LG Model 26LX2D LCD TV, Dead

Hi,

I am servicing a LG model 26LX2D 26" LCD TV that is "dead" (won't turn
on). The only sign of activity is a red blinking light near the remote sensor
receiver.

I do not have a SM for this TV yet. I don't want to risk ordering the
PS unit unless....

Has anyone repaired this model LG TV (dead)?

Thank You in Advance, John

PS, Remove "ine" from my email address

 

[Arfa Daily]

<jaugustine@verizon.net> wrote in message
news:kr7ku6pf8jqaqkb2er7b2h3mdstktqridp@4ax.com...

Hi,

I am servicing a LG model 26LX2D 26" LCD TV that is "dead" (won't
turn
on). The only sign of activity is a red blinking light near the remote
sensor
receiver.

I do not have a SM for this TV yet. I don't want to risk ordering
the
PS unit unless....

Has anyone repaired this model LG TV (dead)?

Thank You in Advance, John

PS, Remove "ine" from my email address

Not unusual for LGs to suffer bad PSU caps. Look first for any secondary
side ones that are bulging, and if you can't see any, go over them all with
an ESR meter. Probably about an 80% shot that caps are the cause of its
troubles ...

Arfa

 

[Jeff Liebermann]

On Sat, 04 Jun 2011 08:06:39 -0400, jaugustine@verizon.net wrote:

I am servicing a LG model 26LX2D 26" LCD TV that is "dead" (won't turn
on). The only sign of activity is a red blinking light near the remote sensor
receiver.

I had the same problem with a similar LG. The bulging caps were
obvious.

There's also a problem when the flash ram with the firmware gets
trashed in a power glitch. See:
<http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=1225883>
Post #14.

If the TV suddenly refused to turn on, with no prior symptoms, it
might be the firmware. If the TV was balky at turning on, or required
holding down the button for excessive periods or multiple times, then
it's probably bulging electrolytics in the power supply. The bulging
electrolytics are a far more common problem.

I do not have a SM for this TV yet. I don't want to risk ordering the
PS unit unless....

You don't need to replace the entire power supply, just the bad caps:
<http://www.fixya.com/support/t8741824-wont_rurn>

There are vendors that sell shotgun replacement kits, but I can't seem
to find one specifically for the 26LX2D. However, this vendor can
prepare a custom kit for you:
<http://lcdalternatives.auctivacommerce.com/LG-C196328.aspx?sid=19447>
<http://stores.ebay.com/LCDALTERNATIVES/LG-/_i.html> (same as above)

If you're desperate:
<http://lge.andrewselectronics.com>
$130 for the power supply. Ouch.
--
Jeff Liebermann jeffl@cruzio.com
150 Felker St #D http://www.LearnByDestroying.com
Santa Cruz CA 95060 http://802.11junk.com
Skype: JeffLiebermann AE6KS 831-336-2558

 

On Sat, 04 Jun 2011 08:06:39 -0400, jaugustine@verizon.net wrote:

Hi,

I am servicing a LG model 26LX2D 26" LCD TV that is "dead" (won't turn
on). The only sign of activity is a red blinking light near the remote sensor
receiver.

I do not have a SM for this TV yet. I don't want to risk ordering the
PS unit unless....

Has anyone repaired this model LG TV (dead)?

Thank You in Advance, John

PS, Remove "ine" from my email address




The service manual can be found at Elektrotanya.

http://elektrotanya.com/?q=showresult&megnev=LG&megnev2=26LX2D&kategoria=&kat2=all

PlainBill

 

[Arfa Daily]

"Jeff Liebermann" <jeffl@cruzio.com> wrote in message
news:gamku65o8prl62iklcg1s7eekc2fmseqf8@4ax.com...

On Sat, 04 Jun 2011 08:06:39 -0400, jaugustine@verizon.net wrote:

I am servicing a LG model 26LX2D 26" LCD TV that is "dead" (won't
turn
on). The only sign of activity is a red blinking light near the remote
sensor
receiver.

I had the same problem with a similar LG. The bulging caps were
obvious.

There's also a problem when the flash ram with the firmware gets
trashed in a power glitch. See:
http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=1225883
Post #14.

If the TV suddenly refused to turn on, with no prior symptoms, it
might be the firmware. If the TV was balky at turning on, or required
holding down the button for excessive periods or multiple times, then
it's probably bulging electrolytics in the power supply. The bulging
electrolytics are a far more common problem.

I do not have a SM for this TV yet. I don't want to risk ordering
the
PS unit unless....

You don't need to replace the entire power supply, just the bad caps:
http://www.fixya.com/support/t8741824-wont_rurn

There are vendors that sell shotgun replacement kits, but I can't seem
to find one specifically for the 26LX2D. However, this vendor can
prepare a custom kit for you:
http://lcdalternatives.auctivacommerce.com/LG-C196328.aspx?sid=19447
http://stores.ebay.com/LCDALTERNATIVES/LG-/_i.html> (same as above)

If you're desperate:
http://lge.andrewselectronics.com
$130 for the power supply. Ouch.
--
Jeff Liebermann jeffl@cruzio.com

On a lot of these LCD TVs, if you leave the cap problem for too long, with
the startup getting slower and slower as the offending caps get worse, it
can result in corrupt EEPROM data, so if the OP has only just started having
trouble with it, there's a good chance that it's just caps. If he has been
struggling to get it to come on for some weeks, then the fact that it won't
now come on at all, *might* indicate that the EEPROM has now taken a hit ...

