Group Actions
Engagement
  • Author Author: jw0752
  • Date Created: Date Created
  • Views 4253 views
  • Likes 17 likes
  • Comments 41 comments
Related
Recommended

Inspired by Karen's Essentials The Learning Circuit

jw0752

Today I watched Karen's    Video about building a circuit from a schematic:

 

  https://www.element14.com/community/docs/DOC-91328/l/the-learning-circuit-34-making-a-circuit-from-a-schematic?sr=inbox&ru=360462

 

At first thought one might wonder what an old dog like me who has been playing with electronics for the last 62 years could learn from a beginners level 11 minute lesson on making a circuit from a schematic. As it turns out there is always a lot to learn from the members of this forum whether they are young or old, experienced or inexperienced and Karen's presentations are always a must watch for me.

 

Today I got two benefits from watching the show. The first benefit was watching how easily Karen flipped the board from one side to another for parts placement and soldering. While I had seen circuit board holders before, I had never seen one used and being a bit on the slow side I never realized, that with the amount of circuit board work I do, they could be a real benefit. So tonight I found one on line that would suit my needs and ordered it.

 

https://www.newark.com/aven/17010/circuit-board-holder-adjustable/dp/30Y9494?st=circuit%20board%20holder

 

The second thing that I received from watching Karen's video was an inspiration. I dawned on me how often I am frustrated or have to jury rig something to hold a component in place so it can be soldered. A lot of the components that I use for my builds are salvage components and as such they usually have short leads. When the components have long leads this isn't such a problem as the leads can be skewed to the board to hold the part in place. When I use a short lead component however,  I can place the component where I want it on the proto board but as soon as I turn the board over to solder the part, it falls or moves out of place. Many times it is just the case of not being tight to the board. While a part at a strange angle is functional, to me it is not acceptable.

 

The solution is this component clamp which I plan to use with my new circuit board.

 

   imageimage

The clamp was constructed from 12 AWG copper wire, 1/8" ID Brass Tubing, 1/8" OD Brass Rod, and an old twist spring. The copper wire was cut to the desired length and then formed using pliers. The 1/8" brass rod was cut slightly larger than the 1/8" brass tube so that the tube could fit over the rod and provide a bearing for the clamp finger to pivot on. The spring was the most difficult part as I soldered the clamp together before I figured out how to do the spring. Duh! Fortunately I was able to thread the spring onto the wire and then thread it again around the corner and onto the pivot. The two widely spaced fingers on the solder side of the board give ample room to get at the pads so that they can be soldered. If you look closely at the end of the finger that holds the component you will see that I have soldered a small brass pad to the wire. The purpose of the pad is to give me enough surface area so that I can use the clamp to hold headers and sharp topped components in place like this:

 

image

 

Here are a couple examples of how the clamp works to hold short lead components in place so the board can be turned over and the leads soldered.

 

  imageimage

Here we have a 555 timer. Traditionally I will bend a couple leads over to hold the IC and after soldering one lead I will apply pressure to the component, heat the pad again, and seat the component to the board. Now the new clamp will hold the chip in place and allow the soldering of all 8 legs and no seating required.

 

   imageimage

Here we have a 470 uF cap with short leads. As you can see it will be a breeze to solder in place thanks to the clamp.

 

A special Thanks to Karen, element 14, and the Producers of the Learning Circuit for tonight's fun in my shop.

 

John

Parents

  • The circuit board holder arrived today so I was eager to test it in conjunction with the clamp. Here are pictures of my first test.

     

    image

    8 Pin DIP clamped in place on the circuit board.

     

    image

    The board has been flipped without disturbing the clamp.

     

    image

    The component has been soldered prior to removal of the clamp.

     

    John

  • in reply to jw0752

    I have some additional comments on the Aven Circuit Board holder. First of all I found it to be a very good value and of sufficient quality so that I was very glad that I had purchased it. There was however one issue that I want to mention so that anyone else who gets one can correct the problem. After using the holder for a couple hours I notice a bunch of plastic shavings under the spring loaded pivot.

     

    image

     

    This was being caused by the loading spring which was being turned with the circuit board against the plastic of the support.

     

    image

    In this picture I have disassembled the spring loaded side of the board holder so that the scrapping damage is visible. This is the result of only a couple hours of use so it was apparent that this could be a serious fault if left unresolved.

     

    image

    The simple solution was the installation of a metal washer in the support so that the spinning spring could turn without cutting into the plastic. It is possible that this fault was just an assembly oversight on this one particular unit or it could be an overall design problem. If you have one of these or plan to get one it would be a good idea to apply this preventative fix before too much damage is done to the support arm.

     

    John

Comment
  • in reply to jw0752

    I have some additional comments on the Aven Circuit Board holder. First of all I found it to be a very good value and of sufficient quality so that I was very glad that I had purchased it. There was however one issue that I want to mention so that anyone else who gets one can correct the problem. After using the holder for a couple hours I notice a bunch of plastic shavings under the spring loaded pivot.

     

    image

     

    This was being caused by the loading spring which was being turned with the circuit board against the plastic of the support.

     

    image

    In this picture I have disassembled the spring loaded side of the board holder so that the scrapping damage is visible. This is the result of only a couple hours of use so it was apparent that this could be a serious fault if left unresolved.

     

    image

    The simple solution was the installation of a metal washer in the support so that the spinning spring could turn without cutting into the plastic. It is possible that this fault was just an assembly oversight on this one particular unit or it could be an overall design problem. If you have one of these or plan to get one it would be a good idea to apply this preventative fix before too much damage is done to the support arm.

     

    John

Children