5 Apr
2011
5 Apr
'11
3:04 a.m.
I'm wondering if it would be worth building some
form of "small thing
disassembly box" to alleviate this problem.
Basically, you take a 40-litre under-bed storage box (~?5,
Poundstretcher), flip it upside down (thus turning the lid into the
base) and use a holesaw to drill two large holes in the side big
enough
to put your hands through. Optionally attach some thin elbow-length
gloves to these holes so your hands go through the gloves and into
the box.
This way, anything that decides to "ping" off into never-never-land
will
be restricted to "pinging" into one of the walls of the box. Gravity
ensures that any tiny little things which choose to do this will end
up
in or near the bottom of the box.
Taking things apart in a photographic developing tray is a good start.
It won't keep things from pinging off to somewhere where only the cat
will find them, but it catches things like small screws and
ball-bearings that fall out. I like to use old plastic 35mm film
containers to keep small items in, one container for each
subsystem/part/whatever, keeps related parts together so you don't end
up with 55 nearly identical screws that you can't remember where they
went. Taking pictures as you go along with a simple digital camera also
helps if you do not have a service manual.
/Jonas
6 Apr
6 Apr
11:04 a.m.
Taking things apart in a photographic developing tray
is a good start.
It won't keep things from pinging off to somewhere where only the cat
will find them, but it catches things like small screws and
Now there's an idea.... How do I train Muon [1] to find and return
E-circlips, ball bearings, odd washers, etc, rather than dead rodents
[1] One of the cats who chooses to live with me. Explanation of the neam
on request :-)
I am conviced that there's a spacetime warp in my workshop. Things just
vanish. I was reparing an Epson dot matrix printer and I dropped a
plastic bush fromthe apepr feed mechanism. It bounced on the floor and
vanished. I must have looked for it for over half an hour, nothing. In
the end I spent 10 minues machining a new one from bras (thankfully there
was a second identical bush on the other end of the spindle that I coudl
take meausrements from.
Soem time later I was repairign an HP printer. I took the mains rocker
switch apart to clean the cotnacts and wipe years of gunge off the rocker
itself. I dropped one fo the moving contacts in abotu the smae place. It
vnaaished too. Again I spent a long time loong for it, no luck (and I
didn't find the bush from the Epson printer either). In he end I took
apart a 'random' swithc with about the smae spacing bwetween the
termainals and found the moving contacts were identical to the ones in
the HP siwthc. So that's what went back in it.
ball-bearings that fall out. I like to use old
plastic 35mm film
containers to keep small items in, one container for each
I find those divided plastic boxes (Raaco make good ones) useful for
this. Get the ones with fix partitions, the 'improved' adjustable
partitions have the annoying habit of coming out at the wrong momemnt.
Anyway, you can use each compartmetn for the screws, buts, etc from a
paerticlar stage of the dismantling. 'Stage' is determined by my
judgement. If there are half a dozen PCBs all held down my the same type
of screws, then all of them go in the same place. But I might well put
all the bits from an earthing bolt with several nuts, spring washers,
faston tages, etc in its own place with nothing else. If you asre not
sure you'll remember what each compartmetn contains, you can driop slip
of paper with a suitable note on it in there as well.
subsystem/part/whatever, keeps related parts together
so you don't end
up with 55 nearly identical screws that you can't remember where they
went. Taking pictures as you go along with a simple digital camera also
helps if you do not have a service manual.
The even simpler device, a notebook and pen, works fine too. In fact I
never work on anytthing, even if I have the official service manuals,
without a way of making notes.
In some cases the notebook is better than a photograph ,i that you can
write things like 'nut, claw washer, plain washer, earth tag, heatsink
brakcet, chassis, screw from the other side' where the order may not be
clear from a photo. And you can draw a sketch of a gear train with a
comment like 'Idle position, hole in this gear lines up with the one in
the frame <arrow indicating wheree>, marker on this gear lines up with
that notch in the fram <another arrow>'. Again a photo might not show
this clearly.
-tony
1:10 p.m.
On 06/04/2011 19:04, Tony Duell wrote:
I am conviced that there's a spacetime warp in my
workshop. Things just
vanish.
Same problem here ;-) The most annoying thing is when you I the tiny
part I've just finished on the lathe (or whatever), and /it/ teleports.
I find those divided plastic boxes (Raaco make good
ones) useful for
this. Get the ones with fix partitions, the 'improved' adjustable
partitions have the annoying habit of coming out at the wrong momemnt.
Anyway, you can use each compartmetn for the screws, buts, etc from a
paerticlar stage of the dismantling.