Arfa

 

[Jeff Liebermann]

On Sun, 5 Jun 2011 01:32:21 +0100, "Arfa Daily"
<arfa.daily@ntlworld.com> wrote:

On a lot of these LCD TVs, if you leave the cap problem for too long, with
the startup getting slower and slower as the offending caps get worse, it
can result in corrupt EEPROM data, so if the OP has only just started having
trouble with it, there's a good chance that it's just caps. If he has been
struggling to get it to come on for some weeks, then the fact that it won't
now come on at all, *might* indicate that the EEPROM has now taken a hit ...

Arfa

Good point. I hadn't thought of it that way. Of what I can remember
from trying to concentrate while the owners 2 year old was in turbo
screaming mode, was that the TV was giving them on/off problems for
about 6 months before finally it quit. The LG 32LX1D was purchased in
about 2007, so it was well out of warranty. Same symptoms as the OP.

When I opened it up, the bulging caps in the power supply were
obvious. I replaced two that were bulging, and three more that failed
with the ESR meter. I didn't do anything with the other boards.

I've only fixed one LG that required reloading the firmware. I don't
recall the model number. The TV just would not turn on after a power
glitch. Prior to that, it operated normally. The customer (an
engineer) then attempted to reflash the firmware using the wrong
firmware, which bricked the TV. I found the correct firmware, and
flashed it, which fixed it.

The proposed symptom analysis was my guesswork, which by your
comments, it's going to work.

Note: I don't fix many LCD TV's. Maybe 3 per year. I fix many more
LCD monitors (which are much much much easier).

--
Jeff Liebermann jeffl@cruzio.com
150 Felker St #D http://www.LearnByDestroying.com
Santa Cruz CA 95060 http://802.11junk.com
Skype: JeffLiebermann AE6KS 831-336-2558

 

[Arfa Daily]

"Jeff Liebermann" <jeffl@cruzio.com> wrote in message
news:8pmlu65icmb927gjuf3bh29ioh0ovoj0k2@4ax.com...

On Sun, 5 Jun 2011 01:32:21 +0100, "Arfa Daily"
arfa.daily@ntlworld.com> wrote:

On a lot of these LCD TVs, if you leave the cap problem for too long, with
the startup getting slower and slower as the offending caps get worse, it
can result in corrupt EEPROM data, so if the OP has only just started
having
trouble with it, there's a good chance that it's just caps. If he has been
struggling to get it to come on for some weeks, then the fact that it
won't
now come on at all, *might* indicate that the EEPROM has now taken a hit
...

Arfa

Good point. I hadn't thought of it that way. Of what I can remember
from trying to concentrate while the owners 2 year old was in turbo
screaming mode, was that the TV was giving them on/off problems for
about 6 months before finally it quit. The LG 32LX1D was purchased in
about 2007, so it was well out of warranty. Same symptoms as the OP.

When I opened it up, the bulging caps in the power supply were
obvious. I replaced two that were bulging, and three more that failed
with the ESR meter. I didn't do anything with the other boards.

I've only fixed one LG that required reloading the firmware. I don't
recall the model number. The TV just would not turn on after a power
glitch. Prior to that, it operated normally. The customer (an
engineer) then attempted to reflash the firmware using the wrong
firmware, which bricked the TV. I found the correct firmware, and
flashed it, which fixed it.

The proposed symptom analysis was my guesswork, which by your
comments, it's going to work.

Note: I don't fix many LCD TV's. Maybe 3 per year. I fix many more
LCD monitors (which are much much much easier).

--
Jeff Liebermann jeffl@cruzio.com

I try to avoid TVs as much as I can, as well. The ones that friends and
their friends have that they insist on bringing to me, are invariably over
42" and have the type of construction where 496 screws have to come out to
get inside, as well as the stand having to come off so that it won't stay
upright on the bench. A shop that I do a lot of audio work for, specialises
in them. He has a dedicated bench, and a sort of padded 'cradle' made from
copper plumbing fittings and tube, that a stand-less LCD or plasma TV will
happily sit on for servicing.

Arfa

 

[Jeff Liebermann]

On Sun, 5 Jun 2011 09:57:22 +0100, "Arfa Daily"
<arfa.daily@ntlworld.com> wrote:

I try to avoid TVs as much as I can, as well. The ones that friends and
their friends have that they insist on bringing to me, are invariably over
42" and have the type of construction where 496 screws have to come out to
get inside, as well as the stand having to come off so that it won't stay
upright on the bench.

Same problem. All the LCD TVs I've fixed arrived via friends and
customers. Of course, I have to offer a major discount on my time,
lifetime warranty, parts at cost, and assume responsibility for
everything that happens to the TV in perpetuity. Fortunately, most of
the family is on the other side of the planet, and my bad attitude is
rapidly depleting the friends. At the present rate, I may soon run
out of paying computah repair customers. All this may explain why I
fix few LCD TV's.

I have friends and customers. The difference is that the customers
pay me. Otherwise, they're the same.

A shop that I do a lot of audio work for, specialises
in them. He has a dedicated bench, and a sort of padded 'cradle' made from
copper plumbing fittings and tube, that a stand-less LCD or plasma TV will
happily sit on for servicing.

