Reforming capacitors (technical description, not politics)

[drlegendre .]

Capacitor technology made huge strides in the 1960s and 1970s - and has
continued to advance even to this very day. Parts that were once the size
of a Chicago bratwurst are reduced to the size of the baby gherkins that
garnish them, with better specs across the board. And if you want to count
the "supercaps" (you shouldn't), well, then everyone else might as well go
home now.

Incidentally, what exactly differentiates a computer-grade cap from any
other alum. electrolytic?

@Eric

If you're interested, I have somewhere a document from Mallory - I believe
it may be a hardbound volume, perhaps a catalog - that describes the
evolution of the multi-section aluminum can electrolytic, from the early
versions up through the "EP" (Etched Plate) and finally "FP" (Fabricated
Plate) designs. If you'd like to see it, I'll set it aside the next time I
come across it.

On Wed, Jul 29, 2015 at 3:08 PM, Eric Smith <spacewar at gmail.com> wrote:

> On Wed, Jul 29, 2015 at 11:27 AM, drlegendre . <drlegendre at gmail.com>
> wrote:
> > And therein lies the rub. It seems that so many of the 'legacy' caps we
> > come across already have some degree of irreversible damage, that the
> idea
> > of reforming them appears to be some type of dark art.
>
> As someone else pointed out earlier in this thread, there may be a lot
> of difference between "computer grade" electrolytic capacitors, and
> normal ones.  It's also possible that capacitors made in the 1960s and
> 1970s may have been better designed and manufactured than earlier
> ones.
>