PSA: I almost fried a vintage Atari 2600 board trying to clean it with the wrong stuff

I was in my garage last Tuesday, trying to fix a really dirty board from a 1977 model, and I grabbed a can of contact cleaner that was actually for automotive parts. The second I sprayed it, the board started smoking and I had to pull the power fast. Has anyone else messed up a board with the wrong cleaner and managed to save it?

I thought those 'smart' diagnostic apps for fridges were just a scam until one actually pinpointed a faulty damper motor on a 2020 Samsung in under 5 minutes.

Has anyone else had a specific tool or piece of software they doubted that actually saved a job?

Just wasted $80 on a 'mint' camera that had a broken light meter

Just realized something about the old stone wall behind my house

I was clearing brush in the backyard in Concord and noticed the stones are cut differently than the ones from the 1800s farmhouse foundation. One section has drill marks from a plug and feather method, which was mostly used before 1850 around here. Has anyone else found a much older feature right on their own property?

My first try at a full leather binding taught me something about glue

I just finished my first proper leather bound book, a copy of The Hobbit for my nephew. I was so proud until I opened it and heard that awful crackling sound from the spine. I realized I'd been putting glue on the whole spine piece, not just the edges. A binder I follow online said that's a common mistake that makes the book stiff and loud. She said you only need a thin line of paste on the very edges of the spine liner to let the leather move. I tried it again on a small notebook, and the difference is huge. It opens so quietly now. Has anyone else had to unlearn that habit of over-gluing?

Bought a 'professional' hot towel warmer that died after 2 weeks, cost me $120.

It was a cheap knockoff from an online ad that couldn't hold steam, so now I'm back to my old method and looking for a real one that lasts, any suggestions under $200?

My whole print run got wrecked by a jammed risograph

Happened yesterday trying to run 50 copies of my new poetry zine. The ink smeared on every single page. Had to hand-collate the clean ones and sell them as 'flawed' editions. Anyone have a good fix for a sticky drum on an older Riso? Mine's a GR 3750.

Just realized I own over 100 board games and I've never played half of them

I was organizing my shelves in the basement and counted exactly 127 boxes. I think the tipping point was that Kickstarter for 'Frosthaven' a few years back, which I still haven't opened. It hit me that collecting them became a bigger hobby than actually playing them. Anyone else have a shelf of shame that's bigger than they'd like to admit?

Saw the weirdest thing at the Pima Air & Space Museum last weekend

They have this old C-130 on display, and I swear someone used zip ties to hold a piece of the engine cowling on. Not safety wire, not proper fasteners, but big, white plastic zip ties. I was with my buddy Carl and we just stared at it for a solid five minutes trying to figure out if it was part of the restoration or a real field fix. Has anyone else seen a 'creative' repair like that on a museum bird?

Appreciation post: The old apartment building on 5th Street finally got its wiring redone

Got sent back there yesterday for a service call. Last time I was in that place, maybe two years back, it was a total rat's nest of old coax and phone lines in the basement. This time, a contractor had come through and put in a proper structured wiring panel with labeled Cat6 runs. Took me five minutes to trace a line instead of forty. Anyone else seen a job where a clean install just saved your whole day?