Good idea. I don't have the bench space to handle a 42" LCD. To
repair the last LCD TV, I had to perform an un-natural act, by
cleaning off my workbench. I'm still recovering.

One thing nice about the 496 screws is that they actually use screws
to hold it together. That's in contrast to the smaller LCD computah
displays, that use snap together plastic cases, which are often tricky
or difficult to open. I like the screws much better.

Another problem is that it's difficult to tell the customer that it
took 30 minutes to get into the case, an hour to reassemble it, and 30
minutes to test it. More if I decide to charge for storage while
waiting for parts, or cleaning off the workbench. Two hours for doing
nothing useful is a bit much for most customers. My friends and
competitors tell me I'm insane to work on big TV's.

Yet another problem is that the price of big screen LCD TV's is
dropping fast. When they cost many thousands of dollars, it was easy
to charge a substantial percentage of the value for a repair. Now
that the price has dropped, expensive repairs are no longer easily
possible.

Incidentally, the few synthesizer keyboards I fix also seem to have
496 screws holding them together. Much as I detest electric
screwdrivers, I now have one solely to remove such screws. I still
replace the screws with a non-powered screwdriver.

Speaking of having too many friends and scraping bottom:
<http://802.11junk.com/jeffl/crud/Kenmore-sewing-machine.jpg>
Sigh...


--
Jeff Liebermann jeffl@cruzio.com
150 Felker St #D http://www.LearnByDestroying.com
Santa Cruz CA 95060 http://802.11junk.com
Skype: JeffLiebermann AE6KS 831-336-2558

 

[Jeffrey Angus]

On 6/5/2011 11:28 AM, Jeff Liebermann wrote:

Much as I detest electric screwdrivers, I now have
one solely to remove such screws.

I bought a pair of these a few years back.
<http://cgi.ebay.com/Assembly-Systems-1000-Electric-Screwdriver-/250793976669>

Lovely tools they are.

I even scrounged up a spring counterbalance for one
of them.

Jeff-1.0
wa6fwi


--
"Everything from Crackers to Coffins"

 

Hi,

Thanks to everyone for your responses. The first thing I look
for is bulging electroys, but in this case, not a single one is bulging.

Clarification on "Blinking Red Light":

The Red Light blinks (actually dims) when I press on the "ON/OFF"
(power) button, otherwise it is "steady" red.

Since my customer had this TV at his vocation home in FLA, and this
problem (won't turn on) occurred when he returned there, I have to consider
the possibility of storm damage since he keeps it plugged in when he is away,
and no surge protection.

John


On Sat, 04 Jun 2011 08:06:39 -0400, in sci.electronics.repair you wrote:

Hi,

I am servicing a LG model 26LX2D 26" LCD TV that is "dead" (won't turn
on). The only sign of activity is a red blinking light near the remote sensor
receiver.

I do not have a SM for this TV yet. I don't want to risk ordering the
PS unit unless....

Has anyone repaired this model LG TV (dead)?

Thank You in Advance, John

PS, Remove "ine" from my email address

 

[Jim Yanik]

Jeff Liebermann <jeffl@cruzio.com> wrote in
news:n29nu6h02ep5nikmk2j4i2tu1tjk6m7ds0@4ax.com:

On Sun, 5 Jun 2011 09:57:22 +0100, "Arfa Daily"
arfa.daily@ntlworld.com> wrote:

I try to avoid TVs as much as I can, as well. The ones that friends
and their friends have that they insist on bringing to me, are
invariably over 42" and have the type of construction where 496 screws
have to come out to get inside, as well as the stand having to come
off so that it won't stay upright on the bench.

Same problem. All the LCD TVs I've fixed arrived via friends and
customers.

"friends and customers"; who else would they come from??? ;-)

[dry humor attempt]

Of course, I have to offer a major discount on my time,
lifetime warranty, parts at cost, and assume responsibility for
everything that happens to the TV in perpetuity. Fortunately, most of
the family is on the other side of the planet, and my bad attitude is
rapidly depleting the friends. At the present rate, I may soon run
out of paying computah repair customers. All this may explain why I
fix few LCD TV's.

I have friends and customers. The difference is that the customers
pay me. Otherwise, they're the same.

A shop that I do a lot of audio work for, specialises
in them. He has a dedicated bench, and a sort of padded 'cradle' made
from copper plumbing fittings and tube, that a stand-less LCD or
plasma TV will happily sit on for servicing.

Good idea. I don't have the bench space to handle a 42" LCD. To
repair the last LCD TV, I had to perform an un-natural act, by
cleaning off my workbench. I'm still recovering.

One thing nice about the 496 screws is that they actually use screws
to hold it together. That's in contrast to the smaller LCD computah
displays, that use snap together plastic cases, which are often tricky
or difficult to open. I like the screws much better.

Another problem is that it's difficult to tell the customer that it
took 30 minutes to get into the case, an hour to reassemble it, and 30
minutes to test it. More if I decide to charge for storage while
waiting for parts, or cleaning off the workbench. Two hours for doing
nothing useful is a bit much for most customers. My friends and
competitors tell me I'm insane to work on big TV's.

Yet another problem is that the price of big screen LCD TV's is
dropping fast. When they cost many thousands of dollars, it was easy
to charge a substantial percentage of the value for a repair. Now
that the price has dropped, expensive repairs are no longer easily
possible.

