I know I didn’t get many “likes” for my OP but today I had to remove a G6 xmitter that I can barely see. I couldn’t find the library card I mentioned so I grabbed another ID card thatI thought ( I was wrong–it is too thick) was about the same thickness. Try as I might, no joy. Went back to my stash of old cards and got a thinner one. Success in a few seconds–doing it blindly. This will be the last time I champion the usage of thin plastic materials such as thin ID cards. I promise. Just do what works for you!
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Tried a laminated zoo membership card last night. Worked like a charm! One slide of the card and the transmitter popped out. But it was near the front of my abdomen; clearly visible and easy to reach.
I’m sure it would work closer to my back, but I would still have trouble reaching and aligning the card because of my arthritis. But the same goes for test strips, guitar picks or any other tool.
That’s one reason why I like the “huge” G6 inserter. I can easily grip it and push the trigger even at the full extreme of my stretch. Almost no manual dexterity required.
Gave you a ‘like’ on your last post just so you don’t feel so unwanted 
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I tested this yesterday. I popped the transmitter out using a thin card per @Dave44’s instructions, ground the transmitter tabs off with a file, then reinserted it. No problem at all pushing it back in, but the sensor is spring loaded to hold the contacts firmly against the transmitter. That means quite a bit of force is required to hold it in place. More than a piece of tape would provide IMO.
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LOL! Thanks! I know that removing a xmitter can be a pain, and trying to be helpful to the community, I thought they would appreciate a super-simple, fast, “do-it-blindly” method to be useful for them. But I guess I was wrong. 
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Are u saying that the xmitter is secure after removing the tabs? Are they fully removed?
No - its not secure at all. The tabs are completely ground off. I was hoping to use a tape to hold it in place for easy removal. But the transmitter holder is spring loaded, pushing the transmitter back out. Under normal circumstances the tabs engage and hold it in place. I don’t think a piece of tape will be strong enough given the amount of force pushing against it.
Probably should have expected this. Live and learn. Fortunately the transmitter was ready to be replaced so nothing lost.
I wonder if doing just partial removal of tabs would work. Just enough to make it easier to slide in the “removal tool” (bg strip, guitar pick, metal barrett).
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I wouldn’t grind the tabs even a tiny bit as I wouldn’t want a xmitter to fall out by accident. It isn’t necessary when I find it trivially easy to remove a xmitter using a thin plastic card. It takes a couple of seconds per side, literally. Doing it w/o even seeing what I’m doing. Using my fingers, I can tell where I should insert the corner of the card, shove it in all the way, slide it, and POP, one side it done. Repeat on the other side and the xmitter falls out.
Paytone mentioned having difficulty with removal, but agree if you can do it without modifying tabs, that would be best.
I certainly appreciate him mentioning his experimentation. It’s good to know what works, and just as importantly, what doesn’t.
As @MM1 said, for me It’s difficult and painful enough to reach back and insert the transmitter when I’m using a site further back on my abdomen, let alone using your card method (or any other requiring a tool) to remove it.
Now for you or anyone without my limitations, I agree it would serve no purpose. But it doesn’t work, so no value to me or anyone else.
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I had some difficulty too (limited shoulder movement), and found the metal barrette much easier.
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Thanks for the tip!
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I don’t think I’d want to grind of any of the tabs. But if I ground off a little of the top transmitter edges above the tab, it might make it easier to get a card (especially thicker card) wedged in.
All that said, it seems pretty easy to wedge a thin card or thin test strip in already.
THAT.
Finally got to try one of my guitar picks yesterday. A medium weight was perfect & the transmitter popped out like a charm. (Of course, instead, I got the dreaded “calibration not accepted” and after several of them I gave up and put on a new sensor)
Did you wait 30 minutes after removing the transmitter to scan or enter the code for the sensor?
Yep. My 2 restarts of my first sensor went very smoothly.
On this one I think the variance was too great for it to wrap its brain around. Upon startup it read 207. My fingersticks had been between 90-112 for several hours (I was checking a lot as I was getting ready to work out and I didn’t want to go too low before).
@The_Burn What are you using for a receiver?
I guess that’s another benefit of my not using a Dexcom receiver/app with the sensor. My restarts are ALWAYS more than 100 mg/dl off, but I’ve never had it cause an issue using Xdrip and the t:slim x2. Xdrip has occasionally given me a “calibration rejected” error, but actually does the calibration anyway regardless of the error. The pump doesn’t seem to have any special calibration rules, it seems to take them all, so far as I’ve seen.
Thanks to all of you for your great advice on removing the transmitter and restarting the sensor. I did this just now, and am in the warm-up period. No problems at all. I tried with what I thought was a thin enough card, but it didn’t work, so I used a test strip. It took a few tries, but finally worked.
This has been invaluable for me, because it is now March 2, and Dexcom has yet to ship my February order. In light of this, and depending on my experience with this restart, I will likely be using this on a regular basis. I already use my pump infusion sets for longer than 3 days, without any ill effects. I had a similar experience with CCS Medical last year, so extending the use keeps me from running out before a new shipment arrives. I’m hoping to be able to do the same with G6 sensors.
Thanks again. All of you are an invaluable resource.
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