Repairing stuff

RFR said:
A good razor can be handed down through many generations. All you have to buy is blades.

Why do they sell ‘disposable’ razors? Money. Pure and simple. A product you use can be sold to you over and over again.

A lot more profit than selling just blades.

Prior to the modern razor everyone used folding razors that you sharpened. Didn’t even have to buy blades for that tool.

Same thing with a Zippo lighter. Fill it, every once in a while buy flints and it will last generations.

What you have now? Disposable Bic lighters. Use them throw away.

All this stuff ends up in a landfill.

Which, btw is one of these ‘Whitewashed’ terms. It sounds nicer than trash pile.
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I was totally agreeing with what you are saying, sorry I got a bit confused xxx
 
Much electronic kit is not repairable, by design. You just can't buy the chips inside them.
It is cheaper to buy a new whatever than to repair an old one.
 
Slouching Raymond said:
Much electronic kit is not repairable, by design. You just can't buy the chips inside them.
It is cheaper to buy a new whatever than to repair an old one.
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This is true for integrated chips, but capacitors and connectors (like USB), etc can be replaced. One of my coworkers does these things for our customers on a regular basis.

I'm a fan of fixing when I can. I'm also growing bolder on the things around the house and in the car I'm willing to tackle. This is largely due to the amount of quality material on youtube, in the most recent case I found a step by step for swapping a suddenly inop window regulator in my car [the mechanism that pushes/pulls the window in the door up and down]. Also recently with only some minor video research I've made a concrete form to repair an eroded corner slab on our old home, cut a hole in the stucco siding on our new home to add a vent for the garage, and replaced our kitchen sink and faucet (which required disconnecting our reverse osmosis system and drilling a hole in the new stainless steel sink top for the RO faucet). I've done numerous small repairs around the two houses we've lived in the past 15 years, including some minor electrical wiring.

Mind you, I was an English major in college and do IT work by day. Honestly anything is within grasp it seems with enough self training and common sense. The cost to get things done is growing exceedingly prohibitive, which is becoming the primary motivator in recent years to roll up the sleeves.

My soldering skills are poor, so I tend to toss electronics when they die but usually get plenty of use out of them before that day. The sub in the loving room died a few months ago, and being that it was 5-6 years old and used almost daily I figured I got my $300 from it and used it as a opportunity to get something a little bit nicer.
 
Pinky said:
This is true for integrated chips, but capacitors and connectors (like USB), etc can be replaced. One of my coworkers does these things for our customers on a regular basis.

I'm a fan of fixing when I can. I'm also growing bolder on the things around the house and in the car I'm willing to tackle. This is largely due to the amount of quality material on youtube, in the most recent case I found a step by step for swapping a suddenly inop window regulator in my car [the mechanism that pushes/pulls the window in the door up and down]. Also recently with only some minor video research I've made a concrete form to repair an eroded corner slab on our old home, cut a hole in the stucco siding on our new home to add a vent for the garage, and replaced our kitchen sink and faucet (which required disconnecting our reverse osmosis system and drilling a hole in the new stainless steel sink top for the RO faucet). I've done numerous small repairs around the two houses we've lived in the past 15 years, including some minor electrical wiring.

Mind you, I was an English major in college and do IT work by day. Honestly anything is within grasp it seems with enough self training and common sense. The cost to get things done is growing exceedingly prohibitive, which is becoming the primary motivator in recent years to roll up the sleeves.

