Appreciation post: The weirdest thing I keep seeing with D-sub connector pins

I swear, every time I'm helping a new tech at our hangar in Tampa, they're trying to seat those tiny pins with a flathead screwdriver. It's like a rite of passage that goes wrong. I've seen three guys in the last two months bend the same pin on a 37-pin connector for a nav system, turning a 20 minute job into a half day of ordering parts. The proper insertion tool costs maybe 15 bucks. What's the strangest 'shortcut' you've had to un-teach someone on the line?

3 comments

3 Comments

the_jason2mo ago

Grab the actual pin insertion tool, it looks like a tiny hollow screwdriver. Show them how to slide the pin into the sleeve until it clicks. I keep a spare tool in my box because people lose them constantly.

jaken232mo ago

That's just how some people learn, I guess.

jana_hernandez1mo agoMost Upvoted

I read a manual once that said nearly 40% of assembly errors happen because people skip using the right tool. @jaken23 has a point about different learning styles, but watching someone fumble with the wrong tool is painful. The click you get from the proper pin inserter is so satisfying and means it's seated correctly. It really is worth the extra minute to find that little hollow screwdriver thing.