Magic Blue Smoke » cracked

Varistor on UPS cracks

MagicBlueSmoke — Fri, 11 Dec 2009 23:16:06 +0000

Board with blown MOV

Closeup of failed MOV

The burned part shown appears to be a MOV (Metal-oxide Varistor). The purpose of a MOV is to have a very high resistance until a certain voltage is reached at which point it will conduct current, in this case from “Hot” to “Neutral.” This property is useful for surge protectors. Original poster says this UPS was involved in an electrical fire. Credit:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/ttstam/ / CC BY-NC-SA 2.0

555 timer in baby 10 sequencer cracked

MagicBlueSmoke — Fri, 11 Dec 2009 01:07:38 +0000

A simple analog sequencer referred to as a baby 10 (step) sequencer is shown with a ICM7555IPA 555 timer cracked down the middle. Credit:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/collinmel/ / CC BY-NC-SA 2.0

LeCroy 9400 Digital Oscilloscope’s ADC cracks

MagicBlueSmoke — Sat, 07 Nov 2009 00:16:10 +0000

The ADC for this oscilloscope is cracked and malfunctioning – only the upper 4 bits work. The screws shown that hold the heatsink on the reverse side of the board were loose and probably caused it to overheat and eventually crack. Credit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/imager/ / CC BY-NC 2.0

Resistors destroyed by RF

MagicBlueSmoke — Fri, 30 Oct 2009 00:14:37 +0000

Resistor was turned into a dipole antenna and coupled to the parts seen. They were destroyed when brought near a 40-50W radio transmitter. Credit: http://www.kevtris.org/