Date   : Wed, 12 Aug 2009 01:45:06 +0200
From   : kortink@... (John Kortink)
Subject: Tales of woe and stupidity

On Tue, 11 Aug 2009 21:10:31 +0100, you wrote:

>[...]
>
>Yes, I'd fitted the large Mains Rectifier caps backwards. Boss was not 
>impressed, about as impressed as the clenaers who had to clean the yellow 
>paste off the ceiling and the paper debris that came out of the caps that 
>was spread all around the lab. Still makes me laugh to think about it, and a 
>good reminder to me to always check the polarity!

It will happen.

When it first did to me (when I started farting around
with electronics somewhere in the late seventies), me
and a friend turned the effect into some entertainment.
We bought a bunch of small (hence cheap) electrolytic
capacitors and blew them up in the yard by putting
increasing alternating current through them using an
adjustable toy race car track transformer. They first
bulge at the bottom or sides, then go BANG, spraying
paper snippets and a bit of fluid. Bigger capacitor,
bigger BANG (but more expense). Some of the really
big ones never went, though.

Don't try this at home kids (nobody told us then,
not least because we didn't ask if it was ok ...).


John Kortink

-- 

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