My soldering skills are poor, so I tend to toss electronics when they die but usually get plenty of use out of them before that day. The sub in the loving room died a few months ago, and being that it was 5-6 years old and used almost daily I figured I got my $300 from it and used it as a opportunity to get something a little bit nicer.
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Nice one Pinky, yes capacitors can be replaced. Please help me with my broken Atari SM125 Mono Monitor xxx I think it is just a blown input Cap. The electrolitic ones were very vulnreabable as they were fluid based, the solid state caps are much more robust now xxxxx
 
RFR said:
Watch the documentary ;)
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There is a movement now for people to take their broken appliences to a repair shop where volunteer retired engineers show then how to fix them. I love this and it will save our planet xxxx I love fixing stuff and hate to throw it away xxxx 🥰🥰🥰
 
Repairing electronics can be difficult because of the need to source exact replacement components plus of course the safety aspects of mains powered kit.
Mechanical stuff like drum kit fittings is rather different and really comes down to practice and having some sort of workshop. In that workshop* you need a really solid wooden bench (first job, make one! ) and bolt it to the floor and a wall if possible. Electric tools like a 1/4HP drill pres are now really quite cheap and make many jobs a doddle that would be next to impossible without.
I seem to recall that drum fittings are largely brass? That being the case you can use Silver solder with a propane torch, no need for a welder.
A good selection of QUALITY drill bits and files and a set of screwdrivers and you can tackle most jobs.

*Wish I still had mine!

Dave.
 
Joking aside - I used to fix things, but it's getting far too expensive. I promised (stupidly) to fix an old radio. I sell radios, but first line servicing is the name of the game - so many are unfixable, especially when water gets into marine radios. So I have an analyser, a digital scope, signal generators, various other test gear - and it cost lots of money, yet the one I promised to do cost, in 1976, £30. It has a real wood cabinet and I do have the service manual - BUT - I found the first of the spares to fix it - cost £35, and worse, I have to undo about 30 solder connections to get the board out to get to the solder pads to fit the new part. So far, I'm about 4 hours downj just taking it to bits. The replacement part will take at least the same time again, then I have to align it and put it back together. In real terms, that is a day of my time, which would be invoiced currently at around £180-250, based on what I charge for my services. In honesty, I cannot charge the customer £300 for the job - despite what it really costs. She will find even £50 expensive, so it's a loss already. Repairing things is simply ludicrously expensive compared to the cost of a new item. A friend does guitar repairs - people bring in a £100 value guitar that needs three days work. It just doesn't make sense.
 
Sometimes i can recognize what is wrong with the item by a detailed description of the problem..in the sold for parts/not working ad..

Look at the risk. Decide how far. Make an offer. Give it a little planning.

Alesis nano bass synth was basic stuff. Diagrams online. Saved from the trash. Great classic 1/3U with 16 bit bass roms. follow power back with test light/DVOM. replaced cap.

Korg M3R will not play, or load data into cache(on the cheap). No alert on display...power supply verified after purchase as working. I have come across this before on my Korg A3.
It is a simple 2032 battery.
 
On a larger scale - I'm currently investing money into scheduled maintenance and minor repairs of my 22 year-old automobile. I can't afford a used vehicle, not one who's mechanical reliability I can be sure of. Nor could I possibly afford even more for a new one. So...

As crazy as it may sound, I'm already into maintenance and repairs for nearly twice the car's estimated resale value - and there's more to come next month. All done, it will still come in at about half the cost of a good used vehicle and should last me for many more years.
 
spantini said:
On a larger scale - I'm currently investing money into scheduled maintenance and minor repairs of my 22 year-old automobile. I can't afford a used vehicle, not one who's mechanical reliability I can be sure of. Nor could I possibly afford even more for a new one. So...

As crazy as it may sound, I'm already into maintenance and repairs for nearly twice the car's estimated resale value - and there's more to come next month. All done, it will still come in at about half the cost of a good used vehicle and should last me for many more years.
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That's not insane though, as long as the frame isn't starting to rust out. The remaining mechanical components, as well as body panels, can be swapped/repaired. As long as you're not 100% shit out of luck if something dies with the vehicle (meaning - you have a second vehicle to use while awaiting parts/repair), keeping an older car on life support can actually be economically feasible. For many/most people though, driving a sketchy car that could break down at any time isn't realistic.
 
