Chuck;
The vector is junk. It would be better if you could assemble the electronics for your own galvanic unit like at:
http://www.geocities.com/hairfreethere/
Many may not realize it, but a CB Radio operates very close in frequency to what the apilus platinum runs at. However the Apilus does put out a lot more power than a standard CB radio.
A would like to add however, that the timing is more than likely going to be faster than most people doing manual switching can do. A circuit such as the one located at this URL:
http://www.imagineeringezine.com/PDF-FILES/4013oneshots.PDF
can be used to key the transmitter. A transistor should be used after the output to perform the actual keying of the radio. The timing of its duration is deturmined by the R/C found at Pins 13, 10 and ground on the top circuit. Note: it is the top schematic that should be used, which means one switch closure equals one pulse activation. The bottom schematic happens to be a push to close and push again to open. This is not what you want. Most jacks for microphones even have 12 volts available on one of the pins to power the device.
If changing of power levels is not needed and just changing the duration of the RF until it is easy to remove a hair from its follicle, then you only need a variable resister at R to vary it timing requirements for individual usage.
Lots of things still need to be checked out before I can actually put values for those parts, and to also look into other ways to improve a cb radio of use in personal hair removal. But from a technical standpoint. This would be a very economical project. If pulses were kept to a very short time period, it could also be used with the hairfreethere schematic to come up with blend. Note: for blend you only want enough rf to warm the lye being produced, you do not want to vaporize the lye, or it is not blend any longer.
About where the probe attaches. The back of a CB radio is usually what is called a type “N” connector. Most 13.5 mhz epilators use a “BNC” connector. The apilus platinum uses a type “sma” connector. Because of the higher frequencies involved, I would encourage use of the “sma” type connector as it will have less losses. From many electronics stores one can purchase an adapter from type “N” to either “BNC” or “SMA”, so you do not even have to change the output connector. Just get and adapter and then attach the probe to the other end of the adapter.
If one were to start with timings of about 0.001 seconds and increase the timing until the hair is easy to remove would work.
The 4013 D-Flip flop is rated to about 16 mhz which means a timing period as fast as 1/16,000,000 of a second. or 0.0000000625 seconds. Much much faster than any machine used for epilation. The fastest one will probably use with this machine is going to be longer than 0.001 seconds. Timing will very per individual and will probably be in the tenths per second range.
I am also thinking of a sensing circuit that could be used with this device to automatically sense insertion and not need the use of a foot switch. A few quad op amps and the use of ground probe will probably take care of that as well.
Also, I do not plan on marketing what I come up with, as frankly, I do not want to get back into electronics full time. But to help others who cannot afford epilators like the apilus platinum, there are far cheaper was to accomplish the same thing.
While not endorsing any CB radio more than another, I came across a midland 1001z cb being sold for just $30 on amazon.
That has 4 watts output, whereas the output transistor on a 13.5 mhz Ultrablend epilator is input rated at 7 watts max. In reality, they are probably pretty much equal power wise, because most output transistors are only about 50% effective. Its flash mode operates in tenths of a second timing periods.
Obviously, I have not completed my thoughts on everything that I wish to do in figuring out how to mod a CB radio for hair removal use, but these at least are some of my thoughts.
