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I’ll add on to @Feral Feline; after you’ve clipped off those wires, you may have more luck with getting rid of the blob, since there aren’t as many heat sinks (aka wires) stuck to it. Before you buy a new tip, those little tins of tip cleaner paste really work well.

If you can put a non-cushioned pad under the paper in your sander, it will sand the high points first, getting you a flatter surface. Most sanders have rubbery pads that you attach the paper to, and that sponginess will also press down on lower spots, so that you have to sand through more...

The second "op amp" is part of the power supply, not in the audio stream. It's a "voltage doubler"—I think in this case it's used so that there is a 27V differential between rails—far more swing than you'd get with 9V. And the op amp that is in the circuit is one that really appreciates more...

Absolutely wet sand. And put the sandpaper on a flat surface, and move the pedal over it, rather than the other way around. If you’ve got the paper range, I’d do 180 for a few wipes, then 240 and finish with 400, unless the paper is loading with paint sludge (which the water should keep at bay)...

I’m old enough to remember when “Christmas Lawn Decoration” meant there was a handy Dad with a saber saw, and enough extra time to design (or scale up the annual Popular Mechanics designs), get plywood, etc. What surprised me is that this is in my general neighborhood, on a street I routinely...

From the component side of the circuit board, the signal comes in at the left and goes out on the right. Of course, I tend to overcomplicate things!

There may be a standard, but I’m not aware of it. I think I’ve always inserted the pieces based on signal flow, but I’m pretty sure I do it left to right on the breadboard. Unless there is a standard (which could have the benefit of easier understanding when posting questions with photos) I...

Yup! If I like a pedal enough, I make a template sheet for it, and it goes in my binder. I really like seeing what I liked at some prior point, etc., and with all the notes in one place, it’s easy to find. I keep journals about guitar maintenance and string preferences, and about amp...

I’ve had both Hakko and Pace elements just give up the ghost for no apparent reasons. Like @Robert just said though, the element and the tip exterior are two separate issues. Those little round tins of tip saver really work for badly treated tips.

I don’t use my Home Brew Electronics Three Hound Chorus on my board anymore, (it is a bit noisy, and really cuts highs quite a bit)—but it comes out when I want something really dreamy and thick. I’m very pleased with the Ceasar (which replaced it on my board). Much quieter, and while it just...

I know there are several far more tube amp experienced builders on this forum, and am trying to figure out "what went wrong." I'm using an Allen Encore, which is loosely based on a Vibrolux Reverb. (I built this from a kit about 4 years ago, and it's worked great, more than great!, since day...

This is one familiar brand. Probably a life time supply for a home shop… No odor, doesn’t get all over everything.

There are specific cutting fluids for aluminum. Over the years, I began to drift more towards cutting waxes, especially when tapping threads. Very easy to use, you just stab the cutting end into the tub, and it migrates less than most liquids. With aluminum, almost any lubricant will also work...

Germanium is really temp sensitive. Ideally, you should measure at whatever the “standard inside the effect box’es” temperature is. Not easy, especially if you play out. I always use tweezers to hold them while I attach the little testing clips on, which seems like a reasonable compromise...

Really lovely pedal design, and well executed!

Well, there’s “going south,” and there’s “circle jerk paranoia…”

Just lovely! Even the bottom!

Well, I’ve lost almost all of my hair, and can’t blame any treatments…

I can’t give you any useful rules, but if a circuit doesn’t have 100n bypass caps for each opamp, I tend to throw them on the backside, leaving the socket legs longer on those two pins. Typically, you want them as close as possible to the device.

I’ve missed your adventures in guitar modding! Glad you’ve got days with “better” hours in them—hopefully they continue to increase. Great Strat trio.