USB drives invisible in Finder

I've been having a problem for a few weeks now where my MacBook Pro (running 10.5.2) isn't showing any USB cable connected drives in the Finder. They are clearly there in Disk Utility, and I've been able to run repairs etc, they just aren't visible on the desktop and to some software. Some software runs fine using these drives (Synchronize! X Plus and SuperDuper! for example) but Time Machine won't run at all. There's also a FW drive which has a USB daisy chain to another drive: the FW drive is fine, but no sign of the USB drive on the desktop.
Can anyone help?
Thanks
Clive

Run Repair Disk Permissions in Disk Utility, if you have not done so already.
After that, restart. If things are still the same, you may want to delete your Finder preference file. It is at
<your user directory>/Library/Preferences/com.apple.finder.plist
Restart or just log out and log back in.
If the problem persists, you can try this as a test. Create a new user with Admin privileges using System Preferences Accounts pane. Log out and log in to that new user. Does the new user have the same problem with the USB drives? If yes, there is a problem with the overall system or hardware. If no, the problem is with your usual user account. At least you've narrowed down the cause and we can proceed from there.

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<Question Closed>

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During the two week period, the motherboard had been removed from its case and sat on my desk with anti-static covers draped over and under it. I've been trying the motherboard without a case ever since, as that would confound issues further.
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