Incidentally, the few synthesizer keyboards I fix also seem to have
496 screws holding them together. Much as I detest electric
screwdrivers, I now have one solely to remove such screws. I still
replace the screws with a non-powered screwdriver.

I used to use my Makita drill-driver to unscrew cases when I worked at
Tektronix.it has too much torque for driving them back in.
I also have a B&D VersaPack 3.6V screwdriver,but the battery packs have
gone dead. (I found that they can be dismantled by cutting the back end off
with a Dremel cutoff disc,and the plastic retainer will hold the new cells
in,but haven't bought new cells to try yet.)

Speaking of having too many friends and scraping bottom:
http://802.11junk.com/jeffl/crud/Kenmore-sewing-machine.jpg
Sigh...

--
Jim Yanik
jyanik
at
localnet
dot com

 

[Jim Yanik]

jaugustine@verizon.net wrote in
news:sgfnu69ov0bl10qcbbq0vbsvmfqhptollk@4ax.com:

Hi,

Thanks to everyone for your responses. The first thing I look
for is bulging electroys, but in this case, not a single one is
bulging.

Clarification on "Blinking Red Light":

The Red Light blinks (actually dims) when I press on the "ON/OFF"
(power) button, otherwise it is "steady" red.

Since my customer had this TV at his vocation home in FLA, and
this
problem (won't turn on) occurred when he returned there, I have to
consider the possibility of storm damage since he keeps it plugged in
when he is away, and no surge protection.

John


On Sat, 04 Jun 2011 08:06:39 -0400, in sci.electronics.repair you
wrote:

Hi,

I am servicing a LG model 26LX2D 26" LCD TV that is "dead"
(won't turn
on). The only sign of activity is a red blinking light near the remote
sensor receiver.

I do not have a SM for this TV yet. I don't want to risk
ordering the
PS unit unless....

Has anyone repaired this model LG TV (dead)?

Thank You in Advance, John

PS, Remove "ine" from my email address

it could just be a bad "housekeeping supply" electrolytic in the PS;
the cap that supplies the switcher IC's Vcc,or a failed resistor that
charges it when the set is OFF. An ESR meter would show a high ESR for the
cap,even if it is not bulging or discolored.

--
Jim Yanik
jyanik
at
localnet
dot com

 

[Jeffrey Angus]

On 6/5/2011 1:39 PM, Jim Yanik wrote:

I used to use my Makita drill-driver to unscrew cases when I worked at
Tektronix.it has too much torque for driving them back in.

When I worked at a tool store repairing tools, almost EVERYTHING
was held together with corse threaded screws into plastic.

I bought the smaller 9.6 Makita impact driver with the 1/4"
collet. Of course everyone else wanted to know why I didn't buy
the 24V one you can change lugnuts with. Simple, I don't need
to drive the case screws out the back side of the tool. ;-)

Now admittedly, I did buy the 12 V Makita later on, but I use
that one for driving up to 5/16" lag screws into Douglas fir.

Jeff-1.0
wa6fwi


--
"Everything from Crackers to Coffins"

 

[Jeff Liebermann]

On Sun, 05 Jun 2011 13:39:49 -0500, Jim Yanik <jyanik@abuse.gov>
wrote:

"friends and customers"; who else would they come from??? ;-)
[dry humor attempt]

Referrals and responders to advertising, which are not friends and not
yet customers. If I had to rely solely on friends and customers, I
would be otto business long ago.

I used to use my Makita drill-driver to unscrew cases when I worked at
Tektronix.it has too much torque for driving them back in.

Yep. That's why I won't use them. Back when I was younger and
dumber, I would use various electric screwdrivers for both removing
and replacing screws. After stripping out a few cases, I decided that
they were basically a bad idea. While using an ordinary screwdriver
is slower, it gives me time to inspect the device and look for
anomalies.

I also have a B&D VersaPack 3.6V screwdriver,but the battery packs have
gone dead. (I found that they can be dismantled by cutting the back end off
with a Dremel cutoff disc,and the plastic retainer will hold the new cells
in,but haven't bought new cells to try yet.)

In the past, I would just borrow one from the neighboring office if I
needed one. I recently bought a cheapo screwdriver at Sears. The
inspiration was provided by failing to hop the curb on my bicycle. My
left wrist took the shock about 3 weeks ago. It still hurts. I'll
probably hide the electric screwdriver after the wrist recovers.

At 3.6V, you might see what happens when you try to run the screw
driver with a Li-Ion cell phone battery. An 18650 or 123A cell might
also fit. For charging, just stuff it into a cell phone, or buy a
universal Li-Ion charger. Oh, it's already been done:
<http://www.instructables.com/id/Black-amp-Decker-Versapak-upgrade-to-Li-ion/>



--
Jeff Liebermann jeffl@cruzio.com
150 Felker St #D http://www.LearnByDestroying.com
Santa Cruz CA 95060 http://802.11junk.com
Skype: JeffLiebermann AE6KS 831-336-2558

 

[Jim Yanik]

Jeff Liebermann <jeffl@cruzio.com> wrote in
news:8nnnu6t32aig250q2um1e3h0ikrhi9usmj@4ax.com:

On Sun, 05 Jun 2011 13:39:49 -0500, Jim Yanik <jyanik@abuse.gov
wrote:

"friends and customers"; who else would they come from??? ;-)
[dry humor attempt]

Referrals and responders to advertising, which are not friends and not
yet customers. If I had to rely solely on friends and customers, I
would be otto business long ago.

