So I had - past tense - one of those cheap but incredibly useful and surprisingly capable MCU-based component testers. You know the ones - they cost about twenty bucks, can identify virtually any 2- or 3-terminal device you stick in their (usually ZIF) socket, as well as telling you things like which leads are gate/source/drain, base/collector/emitter, anode/cathode, or whatever else you might want to know about a lot of electronic components.

Absent-mindedly put an electrolytic capacitor into it tonight without discharging it. Had about 22 volts in it... hence, one ex-tester. I let the magic smoke out, without actually releasing any smoke or smell.

Oops.

#electronics #hobby #MagicSmoke #oops #ComponentTester #LCR #LCRMeter #component #transistor

Using DuPont connectors in the ZIF socket made it wear out a bit. The first three positions don't grip as tightly as they should. So I modified my component tester. Now it has a three pin DuPont socket at the top. I like how it looks.
I should've done it from the beginning.
#soldering #hardwaremodding #electronics #componenttester #testequipment #hardwarehacking