First Coop Boards

[IndianaChristmas]

I have started soldering my kits received from the first coop.
I am trying to solder the green connectors to the board for the outputs.  The holes on two of these boards aren't big enough to allow the connectors through them.  I have tried using the smallest unit of connect (3) since I figured it was an issue trying to push all 16 through and still no luck.  The other two boards accept the connectors fine.  My question is can I Dremel the holes bigger or the connectors smaller and not destroy the board or connectors?  Thanks.

[sjb]

There was a previous discussion about this. Please read the thread below

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Steve

[RJ]

Seems some of the pcbs have a little excessive solder in the holes than ever before. not sure why but since I keep the holes tight before to add in assembly it is making it hard on some of then to get them in. Since the current traces are all on the bottom you can clean the hole out a little but try to not take the plating off the hole completely or the snubber resistor will lose connection and become not effective. You might not even know unless you have leds that really need the snubbers.

Its funny that this would be on these pcbs after having thousands made with out issues. I am going to call them Monday and ask if they can explain it. And do I need to be concerned with it being this way in the furture? If so I will have to redo the pcbs with a larger hole to compansate.

RJ

RJ

[tbone321]

I have started soldering my kits received from the first coop.
I am trying to solder the green connectors to the board for the outputs.  The holes on two of these boards aren't big enough to allow the connectors through them.  I have tried using the smallest unit of connect (3) since I figured it was an issue trying to push all 16 through and still no luck.  The other two boards accept the connectors fine.  My question is can I Dremel the holes bigger or the connectors smaller and not destroy the board or connectors?  Thanks.

I would be carefull with a Dremel.  They spin fast and can cause a lot of damage real quick.  A drill bit that fits tightly in the hole would probably work better at cleaning the hole without trashing the traces.

[pk]

I compared the holes on these pcbs to an extra express pcb I had from last year that I did not get around to building.  I ended up using a #59 (0.041 dia) drill bit and turned it by hand to open the hole.  In my set of drill bits a #58 would not fit in the holes from the older express pcb.

[Jeffl]

This is one of those cases where more power is not better, just some TLC with a drill bit should work.  Take the pieces apart and install them one-by-one.

[Mimir]

I have my 2nd of 3 coop kits completed.  My first board had no problems at all with the wire connectors.  My second and third both have the problem.  I just want to share what I found.  When I made the holes big enough for the connectors to go in, it destroyed the trace through the hole.  I used a multimeter and the third pcb to figure out where the connections should go and had to make the connections with wire on the back of the board.  For those of you that have this problem, you should check to make sure that there is conductivity between the negative (neutral) wire connector for each channel and the right side of the 47k resistors. 

Hope this helps.

John

[Jeffl]

I just built 6 and had one that was stiff.  The other five had perfect alignment.  I used a 1/16 bit and just worked a little on each hole as necessary.  I didn't go all the way though.  1/16 was to large however and really needed something smaller.  The key is by hand.  Anytime you grab a drill for this task your asking for trouble, don't do it.

The key is taking the parts apart and working with them as three or four pins however them come apart.  I even had to trim the edge of some where they slide together with a utility knife.  Once they are soldered together you can't tell the difference.

The pics also needed flashing but that was a snap having the PicKit ready and running.

Take you time and happy building.

[Mimir]

I am saying check the conductivity. I did all of it by hand, and did not go all the way through either, but still did not have the connection when I checked. 

[Jeffl]

Did you spin the trace off?

I checked mine and they are all good.  I only had I think one hole that I went all the way though but the trace around the hole was still plenty good.

[Mimir]

No, I didn't damage the pad around the hole, but only 1 of my neutral connections was there after soldering the wire blocks in.  I fixed my board.  I just wanted to let other know that they should check just in case.

[n1ist]

The problem is not damaging the pad, it's removing the plating on the edges of the hole.  On a double sided board with plated-through holes, the edge of the hole is plated, forming a connection between the pad on the top and the pad on the bottom.  If you damage this plating, the connection will be broken.

/mike

[Jeffl]

That is correct.

With that being the case, I would think you could either loose the resistor connectivity or power from the triac.  I guess I need to test each channel on the board I had issues with to make sure they have connectivity to the resistor and voltage when turned on.

[Penfold]

maybe if you sandpaper the leads a bit that might help you squeeze it in.

[RJ]

How many are having this issue? I pulled some of the pcbs from this order and the connectors fit in the ones I could find. A few were tighter than I remember ever seeing but this sounds like some might be even tighter. I can send you a pcb if you have not already got parts in the pcb but I imagine you do.

You will not prevent it from working even if you drill the plating out of the holes you will just loose the function of the snubber resistor since it is the only top side connection.

RJ