Ah,but a person who walks in your door with a broken TV IS a "customer",or
at least a potential customer,depending on your salesmanship skills.Even
one responding to advertising,they are still "customers" once they come to
you with an item to be repaired.

I used to use my Makita drill-driver to unscrew cases when I worked at
Tektronix.it has too much torque for driving them back in.

For the long screws on a RFM150,I'd drive them in most of the way,then use
a hand driver to tighten them up.Although my Makita (9.6V) has a decent
torque clutch. But I'd never use it on small screws.

Yep. That's why I won't use them. Back when I was younger and
dumber, I would use various electric screwdrivers for both removing
and replacing screws. After stripping out a few cases, I decided that
they were basically a bad idea. While using an ordinary screwdriver
is slower, it gives me time to inspect the device and look for
anomalies.

I also have a B&D VersaPack 3.6V screwdriver,but the battery packs
have gone dead. (I found that they can be dismantled by cutting the
back end off with a Dremel cutoff disc,and the plastic retainer will
hold the new cells in,but haven't bought new cells to try yet.)

In the past, I would just borrow one from the neighboring office if I
needed one. I recently bought a cheapo screwdriver at Sears. The
inspiration was provided by failing to hop the curb on my bicycle. My
left wrist took the shock about 3 weeks ago. It still hurts. I'll
probably hide the electric screwdriver after the wrist recovers.

At 3.6V, you might see what happens when you try to run the screw
driver with a Li-Ion cell phone battery. An 18650 or 123A cell might
also fit. For charging, just stuff it into a cell phone, or buy a
universal Li-Ion charger. Oh, it's already been done:
http://www.instructables.com/id/Black-amp-Decker-Versapak-upgrade-to-Li
-ion/

Hey,thanks for the link! I'm gonna check it out right now!.

--
Jim Yanik
jyanik
at
localnet
dot com

 

[Arfa Daily]

"Jeff Liebermann" <jeffl@cruzio.com> wrote in message
news:8nnnu6t32aig250q2um1e3h0ikrhi9usmj@4ax.com...

On Sun, 05 Jun 2011 13:39:49 -0500, Jim Yanik <jyanik@abuse.gov
wrote:

"friends and customers"; who else would they come from??? ;-)
[dry humor attempt]

Referrals and responders to advertising, which are not friends and not
yet customers. If I had to rely solely on friends and customers, I
would be otto business long ago.

I used to use my Makita drill-driver to unscrew cases when I worked at
Tektronix.it has too much torque for driving them back in.

Yep. That's why I won't use them. Back when I was younger and
dumber, I would use various electric screwdrivers for both removing
and replacing screws. After stripping out a few cases, I decided that
they were basically a bad idea. While using an ordinary screwdriver
is slower, it gives me time to inspect the device and look for
anomalies.

I also have a B&D VersaPack 3.6V screwdriver,but the battery packs have
gone dead. (I found that they can be dismantled by cutting the back end
off
with a Dremel cutoff disc,and the plastic retainer will hold the new cells
in,but haven't bought new cells to try yet.)

In the past, I would just borrow one from the neighboring office if I
needed one. I recently bought a cheapo screwdriver at Sears. The
inspiration was provided by failing to hop the curb on my bicycle. My
left wrist took the shock about 3 weeks ago. It still hurts. I'll
probably hide the electric screwdriver after the wrist recovers.

At 3.6V, you might see what happens when you try to run the screw
driver with a Li-Ion cell phone battery. An 18650 or 123A cell might
also fit. For charging, just stuff it into a cell phone, or buy a
universal Li-Ion charger. Oh, it's already been done:
http://www.instructables.com/id/Black-amp-Decker-Versapak-upgrade-to-Li-ion/



--
Jeff Liebermann jeffl@cruzio.com

I'm really surprised at the comments regarding electric screwdrivers. Some
years back, I had a short-term contract job where around 1000 Philips LCD TV
sets had to have their speakers replaced for some unspecified reason (parts
were a Philips free-issue). In order to speed the job up, I bought a really
bog-standard cheap as chips no-name drill / driver from my local DIY shed.
Comes in a carry case with about a hundred Chinese drill and screwdriver
bits. I'm sure you know the sort of thing. It has 11 torque settings plus a
no-clutch drilling setting. It carried out the Philips job without
complaint, and I have continued to use it for absolutely everything that I
do from the smallest hi-fi units that I have in for repair, right up to
major project woodwork such as building decks, and the counter I have just
been building for the wife's latest venture. On the lowest torque setting,
you can almost stop it with a finger, and I have never had the slightest
issue with it stripping any case or screw threads, on any item I have ever
used it on. I replaced its batteries ( 10 x C size NiCds) a couple of months
ago, for the second time. These came from some NOS stripper packs that were
being advertised in a trade mag a few years back. I replaced them the first
time probably four years ago, and the second pack that I had, has sat under
the bench in a box in its plastic bag since then. When I dug them out a few
weeks back to replace the first replacement set, which were on their last
legs again, they were pretty flat. I thought that sitting there undisturbed
for four years, might have twatted them, but they charged just fine in a
couple of hours, and are now giving sterling service. I am back to charging
them about once a week for the general service work that the driver does
daily, and a bit more often when it is being asked to do high torque stuff
like driving unpiloted screws into wood.

