From Newsgroup: sci.electronics.repair

A 3K9 1/4 watt resistor measures short cct.

Usual question:

Was it the last part de-soldered from the board?

It wasn't just the last, it was the last that could possibly
BE desoldered from the faulty node.

I save these little miracles for some future gremlin exploit.
Wonder, now, if that day will ever come . . . .

RL
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From Newsgroup: sci.electronics.repair

On Sat, 08 Aug 2026 15:41:49 -0400, legg <legg@nospam.magma.ca> wrote:

A 3K9 1/4 watt resistor measures short cct.

Usual question:

Was it the last part de-soldered from the board?

It wasn't just the last, it was the last that could possibly
BE desoldered from the faulty node.

I save these little miracles for some future gremlin exploit.
Wonder, now, if that day will ever come . . . .

RL

Shorted MLCC (multi-layer ceramic capacitors) are more fun. If
overheated, they tend to short circuit. If unevenly heated, they
crack and become either an open, short or intermittent circuit. If DC
is applied, they become a varactor. If I yell at the PCB, it becomes
a microphone.

I don't believe in miracles, but I won't complain when a miracle
solves my problem.

In my limited experience, SMD resistors can either become a short or
an open circuit, depending on the phase of the moon (waxing or
waning).
--
Jeff Liebermann jeffl@cruzio.com
PO Box 272 http://www.LearnByDestroying.com
Ben Lomond CA 95005-0272 AE6KS 831-336-2558

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From Newsgroup: sci.electronics.repair

On Sat, 08 Aug 2026 15:45:02 -0700, Jeff Liebermann <jeffl@cruzio.com>
wrote:

On Sat, 08 Aug 2026 15:41:49 -0400, legg <legg@nospam.magma.ca> wrote:

A 3K9 1/4 watt resistor measures short cct.

Usual question:

Was it the last part de-soldered from the board?

It wasn't just the last, it was the last that could possibly
BE desoldered from the faulty node.

I save these little miracles for some future gremlin exploit.
Wonder, now, if that day will ever come . . . .

RL

Shorted MLCC (multi-layer ceramic capacitors) are more fun. If
overheated, they tend to short circuit. If unevenly heated, they
crack and become either an open, short or intermittent circuit. If DC
is applied, they become a varactor. If I yell at the PCB, it becomes
a microphone.

I don't believe in miracles, but I won't complain when a miracle
solves my problem.

In my limited experience, SMD resistors can either become a short or
an open circuit, depending on the phase of the moon (waxing or
waning).

Yeah, but an AXIAL 3K9 1/4W?

I don't know how far down a troubleshooting tree that falls.

I'm pretty sure it doesn't even show up, on mine.

RL
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From Newsgroup: sci.electronics.repair

On Sun, 09 Aug 2026 11:23:30 -0400, legg <legg@nospam.magma.ca> wrote:

On Sat, 08 Aug 2026 15:45:02 -0700, Jeff Liebermann <jeffl@cruzio.com>
wrote:

On Sat, 08 Aug 2026 15:41:49 -0400, legg <legg@nospam.magma.ca> wrote:

A 3K9 1/4 watt resistor measures short cct.

Usual question:

Was it the last part de-soldered from the board?

It wasn't just the last, it was the last that could possibly
BE desoldered from the faulty node.

I save these little miracles for some future gremlin exploit.
Wonder, now, if that day will ever come . . . .

RL

Shorted MLCC (multi-layer ceramic capacitors) are more fun. If
overheated, they tend to short circuit. If unevenly heated, they
crack and become either an open, short or intermittent circuit. If DC
is applied, they become a varactor. If I yell at the PCB, it becomes
a microphone.

I don't believe in miracles, but I won't complain when a miracle
solves my problem.

In my limited experience, SMD resistors can either become a short or
an open circuit, depending on the phase of the moon (waxing or
waning).

Yeah, but an AXIAL 3K9 1/4W?

I don't know how far down a troubleshooting tree that falls.

I'm pretty sure it doesn't even show up, on mine.

