[Elecraft] stupid question - likely ot

[Jim Sheldon]

John, Simon et al,
I Probably shouldn't continue this thread, but it contains too valuable a
lesson. I taught electronics for the US Army for a little over 10 years
during my 20 year career, and the first thing I told each new class of
students was, "There ain't no such thing as a dumb or stupid question,
except the one you needed the answer to and were afraid to ask because YOU
thought it was stupid."  

No one is immune to this either.  If anyone says they haven't done anything
stupid because they always knew the right answer, then they are either lying
or too embarrassed to admit it hi hi.  

My most memorable contribution to the stupidity files could even have caused
me to be a candidate for the Darwin awards to boot. It consisted of using an
incandescently lighted bench magnifier on which I had replaced a damaged AC
plug with a non-polarized one.  I was working very close to the main circuit
board in a Motorola business radio which was powered up (the negative lead
of the power supply WAS grounded)in an attempt to find a cracked trace.  I
got a non-insulated jeweler's screwdriver between some part of the radio's
circuitry and the shell of the light bulb.  The plug, of course, was
inserted so that the shell was on the hot side rather than the neutral of
the line, and not only did it completely destroy the radio, but it knocked
the bejesus out of me as well.  

Lesson learned:  NEVER use a workbench lamp with exposed parts, unless all
exposed parts are firmly at ground potential and check all newly purchased
things of that nature to insure that the plugs are indeed polarized, and
that the wide blade of the plug is connected to the shell side of all lamp
sockets.  Eliminates a whole lot of grief.


Jim Sheldon, W0EB
K2#4338, KX1#1268

> -----Original Message-----
> From: elecraft-bounces at mailman.qth.net 
> [mailto:elecraft-bounces at mailman.qth.net] On Behalf Of Simon 
> Brown (HB9DRV)
> Sent: Monday, January 02, 2006 10:13 AM
> To: elecraft at mailman.qth.net
> Subject: Re: [Elecraft] stupid question - likely ot
> 
> 
> Connected the 12 volt 25 amp power supply to my Drake TR-7 
> the wrong way - 
> blew it to kingdom come.
> 
> Simon Brown, 1st class Electronics degree !!!
> ---
> http://blog.hb9drv.ch/
> 
> ----- Original Message ----- 
> From: <jferg977 at aol.com>
> 
> 
> > During my late, somewhat unlamented career, I hired architects and
> > engineers.  At some point I started asking interviewees 
> what was the 
> > dumbest thing they ever did in construction and what did 
> they do about it.