Arfa

 

[Jim Yanik]

"Arfa Daily" <arfa.daily@ntlworld.com> wrote in
news:38VGp.1458$f03.549@newsfe25.ams2:

"Jeff Liebermann" <jeffl@cruzio.com> wrote in message
news:8nnnu6t32aig250q2um1e3h0ikrhi9usmj@4ax.com...
On Sun, 05 Jun 2011 13:39:49 -0500, Jim Yanik <jyanik@abuse.gov
wrote:

"friends and customers"; who else would they come from??? ;-)
[dry humor attempt]

Referrals and responders to advertising, which are not friends and
not yet customers. If I had to rely solely on friends and customers,
I would be otto business long ago.

I used to use my Makita drill-driver to unscrew cases when I worked
at Tektronix.it has too much torque for driving them back in.

Yep. That's why I won't use them. Back when I was younger and
dumber, I would use various electric screwdrivers for both removing
and replacing screws. After stripping out a few cases, I decided
that they were basically a bad idea. While using an ordinary
screwdriver is slower, it gives me time to inspect the device and
look for anomalies.

I also have a B&D VersaPack 3.6V screwdriver,but the battery packs
have gone dead. (I found that they can be dismantled by cutting the
back end off
with a Dremel cutoff disc,and the plastic retainer will hold the new
cells in,but haven't bought new cells to try yet.)

In the past, I would just borrow one from the neighboring office if I
needed one. I recently bought a cheapo screwdriver at Sears. The
inspiration was provided by failing to hop the curb on my bicycle.
My left wrist took the shock about 3 weeks ago. It still hurts.
I'll probably hide the electric screwdriver after the wrist recovers.

At 3.6V, you might see what happens when you try to run the screw
driver with a Li-Ion cell phone battery. An 18650 or 123A cell might
also fit. For charging, just stuff it into a cell phone, or buy a
universal Li-Ion charger. Oh, it's already been done:
http://www.instructables.com/id/Black-amp-Decker-Versapak-upgrade-to-
Li-ion/



--
Jeff Liebermann jeffl@cruzio.com


I'm really surprised at the comments regarding electric screwdrivers.
Some years back, I had a short-term contract job where around 1000
Philips LCD TV sets had to have their speakers replaced for some
unspecified reason (parts were a Philips free-issue). In order to
speed the job up, I bought a really bog-standard cheap as chips
no-name drill / driver from my local DIY shed. Comes in a carry case
with about a hundred Chinese drill and screwdriver bits. I'm sure you
know the sort of thing. It has 11 torque settings plus a no-clutch
drilling setting. It carried out the Philips job without complaint,
and I have continued to use it for absolutely everything that I do
from the smallest hi-fi units that I have in for repair, right up to
major project woodwork such as building decks, and the counter I have
just been building for the wife's latest venture. On the lowest torque
setting, you can almost stop it with a finger, and I have never had
the slightest issue with it stripping any case or screw threads, on
any item I have ever used it on. I replaced its batteries ( 10 x C
size NiCds) a couple of months ago, for the second time. These came
from some NOS stripper packs that were being advertised in a trade mag
a few years back. I replaced them the first time probably four years
ago, and the second pack that I had, has sat under the bench in a box
in its plastic bag since then. When I dug them out a few weeks back to
replace the first replacement set, which were on their last legs
again, they were pretty flat. I thought that sitting there undisturbed
for four years, might have twatted them, but they charged just fine in
a couple of hours, and are now giving sterling service. I am back to
charging them about once a week for the general service work that the
driver does daily, and a bit more often when it is being asked to do
high torque stuff like driving unpiloted screws into wood.

Arfa

I've found that DealExtreme has a Li-ion charger for 18650 cells for <$8
USD postpaid,and 2 packs of 18650 2500mAH cells for about the same. One
18650 cell fits easily in the Versapak casing.
the original Versapak batteries were less than half that mAH capacity,so
I'm going to order a set and see what I can do. I'll adapt the Li-ion
charger to work with the original Versapak charger housing.

The B&D screwdriver was decent at screwing electronic stuff,if a bit slow
for really long screws.

My thanks again to Jeff L. !!


--
Jim Yanik
jyanik
at
localnet
dot com

 

[Jeff Liebermann]

On Mon, 6 Jun 2011 01:25:33 +0100, "Arfa Daily"
<arfa.daily@ntlworld.com> wrote:

I'm really surprised at the comments regarding electric screwdrivers.

Well, I was being subtle. I believe electric screwdrivers do more
damage than good. They're quite good for removing screws (assuming
the head isn't stripped out). They're also good for STARTING screws.
Just don't try to tighten screws.

The clutch setting needs to be adjusted individually for each screw
size and type. If you have a device that has all the same screws,
then you can probably succeed with using an electric. However, the
eclectic mix of odd heads, threads, and lengths, found in the stuff I
work on, makes the clutch setting tricky and risky, especially with
small screws.

