Random Helpful Gizmos Thread - Share Yours!

Not on the same level as the tools already posted in this thread, but I used to *really* struggle applying waterslide decals and getting the bubbles out before I discovered silicone makeup brushes

Seems like a better version of the little rubber squeegee that comes with some phone screen protectors…
 
JIS screwdrivers.

You can almost certainly get the job done with a Philips, but they really do fit much better in the Japanese standard screws with the little dots on the heads. Really appreciating them the last few days working on some old Teac stuff.

They’re not magnetic, they just fit the screws tightly enough that they can carry a screw on the tip.

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Can’t tell you how many cheap entry level Japanese guitars from the 70s and 80s I’ve seen with all of the screws buggered up due to liberal use of Phillips drivers on JIS screws. Too bad I didn’t know about these until now! All these years I blamed it on shoddy hardware and inept “techs”.
 
Although expensive for what it is, that Pedal Port is on my wish list. Looks incredibly helpful.

Did you 3D print that lead bender too? Man, I gotta figure out which of my friends has 3D printing capabilities - these are rad!
I bought the bender- it’s actually injection molded and not 3d printed so it’s a bit better quality. Maybe $12 shipped from an outfit in Canada.

Here it’s:

 
What is that for?!?
Bending component leads at "perfect" angles of the dangles and best-bent degrees, as in 90º.



I bought one that's too wide for most PCB use, and just bend my resistors by hand still.

Probably better for those vero-junkies than those that prefer PCBs.



[EDIT: I should've mentioned that there ARE lead-bender jigs that work for 1/4-watt and standard PCB spacing we use in our pedals, the correct size jigs are out there if you dig.]
 
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I bought one that's too wide for most PCB use, and just bend my resistors by hand still.
I, too, was bummed when I realized that these benders don't bend to 7.62mm spacing for 1/4W resistors.

I still bend most things by hand, but with the help of a handy little ruler. It's about 1/32" - 1/16" thick and when you press the body of a regular 1/4W resistor flush to the face of the ruler and use the edge as a break over for 90° angles, it fits quite nicely on 7.62mm pin spacing.
 
I, too, was bummed when I realized that these benders don't bend to 7.62mm spacing for 1/4W resistors.

I still bend most things by hand, but with the help of a handy little ruler. It's about 1/32" - 1/16" thick and when you press the body of a regular 1/4W resistor flush to the face of the ruler and use the edge as a break over for 90° angles, it fits quite nicely on 7.62mm pin spacing.
I could probably laser cut something like that…
 
Bending component leads at "perfect" angles of the dangles and best-bent degrees, as in 90º.
For less fragile things like caps and resistors I don't bother and just do it by hand, but it's handy for glass package diodes. Could I do it with a fingernail to the lead so I'm not using the glass as a fulcrum? sure. Is one of those things easier? much. ;)

As far as spacing, YMMV. I haven't had issues with the one I printed, but it's not mine and I don't make money, FWIW. It helps with small things like 1/8W and that same pkg size resistors in a pinch, as well as the smaller 914-sized diodes. Have some funky ones that came from who-knows-where, and they fit. Again, YMMV. It's like 25c worth of PLA filament :P
 
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