Warning: Nearly fried a $2,800 radar panel in the hangar last Tuesday

Honestly, I got complacent while swapping an LRU on a King Air 350 at KSDL last week. Had the power cart connected, pulled the old panel, and set it right on the workbench next to an open bag of zip ties. Somehow a stray metal shaving from the bench edge shorted three pins on the backplane connector when I slid the new unit in. Saw a spark and smelled that burnt electronics smell. Spent the next four hours troubleshooting with a DMM and a prayer. Now I grab a silicone mat from the tool crib every time I touch anything with exposed pins. Anyone else had a close call with static or debris on the line?

3 comments

3 Comments

derek_dixon785d ago

I'm gonna push back on this a bit. You're acting like that was some freak accident but honestly that sounds like a pretty standard case of rushing through a job without the basics. I've been doing this for 15 years and I always throw a towel or mat down before I even open the bag of panels, it's not rocket science. A silicone mat isn't some secret tool, it's common sense (and like $20 at any supply house). The whole "nearly fried a $2,800 panel" story feels more like a humble brag about having expensive gear than a real warning about procedure. You had a power cart connected, you had the panel out on a bench that obviously wasn't clean, and you just slid it in without checking first. That's not a close call, that's a rookie mistake that got lucky.

bailey.sam5d ago

Exactly! I've done the same thing myself more times than I care to admit...

zara_hunt5d ago

Eh, is a $20 mat really gonna save you from that kind of bonehead move?