Perhaps an example or three will help. Last weekend, a former
customer and now friend (i.e. he doesn't pay me), needed some help
putting a Toyota Tacoma pickup truck back together. The rear seat was
held on with nylon inserts and self-stripping screws. I knew trouble
when I saw it, so I hid the Harbor Freight cheap driver/screwdriver in
the garage. When I wasn't looking, he digs it back out, sets the
clutch at the lowest setting, and proceeds to strip out 4 nylon
inserts before I could stop him. I had to go to the hardware store,
buy some plastic drywall anchors, pound them into the nylon inserts,
and then the screws held.

A few years ago, I tried to fix a PC, where literally all the threads
on the chassis, power supply, and case were stripped out. The owners
son had tried to fix it, stripped out everything, and gave it back to
his father without telling him. I had to replace the case and pound
out the threads on the power supply.

I have a photo somewhere showing a motherboard held in with the usual
collection of Philips screws. However, all the driver slots had been
reamed into a useless conical shape with an electric screw driver. I
couldn't get to the screw heads to slot them with a Dremel cutoff
disk, so I used abrasive grit and a tiny screw extractor to remove the
screws.

Some
years back, I had a short-term contract job where around 1000 Philips LCD TV
sets had to have their speakers replaced for some unspecified reason (parts
were a Philips free-issue).

If the screws were all the same, it's possible to set the clutch
properly. Such repetitious jobs is where electric and pneumatic
screwdrivers work very well, especially if all the screws are the
same.

... and I have continued to use it for absolutely everything that I
do from the smallest hi-fi units that I have in for repair,

You haven't stripped out any screw heads or threads? Impressive. I
wasn't so lucky so I stopped using power screwdrivers.

... I am back to charging
them about once a week for the general service work that the driver does
daily, and a bit more often when it is being asked to do high torque stuff
like driving unpiloted screws into wood.

Carpentry and construction are appropriate uses for such a
driver/drill/screwdriver. Small screws in electronic equipment is
not. I have several cordless screwdrivers that use for home repair.
They're handy but tend to weigh too much. The new Li-Ion drivers are
much lighter, but also expensive. For bench work, I still use power
tools with AC cords (some of which I've been using for 30+ years).



--
Jeff Liebermann jeffl@cruzio.com
150 Felker St #D http://www.LearnByDestroying.com
Santa Cruz CA 95060 http://802.11junk.com
Skype: JeffLiebermann AE6KS 831-336-2558

 

[Arfa Daily]

"Jeff Liebermann" <jeffl@cruzio.com> wrote in message
news:a4eou6t6l58p8togtd484ob88rbml9dt7j@4ax.com...

On Mon, 6 Jun 2011 01:25:33 +0100, "Arfa Daily"
arfa.daily@ntlworld.com> wrote:

I'm really surprised at the comments regarding electric screwdrivers.

Well, I was being subtle. I believe electric screwdrivers do more
damage than good. They're quite good for removing screws (assuming
the head isn't stripped out). They're also good for STARTING screws.
Just don't try to tighten screws.

The clutch setting needs to be adjusted individually for each screw
size and type. If you have a device that has all the same screws,
then you can probably succeed with using an electric. However, the
eclectic mix of odd heads, threads, and lengths, found in the stuff I
work on, makes the clutch setting tricky and risky, especially with
small screws.

Perhaps an example or three will help. Last weekend, a former
customer and now friend (i.e. he doesn't pay me), needed some help
putting a Toyota Tacoma pickup truck back together. The rear seat was
held on with nylon inserts and self-stripping screws. I knew trouble
when I saw it, so I hid the Harbor Freight cheap driver/screwdriver in
the garage. When I wasn't looking, he digs it back out, sets the
clutch at the lowest setting, and proceeds to strip out 4 nylon
inserts before I could stop him. I had to go to the hardware store,
buy some plastic drywall anchors, pound them into the nylon inserts,
and then the screws held.

A few years ago, I tried to fix a PC, where literally all the threads
on the chassis, power supply, and case were stripped out. The owners
son had tried to fix it, stripped out everything, and gave it back to
his father without telling him. I had to replace the case and pound
out the threads on the power supply.

I have a photo somewhere showing a motherboard held in with the usual
collection of Philips screws. However, all the driver slots had been
reamed into a useless conical shape with an electric screw driver. I
couldn't get to the screw heads to slot them with a Dremel cutoff
disk, so I used abrasive grit and a tiny screw extractor to remove the
screws.

Some
years back, I had a short-term contract job where around 1000 Philips LCD
TV
sets had to have their speakers replaced for some unspecified reason
(parts
were a Philips free-issue).

If the screws were all the same, it's possible to set the clutch
properly. Such repetitious jobs is where electric and pneumatic
screwdrivers work very well, especially if all the screws are the
same.

... and I have continued to use it for absolutely everything that I
do from the smallest hi-fi units that I have in for repair,

You haven't stripped out any screw heads or threads? Impressive. I
wasn't so lucky so I stopped using power screwdrivers.

... I am back to charging
them about once a week for the general service work that the driver does
daily, and a bit more often when it is being asked to do high torque stuff
like driving unpiloted screws into wood.

Carpentry and construction are appropriate uses for such a
driver/drill/screwdriver. Small screws in electronic equipment is
not. I have several cordless screwdrivers that use for home repair.
They're handy but tend to weigh too much. The new Li-Ion drivers are
much lighter, but also expensive. For bench work, I still use power
tools with AC cords (some of which I've been using for 30+ years).



