Drac,
Thanks for the information. I had seen the sight last night while researching my response to not2sharp. Realgoods had carried recycled pc board clip boards and note pads in previous editions of their catalogue and so has The Nature Company. I've even thought about getting one of the clip boards, but was deterred by the predictability of my having one.
Regardless, I'm curious why you think the Cyberknife scales are recycled? I agree each knife would be different if the scales were made of recycled board since you'd have so many different types and manufacturers' of boards, but you'd get a large variety of patterns from using the same sheet of pc board over and over again. The variety of sizes and configurations in recycled board is one of the reasons that I assume Camillus would need to use new boards all of the same size and shape for computer controlled water jet cutting. Of course, I'm assuming water jet cutting is being used to mass produce the scales. I'm beginning to get into too many assumptions and that can lead to trouble. For the sake of accuracy I guess I'm going to have to abandon my assumptions and avoid any further conjecture on my part and await Will's report on the boards used.
What I do know is that the extrudable solder used comes in leaded and lead-free forms. The lead-free forms use palladium, tin, and copper alloys. The leaded forms use lead and tin alloys. The lead in the leaded forms ranges anywere from less than 50% to less than 40% of the alloy in the MSDSs that I scanned last night. Such alloys should be safe to handle as long as you don't high-speed grind or torch large quantities of the material without adequate ventilation. As to the whether the boards themselves are recycled, lead-free, or leaded I've got to wait for Will to tell us.
Take care,
Mike
------------------
TANSTAAFL
