Did you know that if you stick a pencil into a power cable, you can start a fire?

Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share
1

Well, now you do.

My blackberry charger got bent. Rather than shell out the $8 for a new one, I decided I could fix it myself. I didn’t unplug it; instead, I just stuck a pencil into the bent end to straighten it.

Snap! goes the pencil lead.
Smoke! goes the charger.
There is a power surge in the USB port! goes the computer.
Yikes! goes the Campion.

So, kids, what have we learned?

$8 is a small price to pay to prevent forest fires. Also, and I cannot stress this enough, we have learned that if something is broke, don’t ask Campion to fix it.

2

There’s an old practical joke amongst electronic techs involving graphite pencils, variacs, and such, but I’m afraid that if I tell you how we pranked one another, I’ll get a slapdown.

3

Now you know that graphite is a conductor. Somewhat resistive (and actually the primary component in most resistors) but still conductive.

I remember making a variac in electronics school using pencil and paper. Very effective if unpractical.

4

Huh. So if I’d used a pen instead of a pencil, I might not be on my way to the office supply store to get a new charger cable?

5

The nib may be plastic instead of metal, but I believe that ink is conductive.
:slight_smile:

6

Yeah. Next time, use a paper clip like you’re supposed to. :smiley:
But disconnect the cable first.

7

I remember in high school physics, our prof taught us how to make an arc welder out of a pencil. He said we could use the info the escape from prison. All we needed was something that plugs in and a pencil, and you might be able to weld through the bars.