--
Jeff Liebermann jeffl@cruzio.com

Hmmm. I must admit that it is the only cordless electric screwdriver that
I've ever used. It has given such good service - apart from the two battery
changes - that I have never had cause to use any other. It's one of those
real 'old friend' tools that's always by your side. Perhaps, not having
experience of other similar products, I've just been incredibly lucky with
the versatility of this one.

Of course, if I'm absolutely honest, for sure I have stripped the odd thread
with it, but that has been down to my stupidity where I've forgotten to turn
the mechanical torque setting down before driving, not because it has
excessive driving torque per se. Which brings me to another thought. As well
as the mechanical slipping clutch torque control, it also has electronic
torque control in that it has a very good trigger based PWM speed control in
it. Perhaps it is the combination of these two factors, together with using
appropriately sized and typed - so Philips rather than Pozi where needed,
for instance - driver bits that's kept me out of trouble ...

As to changing the tips, for the most part I've found that just two double
ended ones - so four types / sizes altogether - do for the vast majority of
items that I come across. So that's one bit in the chuck, and the other in
the storage clip on the top. And the chuck is a keyless hand type, so very
quick for bit changing, even when you are shooting rapidly between drill bit
sizes, as I have been on the latest woodworking project. Speaking of which,
I've now changed exclusively to Torx headed woodscrews with self-cutting
threads (they have a tiny 'circular saw' in the lower threads, and
self-cutting counter-sinking flutes under the heads. They are a tad more
expensive than 'conventional' ones, but they are brilliant for use with an
electric screwdriver, and can even be screwed almost effortlessly by hand
into soft woods, without any kind of pilot hole at all. Quite remarkable
advance in fixing technology. And best of all, you can drive them at a
serious angle, where space is limited to get your driver in

Arfa

 

[Jim Yanik]

Jeff Liebermann <jeffl@cruzio.com> wrote in
news:a4eou6t6l58p8togtd484ob88rbml9dt7j@4ax.com:

On Mon, 6 Jun 2011 01:25:33 +0100, "Arfa Daily"
arfa.daily@ntlworld.com> wrote:

I'm really surprised at the comments regarding electric screwdrivers.

Well, I was being subtle. I believe electric screwdrivers do more
damage than good. They're quite good for removing screws (assuming
the head isn't stripped out). They're also good for STARTING screws.
Just don't try to tighten screws.

The clutch setting needs to be adjusted individually for each screw
size and type. If you have a device that has all the same screws,
then you can probably succeed with using an electric. However, the
eclectic mix of odd heads, threads, and lengths, found in the stuff I
work on, makes the clutch setting tricky and risky, especially with
small screws.

Perhaps an example or three will help. Last weekend, a former
customer and now friend (i.e. he doesn't pay me), needed some help
putting a Toyota Tacoma pickup truck back together. The rear seat was
held on with nylon inserts and self-stripping screws. I knew trouble
when I saw it, so I hid the Harbor Freight cheap driver/screwdriver in
the garage. When I wasn't looking, he digs it back out, sets the
clutch at the lowest setting, and proceeds to strip out 4 nylon
inserts before I could stop him. I had to go to the hardware store,
buy some plastic drywall anchors, pound them into the nylon inserts,
and then the screws held.

A few years ago, I tried to fix a PC, where literally all the threads
on the chassis, power supply, and case were stripped out. The owners
son had tried to fix it, stripped out everything, and gave it back to
his father without telling him. I had to replace the case and pound
out the threads on the power supply.

I have a photo somewhere showing a motherboard held in with the usual
collection of Philips screws. However, all the driver slots had been
reamed into a useless conical shape with an electric screw driver. I
couldn't get to the screw heads to slot them with a Dremel cutoff
disk, so I used abrasive grit and a tiny screw extractor to remove the
screws.

Some
years back, I had a short-term contract job where around 1000 Philips
LCD TV sets had to have their speakers replaced for some unspecified
reason (parts were a Philips free-issue).

If the screws were all the same, it's possible to set the clutch
properly. Such repetitious jobs is where electric and pneumatic
screwdrivers work very well, especially if all the screws are the
same.

... and I have continued to use it for absolutely everything that I
do from the smallest hi-fi units that I have in for repair,

You haven't stripped out any screw heads or threads? Impressive. I
wasn't so lucky so I stopped using power screwdrivers.

... I am back to charging
them about once a week for the general service work that the driver
does daily, and a bit more often when it is being asked to do high
torque stuff like driving unpiloted screws into wood.

Carpentry and construction are appropriate uses for such a
driver/drill/screwdriver. Small screws in electronic equipment is
not. I have several cordless screwdrivers that use for home repair.
They're handy but tend to weigh too much. The new Li-Ion drivers are
much lighter, but also expensive. For bench work, I still use power
tools with AC cords (some of which I've been using for 30+ years).

A major problem is that neither Phillips or slotted screws were made for
power driving. camout is a big problem. Pozidrive was created to avoid
that,but it never rally took hold. Then came Torx,and that's become more
prevalent,but Philips is still the primary screwhead in use.

By "small screws",are you referring to screws smaller than 6-32 or similar?
4-40 is a bit small for power driving,but my B&D screwdriver worked OK for
them. a good torque clutch is a necessity.

--
Jim Yanik
jyanik
at
localnet
dot com