what scares you?

[Chuck H]

Electrocution. Working with AC power tools oudtoors. I got buzzed by AC hard enough to contract both arms in a state of tonus and knock me off of a ladder while I was hanging gutters. The whole time I knew exactly what was happening and there was nothing I could do to stop it.

Need an unlike tab. I had something similar happen with a random orbital sander. My grip in some positions extended over the cooling vents. I was on an aluminum ladder with it's feet in a koi pond. So... With my non sanding hand holding the ladder I made a decent ground. I got a jolt from arcs in the motor near the vents.

[Jazz P Bass]

I had a Behringer amp that 'popped' one of the main capacitors while testing.

It shot steam straight up & leveled off at the ceiling.

My first thought was "cool".

My second thought was "Wait, I better turn it off".

[olddawg]

Selenium rectifiers... not big on roaches either... mouse droppings kind of suck.. we have Hunta Virus around here.

[The Dude]

That's funny. I was going to mention selenium rectifiers after I saw Pedro's picture in post #9. If you've ever encountered a bad selenium rectifier, it's a smell you won't soon forget.

[Enzo]

It sure is. About as close as I can come is burning rotten cabbage. I can go without smelling it for 40 years and still instantly recognize it. I did.

[The Dude]

I've never smelled burning rotten cabbage (I don't think?), so I'll have to take your word for it.

I have opened up a "mystery tub" in the fridge before, though. You know those tubs that get forgotten in the back of the fridge for a while? Then a couple months later you open it to see what it is and it's unrecognizable furry green slimy delight. You can't get the lid back on quick enough.

Some of those can get close to a bad selenium rectifier, but the smell doesn't last nearly as long. A bad selenium rectifier can stink up your shop for days.

[Chuck H]

I've never smelled burning rotten cabbage (I don't think?), so I'll have to take your word for it.

I have opened up a "mystery tub" in the fridge before, though. You know those tubs that get forgotten in the back of the fridge for a while? Then a couple months later you open it to see what it is and it's unrecognizable furry green slimy delight. You can't get the lid back on quick enough.

Some of those can get close to a bad selenium rectifier, but the smell doesn't last nearly as long. A bad selenium rectifier can stink up your shop for days.

I've heard some guys talk about the sheer awful stink of selenium rectifiers here on man occasions. "I" haven't had that experience. In fact I fully intend to avoid it based on what I've read. I do have an old amp with a selenium rectifier that I've never fired up because I fully intend to replace that rectifier and the filters before I even start on that one. If there's any satisfaction in your sufferance, know that some who have payed attention won't experience your trauma based on your sage advice

[bob p]

That selenium rectifier refrigerator story reminds me of a college prank. I lived in a quadrangle where the middle building was a high rise that had elevators. I remember that during my last year in the quad there was a horrible stench in one of the elevators. I mean, it reeked with a horrible stench that would never go away. It was just an awful, pungent stench that nobody could identify. It was a huge problem. People complained and the management kept having the elevator cleaned over and over again but there was nothing they could do to get rid of the stench. It just kept on stinking no matter what they did. It was still there when we graduated.

Years later at a college reunion somebody mentioned how bad that elevator stench was. Then someone started laughing, and confessed he was the one responsible. He bought a piece of Limburger cheese at the local 7-11 and smeared it across the fluorescent light tube inside of the elevator's lightbox. The heat from the lamp caused that cheese aroma to slowly vaporize and leech out into the elevator. I guess nobody ever thought to change the light bulbs when they were cleaning out that elevator, and that prank was the gift that kept on giving until the lamp finally burned out and had to be changed.

I had never smelled Limburger cheese prior to that, and I've never smelled it since then, but if I ever smell Limburger cheese again I know I'll recognize it. Memories of smells can last a lifetime.

[TimmyP1955]

Rosie O'Donnell scares me - that's one vile, crazy woman. I have a healthy fear of electrical shock as well.

[Enzo]

Let's leave Rosie down in the politics section, shall we?

[bob p]

Let's just throw Rosie out altogether.

[Chuck H]

Let's just throw Rosie out altogether.

Ugliest guy I've ever seen.

[bob p]

He made a horrible Betty Rubble:



Now THAT scares me.

[drewl]

How about my boss slamming two pieces of wood together behind my back as I was about to discharge CRT anode of about 20kv?

[Enzo]

One of the guys from the sales floor coming in and looking over my shoulder, puts his finger on a part in an amp and asks "What is this?" And I get to say, "550 volts, one eighth of an inch from your finger."