He swore it'd fix the hum in my guitar amp, but after plugging it in and getting the exact same buzz, I realized his fix was just a bandaid for a loose input jack. Anyone else have a 'simple fix' that just cost you money and time?
Picked up a 1980s ShopSmith from a guy on Craigslist for $150 back in March. Figured it would be a parts machine at best since the motor was seized and half the switches were missing. I was dead wrong after I took the time to clean the commutator and replace the start capacitor for $12 at an electrical supply shop in town. Thing runs smoother than my buddy's newer model that he paid $2,000 for. The whole experience taught me that old American iron is usually worth saving if you have the patience. Has anyone else had luck bringing a dead machine back to life with just some basic electrical troubleshooting?
The tip literally warped and the plastic handle started smoking, so now I'm stuck with a half-fixed Xbox and a $150 repair quote I could've avoided if I just bought a Hakko from the start why do we always learn the hard way?
I keep seeing people say you gotta spend $80 plus on a soldering station or you're wasting your time. But I've been using this $12 Weller from Ace Hardware for like 6 years now and it's never let me down. Last week I had to redo a busted headphone jack on a pair of Sennheisers, took me maybe 20 minutes including cleanup. Sure, the tip isn't as fancy as the Hakko stuff but for basic board work and speaker wires, it's been totally fine. Am I just lucky or has anyone else had decent luck with the cheap end of the aisle?
Picked up a Hakko FX888D for $45 at a pawn shop in Phoenix instead of dropping $200 on a proper reflow station, and honestly between chasing tiny caps across my bench and melting a connector on my second attempt I'm starting to think hot air was the right call. Has anyone else stubbornly gone against the grain on a tool choice and regretted it?
I swapped the wires without turning off the power first and the whole living room went dark while my family watched me stand there holding a smoking screwdriver, has anyone else done something this dumb on a holiday?
Thought it was sketchy until I tried it on a jammed car stereo harness last weekend and saved 20 minutes of cussing out the crimpers, why doesn't anyone warn you about that trick earlier?
Last weekend I figured I'd finally fix my PS2's power port that's been loose for years. Watched a tutorial from some guy in Ohio, bought a $9 soldering iron from Harbor Freight, and went for it. The new connection worked for about 30 seconds before smoke came out and now the console won't turn on at all. Did I miss an obvious step or is this just a rite of passage for DIY repairs?
I decided to swap out an old ceiling fan light kit last Saturday. Got it all hooked up, flipped the switch, and nothing happened. Turned out I spent 45 minutes rechecking my connections before I realized I'd forgotten to put the bulbs back in. Had the glass covers on tight and everything. Anyone else ever troubleshoot a problem that was way dumber than you thought?
Talked to my buddy Frank last Saturday. He does commercial work, 25 years in. Told me he's seen wire nuts fail in attics more times than he can count. Said he switched to Wago lever nuts after a fire call in Cleveland. Now I'm thinking maybe I should ditch the twist-on style too. Anyone else make the switch and feel better about it?
Saw a post last night about dollar store extension cords melting. Didn't think much of it. Plugged one into my space heater this morning in my garage near St. Louis. Smelled burning plastic after 10 minutes. Cord was hot to the touch. Checked the wire gauge - it was 18 AWG for a 1500 watt heater. That's a fire waiting to happen. Anyone else almost learn this the hard way?
I was at this garage sale in Portland and this old guy had two rotary tools sitting on a table. One was this beat up Dremel 260 from the 70s with a frayed cord and the other was a brand new looking Craftsman one still in the box. He wanted $15 for the old one and $20 for the new one. I went with the old Dremel cause I figured they don't make em like that anymore. Got it home, plugged it in, and it ran smooth but the chuck was stripped so I spent two hours trying to find a replacement collet online. Still haven't found one that fits. The new one would have been fine but now I'm stuck with a paperweight that looks cool. Anyone else get suckered by vintage tools that just end up being a hassle?
After he saw the mess I made trying to fix a old VCR from a thrift store in Eugene, he sat me down and showed me how to properly tin the tip and use flux. Turns out I was holding the iron like a pencil for way too long and burning everything. He made me redo 6 joints before he let me move on to the next component. Has anyone else had a family member completely change their technique with one comment?
Found out from a sparky on YouTube that mixing up neutral and hot on a standard lamp socket can short the whole thing out, and I had to ask my neighbor to help me fix it after I fried two bulbs in a row, has anyone else done this dumb mistake?
I used to think flux was optional when I was 19 fixing old game consoles in my parents' basement. Figured if the solder had a rosin core that was good enough. So I tried reflowing a cracked joint on a Sega Genesis power jack and it just balled up like water on a greasy pan. After three failed attempts I finally caved and bought a little tin of flux paste for like $4 at RadioShack. Night and day difference the stuff actually stuck and flowed into the joint. Now I won't even touch an iron without flux nearby. Anyone else stubbornly skip basic steps when they first started tinkering?