Pinky said:
That's not insane though, as long as the frame isn't starting to rust out. The remaining mechanical components, as well as body panels, can be swapped/repaired. As long as you're not 100% shit out of luck if something dies with the vehicle (meaning - you have a second vehicle to use while awaiting parts/repair), keeping an older car on life support can actually be economically feasible. For many/most people though, driving a sketchy car that could break down at any time isn't realistic.
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No seriously guys, the make do and mend is a good thing, when the apocolypse happens then we will all just to have to become fixers and makers, in a post apocolypse world (sic)
 
grimtraveller said:
Unless Vladimir Putin decides that Ukraine should be thrown away.....

Sounds like a mid-70s prog rock album by some Yes imitators !
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Putin and his rich evil cronies will be ousted this year by the fed up Russian people. I think they have totally had enough of him. The Russian people are good people who have suffered this corrupt evil bastard for long enough. We should do everything in our power to help them be liberated from this scumbag.
 
Smithers XKR said:
Putin and his rich evil cronies will be ousted this year by the fed up Russian people. I think they have totally had enough of him. The Russian people are good people who have suffered this corrupt evil bastard for long enough. We should do everything in our power to help them be liberated from this scumbag.
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Yeah 🥰😇
 
rob aylestone said:
Joking aside - I used to fix things, but it's getting far too expensive. I promised (stupidly) to fix an old radio. I sell radios, but first line servicing is the name of the game - so many are unfixable, especially when water gets into marine radios. So I have an analyser, a digital scope, signal generators, various other test gear - and it cost lots of money, yet the one I promised to do cost, in 1976, £30. It has a real wood cabinet and I do have the service manual - BUT - I found the first of the spares to fix it - cost £35, and worse, I have to undo about 30 solder connections to get the board out to get to the solder pads to fit the new part. So far, I'm about 4 hours downj just taking it to bits. The replacement part will take at least the same time again, then I have to align it and put it back together. In real terms, that is a day of my time, which would be invoiced currently at around £180-250, based on what I charge for my services. In honesty, I cannot charge the customer £300 for the job - despite what it really costs. She will find even £50 expensive, so it's a loss already. Repairing things is simply ludicrously expensive compared to the cost of a new item. A friend does guitar repairs - people bring in a £100 value guitar that needs three days work. It just doesn't make sense.
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That is a good point Rob, there is no economic sense to repair stuff for anyone else. It makes no sense time and labour wise. But it is nice to do it for your own gear just for your own personal achievement mate 🥰 👍
 
1930's depression saying that totally inspires me..

Use it up, wear it out, make due or do without

When the grandkids break something who do they call? Tom Fixin.
I've been fixing things so long I forgot how to fix em, but I'm still fixin them :D

Learned how to wrench young, soldering, welding..I have torn a ton of things apart and actually fixed a few of them. :laughings:...but to be honest there is a graveyard of disassembled but never revived "things" in my legacy. Hey but you have to make mistakes to learn. I have fixed a gazillion things in my life...and it's always an awesome "win" when you have success. A little Yankee ingenuity and persistence will take you far.
 
TAE said:
1930's depression saying that totally inspires me..

Use it up, wear it out, make due or do without

When the grandkids break something who do they call? Tom Fixin.
I've been fixing things so long I forgot how to fix em, but I'm still fixin them :D

Learned how to wrench young, soldering, welding..I have torn a ton of things apart and actually fixed a few of them. :laughings:...but to be honest there is a graveyard of disassembled but never revived "things" in my legacy. Hey but you have to make mistakes to learn. I have fixed a gazillion things in my life...and it's always an awesome "win" when you have success. A little Yankee ingenuity and persistence will take you far.
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I love fixing stuff.. when mum was away in Dubai a few years ago I spent my time restoring a lovely table that belonged to my great grandma circa 1910 ... it was a lovely Edwardian table.. I sanded it down and kept all the patina and just used oil to bring it back. It was very tactile and a nice thing to do xx
 
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