#right-to-repair
23 episodes
#5761: Why You Shouldn't Dremel Your Antique Silver
A rotary tool removes metal in seconds that took a century to form. Here's what museums do instead — and why shine isn't the goal.
#5740: Your Vacuum's Best Upgrade Is the Head
Most people use 30% of their vacuum's capability. The cheapest fix isn't a new machine — it's the nozzle on the end.
#5739: Why Your Vacuum Is Legally Weaker Than a Shop Vac
A toddler, a Bosch, and an EU power cap: why the consumer vacuum in your closet is legally weaker than the dust extractor at the tool shop.
#5704: Superglue: One Drop, Two Reactions, Five Mistakes
One part, no mixing, seconds to set — and most of us have been using it wrong since we were nine.
#5645: Who Teaches You to Fix Your Own Home?
Wiring a plug but never welding metal — why hands-on skills have holes, and what a real DIY curriculum would cover.
#5634: Battery Platform Lock-In: Innovation vs Stability
Cells change every three years. The battery interface barely moves. Buyers research the wrong one.
#5611: Why Your Label Printer Quits After 10 Seconds
A label printer that charges for ten seconds then dies — and what that tiny failure reveals about building a diagnosis-first repair bench.
#5540: Why Your Trackpad Clicks Stopped Working
Your trackpad surface works but the clicks don't? That's not a trackpad failure — it's a swollen battery pushing the click plate out of reach.
#5424: ThinkPad E15: Swollen Battery or Bad Keyboard?
A dead arrow key and a jammed trackpad on a two-year-old ThinkPad E15 might be one problem, not three.
#5382: 10 Commercial Gear Upgrades for Your Home
Commercial dishwashers, washers, and fridges can outlast consumer gear — if your electrical panel cooperates.
#5323: When to Keep Old Tech for Parts (and When to Let Go)
An old Kindle in a drawer raises a question every collector faces: spare, parts donor, or e-waste?
#5318: Rebuilding the Dremel 4250 Manual for One Task
A 48-page Dremel manual, filtered down to only what you need to engrave four-digit inventory codes.
#5274: A Broken Dremel and the Hidden World of Parts Distribution
A dead rotary tool leads down two rabbit holes: warranty economics and how components actually move around the world.
#5270: Teardowns as Documentation: Inside the Hardware Repair Playbook
A dead Dremel sparks a deep dive into teardowns as a documentation discipline — and why board-level knowledge matters more than ever.
#5265: Repairing a $50 Dremel When the Warranty Costs More
A $50 tool, a 90-minute drive, and a warranty that costs more than the item. How macro PCB photography and public documentation make repair possible.
#5264: Why a $50 Dremel Warranty Costs 3 Hours of Driving
Daniel's Dremel only charges at one jiggle angle. What warranty service actually looks like in Israel, the EU, and the US.
#5263: Why Micro USB Ports Break and How to Fix Them
Micro USB ports fail mechanically, not electrically. Here's why they break, how to diagnose it, and whether a USB-C swap is worth it.
#5257: Dremel 4300 vs Foredom: Which Engraver Lasts?
Daniel's Dremel Lite is dying. We compare the 4300, DeWalt, Bosch, and Foredom on power, durability, and repairability.
#5054: Hardware Clubs for Grownups: Finding Your People
Software is solitary. Hardware is social. Here's how to find or build a space where adults and teens build together.
#4490: Right to Repair: History, Hype, and Hard Limits
From John Deere tractors to iPhone batteries — the real history, genuine commitments, and where repair advocates overreach.
#1428: Stop Wasting Your Life to Save a $10 Keyboard
Why is it so hard to toss a $15 keyboard? Learn why your "good intentions" are costing you more than the gear is actually worth.
#825: Right to Repair Meets Snap-Fit Hell
Think unplugging a monitor makes it safe to open? Think again. Learn the professional secrets to prying cases and avoiding lethal shocks.
#792: The Framework Laptop: Modularity and the Right to Repair
Can laptops ever be as modular as desktops? Explore how Framework is fighting planned obsolescence with swappable parts and open designs.