Radio Preppers

General Category => Technical Corner => Topic started by: gil on May 10, 2017, 12:50:33 PM

Title: Surface-mount components and toroid winding.
Post by: gil on May 10, 2017, 12:50:33 PM
CC from the BITX20 group:

I never understood why some kit builders are afraid of either. To those who have never tried: Unless you no longer have a steady hand or your vision can't be corrected, SMT kits are no harder than through-hole kits and in some regards are simpler. You don't have to cut any leads. I built all my surface-mount kits with a fine tip soldering iron and they all worked. Some had very tiny integrated circuits. All you need is a good magnifying lens and no shakes. It isn't magic. The biggest difficulty is when you lose a component on the floor!

As to toroids, it's the easiest thing in the world. If you can count you can wind a toroid. Thread the wire through, that's a turn, repeat until you reach the prescribed number. A four-year-old can do it. Even taps are a piece of cake. I don't know where this fear comes from... It must have been spread somehow and people believe they can't do it.

Of course some people have physical limitations, but otherwise, those fears are unfounded, especially for toroids, I'll always scratch my head about that one... Winding toroids is probably the easiest part of kit building for me, by far.

Gil.
Title: Re: Surface-mount components and toroid winding.
Post by: KK0G on May 10, 2017, 01:49:28 PM
Agreed, SMT is a piece of cake. My guess as to why so many are afraid of SMT is it's just different and lots of folks have an aversion to something different than what they know. I truly don't understand the fear of winding toroids, if you can walk and chew gum at the same time you can wind a toroid, they're dirt simple.
Title: Re: Surface-mount components and toroid winding.
Post by: cockpitbob on May 10, 2017, 11:53:02 PM
I can see how SMT kits can intimidate newbs  who haven't built one.  They just need some courage and a magnifying visor.  After the first kit, which may be frustrating, and might not even work when built, they hopefully will realize how small and neat a surface mount board is.

It's been a little tough for me.  I design electronics for a living and I'm at that age where about the time my close-up vision starts getting worse, the parts get smaller.  My close-up vision keeps getting worse AND the parts keep getting smaller LOL.  At times I miss 1/4 watt resistors that I can clip a scope probe to.  But I've adapted.  Just today I was scraping off the solder mask on 0.008" wide traces and soldering 0402 resistors (0.040" x0.020") between the trace and a tiny via.  Just like in nature, adapt or perish.
Title: Re: Surface-mount components and toroid winding.
Post by: gil on May 11, 2017, 04:26:25 AM
I didn't know you designed electronics for a living Bob, I would have picked your brain more often :o I think Rescue9 is into it too..? I had a couple years of electronics school, but it was more than 30 years ago. Components have evolved since then. I was good with the logic stuff, gates, etc. Analog was harder because of the math. I wish I did have a greater interest in radio then, but I simply had little interest in school. Now I wish I could design a transceiver... Never too late you'll say, but do I want to assign the time?

Gil.