I have a variant of that. At the back corner of my bench is a stack of
perhaps a couple of dozen small round plastic tubs, about 70mm dia and
mostly around 25mm deep, which various dips and sauces from ready-meals
came in. When I take something apart, the first batch of bits goes in a
tub. The next batch goes in another tub, which sits on top of the first,
and so on. At any given time there are probably three or four stacks on
the go, as there are 3-4 projects/repairs waiting for parts (or time, or
further thought, or enthusiasm).
--
Pete Peter Turnbull
Network Manager
University of York
5:57 p.m.
Pete Turnbull wrote:
I have a variant of that. At the back corner of my
bench is a stack of
perhaps a couple of dozen small round plastic tubs, about 70mm dia and
mostly around 25mm deep, which various dips and sauces from ready-meals
came in. When I take something apart, the first batch of bits goes in a
tub. The next batch goes in another tub, which sits on top of the first,
and so on. At any given time there are probably three or four stacks on
the go, as there are 3-4 projects/repairs waiting for parts (or time, or
further thought, or enthusiasm).
I do that with old fruit juice concentrate containers - those are large
enough that I normally tuck a sheet of paper in with the parts containing
helpful scribbles. I don't stack them though, as it could get ugly if they
fell over :-)
Ground coffee containers work well for larger odds and ends.
cheers
Jules
11:54 p.m.
On 07/04/2011 01:57, Jules Richardson wrote:
Pete Turnbull wrote:
> I have a variant of that. At the back corner of my bench is a stack
> of perhaps a couple of dozen small round plastic tubs
I do that with old fruit juice concentrate containers
- those are large
enough that I normally tuck a sheet of paper in with the parts
containing helpful scribbles. I don't stack them though, as it could get
ugly if they fell over :-)
That's the good thing about the little tubs -- they're tapered so they
fit inside each other.
--
Pete Peter Turnbull
Network Manager
University of York
12 Apr
12 Apr
11:20 a.m.
On 06/04/2011 19:04, Tony Duell wrote:
In case anyone's wondering why I've been silent for almost a week, it was
due to problems with some modern equipment between me and this list. That
is to say my ISP had routing problems (or so it appears). The ancient
parts (my PC) worked perfectly.
I am conviced that there's a spacetime warp
in my workshop. Things just
vanish.
Same problem here ;-) The most annoying thing is when you I the tiny
part I've just finished on the lathe (or whatever), and /it/ teleports. I find those divided plastic boxes (Raaco make
good ones) useful for
this. Get the ones with fix partitions, the 'improved' adjustable
partitions have the annoying habit of coming out at the wrong momemnt.
Anyway, you can use each compartmetn for the screws, buts, etc from a
paerticlar stage of the dismantling.
I have a variant of that. At the back corner of my bench is a stack of
perhaps a couple of dozen small round plastic tubs, about 70mm dia and
mostly around 25mm deep, which various dips and sauces from ready-meals
came in. When I take something apart, the first batch of bits goes in a
tub. The next batch goes in another tub, which sits on top of the first,
and so on. At any given time there are probably three or four stacks on
the go, as there are 3-4 projects/repairs waiting for parts (or time, or
further thought, or enthusiasm). 
6 Apr
6 Apr
3:29 p.m.
[1] One of the cats who chooses to live with me.
Explanation of the neam
on request :-)
Please =(^.^)=
I am conviced that there's a spacetime warp in my
workshop. Things just
vanish. I was reparing an Epson dot matrix printer and I dropped a
plastic bush fromthe apepr feed mechanism. It bounced on the floor and
vanished. I must have looked for it for over half an hour, nothing. In
the end I spent 10 minues machining a new one from bras (thankfully there
was a second identical bush on the other end of the spindle that I coudl
take meausrements from.
Muon ate it! [1]
Soem time later I was repairign an HP printer. I took
the mains rocker
switch apart to clean the cotnacts and wipe years of gunge off the rocker
itself. I dropped one fo the moving contacts in abotu the smae place. It
vnaaished too. Again I spent a long time loong for it, no luck (and I
didn't find the bush from the Epson printer either). In he end I took
apart a 'random' swithc with about the smae spacing bwetween the
termainals and found the moving contacts were identical to the ones in
the HP siwthc. So that's what went back in it.
Muon ate it! [1]
:)
Alexandre Souza :)
[1]: A common said in Brazil is "o gato comeu" when something vanishes,
which translate to "the cat ate it!". So, Muon is guilty! :D
12 Apr
12 Apr
11:30 a.m.
[1] One of the cats who chooses to live with me.
Explanation of the neam
on request :-)
Please =(^.^)=
4955
days inactive
4962
days old
7 comments
5 participants
participants (5)
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ard＠p850ug1.demon.co.uk -
jonas＠otter.se -
jules.richardson99＠gmail.com -
pete＠dunnington.plus.com -
pu1bzz.listas＠gmail.com