomon]

You'd think it would be cheaper but Keysight quotes the mismatch at $5135 and the whole kit at $8191.

[CalibratorJ]

Yeah the parts/ individual items of the Ver Kits are so expensive that you are better off buying a new one.....

And I second what Hawaii said about the Army's Primary Lab being able to do them, if they are an option for you. Not sure about accredited though. I can neither confirm nor deny that I know the poor guy that calibrates those 

[briansalomon]

We have quite a few standards we send out yearly and using the Army's Primary Lab sounds like a very sound option...

I'd like to know what they have in the way of calibration services and don't see them on the web. Does anyone have a point of contact?

[retiredAFinSD]

They are accredited by A2LA so you could find it on A2LA website or at Redstone Arsenal website.
https://tmde.redstone.army.mil/apsl/ourqualitysystem.asp

[briansalomon]

The Army Primary Lab understood what I wanted the fist time I asked and responded the following day AND they are willing to give me all the data I wanted on my mismatch for about 1/10th the price Keysight wants and they are accredited.

Excellent resource.

[CalibratorJ]

Sorry it took me so long to respond... to correct my original thought, yes, they're accredited. I know, a little late to the party.....

[briansalomon]

So.... I am now ready to ship my mismatch and even though it's been shipped that way in the past and that's the way it comes in the kit, I don't have a warm fuzzy feeling about shipping the center conductor in the little plastic tube HP provides. It just bounces around in there.

Does anyone have any special way to protect the center conductor  in shipment?

[CalibratorJ]

They will probably be ok. I see them shipped worldwide in those tubes with no damage (and FedEx doesn't care how many times you put Fragile on the outside of the box, they ARE going to use it for distance throwing competitions.....). Ok, I do see plenty of damage, but the damage is from the users, not the tubes (insert funny comment about Marines using airlines here).