Can resistors and capacitors be stripped from old electronics and used on new projects?

Question

I have a old external cd-rom drive that I took apart. On the circuit board, there are tons of resistors and capacitors. Can I cut them out and use them in experimental projects on breadboards?

Answer 1

I used to do that and it works fine.  I bought some of that copper braid de-soldering wire.  Just put it on the solder pad, heat with your iron and it sucks the old solder right off.  This is better than just snipping as it leaves you with longer leads.  The answer above says the rest.

There is another way to pick up the old solder also where you mechanically suck it up with a little air bulb.  I liked the copper braid better.

Answer 2

Yes, it's part of the fun of electronics. It's amazing how much stuff you can salvage from abandoned 'useless' electronics. Sure, some of it'll be out of date and none of it'll be warrantied but as long as you check everything with a multimeter and for any obvious signs of failure, you should be fine. Just use common sense - and try to un-solder components wherever possible (at low heat!) as this makes them more useable. Google's useful for distinguishing between resistors, disc capacitors, thyristors etc. etc.