Larry Jaques wrote:


A small metal screwdriver tip could take out a thin trace on a mobo in
a split second. It could also scrap off a SM cap or resistor in a
heartbeat.


Well - it could if you scraped it across the motherboard, but it's not hard
to place it into a fan blade to keep it from turning from the air stream.

And speaking of non-metallic screwdrivers, who has used a Gecko G540
drive before? What driver do you use to get down to those buried
screws they use for motor optimization? I think they're trimpots.
http://www.geckodrive.com/g540-digit...trol-p-39.html

Hmmmmm... I do have a couple of long nylon (I think...) screw drivers, for
use in areas like that, while tweaking live. Don't think they are any brand
name - probably came from HF a long time ago. I've had them forever.
They've worked as advertised - so much so that they are somewhat
unremarkable to me now. Mine will turn a fair amount of torque - but since
they're nylon, there is a limit. Fine for trim pots and the like, but
they'd never back out a tight screw. I have tried to take out screws that
were too tight and it's easy to tell - you can feel the shaft start to
distort and you know the blade is about to goin BOING. So - you quit at
that point. I also have steel drivers with insulated shafts, that can reach
into live areas, but you have to be careful getting them into where the
screw head is. The obvious stuff.

--

-Mike-