RL

I was a tech for the largest consumer electronics chain in the U.S and
then at high end audio video store. Next a maintenance engineer in a television studio. All together, 46 years servicing various
electronics devices and I never saw a shorted axial resistor.
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From Newsgroup: sci.electronics.repair

On Sun, 09 Aug 2026 11:23:30 -0400, legg <legg@nospam.magma.ca> wrote:

On Sat, 08 Aug 2026 15:45:02 -0700, Jeff Liebermann <jeffl@cruzio.com>
wrote:

On Sat, 08 Aug 2026 15:41:49 -0400, legg <legg@nospam.magma.ca> wrote:

A 3K9 1/4 watt resistor measures short cct.

Usual question:

Was it the last part de-soldered from the board?

It wasn't just the last, it was the last that could possibly
BE desoldered from the faulty node.

I save these little miracles for some future gremlin exploit.
Wonder, now, if that day will ever come . . . .

RL

Shorted MLCC (multi-layer ceramic capacitors) are more fun. If
overheated, they tend to short circuit. If unevenly heated, they
crack and become either an open, short or intermittent circuit. If DC
is applied, they become a varactor. If I yell at the PCB, it becomes
a microphone.

I don't believe in miracles, but I won't complain when a miracle
solves my problem.

In my limited experience, SMD resistors can either become a short or
an open circuit, depending on the phase of the moon (waxing or
waning).

Yeah, but an AXIAL 3K9 1/4W?

Carbon film? Carbon comp? Metal film? Wirewound?
Metal oxide? 2H pencil? etc

I've seen really strange resistor failures, but none that I can recall
were shorted. Usually, something causes the resistor to become hot
which eventually produces an open circuit. Very rare, methinks. The
only "shorts" I've seen were with mismarked (color coded) resistors.

I don't know how far down a troubleshooting tree that falls.

I perform troubleshooting by shooting the guy who's giving me trouble.
Hanging him from a tree might work, but having him fall from a great
height might be equally effective. How far or how high? I don't
know.

I'm pretty sure it doesn't even show up, on mine.

Do you really have a hanging (or falling) tree? Very convenient for
disposing of troublesome individuals.

RL

--
Jeff Liebermann jeffl@cruzio.com
PO Box 272 http://www.LearnByDestroying.com
Ben Lomond CA 95005-0272 AE6KS 831-336-2558

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From Newsgroup: sci.electronics.repair

On 8/9/26 17:23, legg wrote:

On Sat, 08 Aug 2026 15:45:02 -0700, Jeff Liebermann <jeffl@cruzio.com>
wrote:

On Sat, 08 Aug 2026 15:41:49 -0400, legg <legg@nospam.magma.ca> wrote:

A 3K9 1/4 watt resistor measures short cct.

Usual question:

Was it the last part de-soldered from the board?

It wasn't just the last, it was the last that could possibly
BE desoldered from the faulty node.

I save these little miracles for some future gremlin exploit.
Wonder, now, if that day will ever come . . . .

RL

Shorted MLCC (multi-layer ceramic capacitors) are more fun. If
overheated, they tend to short circuit. If unevenly heated, they
crack and become either an open, short or intermittent circuit. If DC
is applied, they become a varactor. If I yell at the PCB, it becomes
a microphone.

I don't believe in miracles, but I won't complain when a miracle
solves my problem.

In my limited experience, SMD resistors can either become a short or
an open circuit, depending on the phase of the moon (waxing or
waning).

Yeah, but an AXIAL 3K9 1/4W?

I don't know how far down a troubleshooting tree that falls.

I'm pretty sure it doesn't even show up, on mine.

RL

Mmmh. At one time, I had the surprise that the voltage setting
feedback resistors around an LM317 regulator changed value by a
large percentage. These were ordinary 1% 1/4W axial leaded metal
film resistors. I never found out how or why this happened.

The box was in a radioactive zone, but no other components were
affected and resistors can handle radiation much better than
semiconductors anyway.

Jeroen Belleman
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