A sheet of paper crossed my desk the other day and as I read it,
realization of a basic truth came over me. So simple! So obvious we
couldn't see it. John Knivlen, Chairman of Polamar Repeater Club, an amateur
radio group, had discovered how IC circuits work. He says that smoke is the
thing that makes ICs work because every time you let the smoke out of an IC
circuit, it stops working. He claims to have verified this with thorough
testing.
I was flabbergasted! Of course! Smoke makes all things
electrical work. Remember the last time smoke escaped from your Lucas voltage
regulator Didn't it quit working? I sat and smiled like an idiot as more of the
truth dawned. It's the wiring harness that carries the smoke from one device
to another in your Mini, MG or Jag. And when the harness springs a leak,
it lets the smoke out of everything at once, and then nothing works. The
starter motor requires large quantities of smoke to operate properly, and that's why
the wire going to it is so large.
Feeling very smug, I continued to expand my hypothesis. Why are
Lucas electronics more likely to leak than say Bosch? Hmmm... Aha!!! Lucas
is British, and all things British leak! British convertible tops leak
water, British engines leak oil, British displacer units leak hydrostatic
fluid, and I might add British tyres leak air, and the British defense unit leaks
secrets... so naturally British electronics leak smoke.
-- Jack Banton, PCC Automotive Electrical School
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