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I loved tinkering with electronics when I was younger - still do to a smaller degree. I built my first computer by fixing some blown capacitors on a motherboard

I loved tinkering with electronics when I was younger - still do to a smaller degree. I built my first computer by fixing some blown capacitors on a motherboard I found in the trash. Back in the day, lots of products came with schematics, now you might get a lawsuit if you dare to take something apart. It was way easier to take apart and tweak through hole components too - now everything is surface mount or on chip and it’s much harder to get into with just a soldering iron. The first thing I ever did was rewire a stereo to broadcast instead of receive to make a little pirate radio station - really, none of those things exist anymore. I think it’s just a harder thing to get into now.

fleventynine 4y ago
Surface mount isn't that big of a deal. A cheap hot air gun, a soldering iron, flux, and some solder paste are all you need to work with most BGAs, QFN, and other modern packages. PCB prototype manufacturing has never been cheaper thanks to companies like JLCPCB. With all the fantastic learning material on YouTube, open source tools like KiCad, and inexpensive chinese test equipment, the kids these days can do WAY more than I could dream of back in the 90s.
- stas2k 4y ago
  Could not agree more. I have designed my first PCB in Kicad as a MIT licence project. Kicad ecosystem is very much alive and I was able to reuse dimensions from another project for the same computer. I made a RAM expansion board for Sharp X68000. You can check it out on https://github.com/stas2k/galspanic https://github.com/stas2k/galspanic
- 0x20cowboy 4y ago
  But, I mean, you could get by with just a $10 soldering iron from RadioShack. It’s just harder to get into and tinker with is my point - which I think you just supported?
  - _moof 4y ago
    I do surface mount with a $20 hotplate from Target. A lot of parts you can even do with a soldering iron. I know it looks scary but once you give it a try you'll find it's not really any harder than through-hole and doesn't require any special equipment.
- midoridensha 4y ago
  Not only that, but doing any rework with surface mount is usually much easier than with thru-hole or DIP chips. Removing a DIP chip usually means snipping the leads off (thus ruining the chip) and individually pulling each severed leg out with an iron and solder-sucker. By contrast, an SOIC-type chip can be removed in seconds with a hot-air gun.
Johnythree 4y ago
I find SMT easier than through-hole. And I say B.S. to your line of "rewire a stereo to broadcast instead of receive". There's very little commonality between a stereo and a Transmitter. Whatever, there are still thousands of Hams building Transmitters.
- 0x20cowboy 4y ago
  Don’t know what to tell you other than I did. It only would broadcast around the house and maybe a few houses down. Here is someone else doing it as well: https://m.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=27&v=AudEdHpXTi4&feature=emb_logo https://m.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=27&v=AudEdHpXTi4&f...
- Taniwha 4y ago
  I teach kids how to solder at the local Makerspace, I start with SMT first because it's easier - through hole requires more skill and you have to be more aware of heat management to do it well. We stockpile old proto boards that were never used for practice and give the kids old motherboards and hot air to scavenge from for practice

fleventynine 4y ago

Surface mount isn't that big of a deal. A cheap hot air gun, a soldering iron, flux, and some solder paste are all you need to work with most BGAs, QFN, and other modern packages. PCB prototype manufacturing has never been cheaper thanks to companies like JLCPCB. With all the fantastic learning material on YouTube, open source tools like KiCad, and inexpensive chinese test equipment, the kids these days can do WAY more than I could dream of back in the 90s.

stas2k 4y ago
Could not agree more. I have designed my first PCB in Kicad as a MIT licence project. Kicad ecosystem is very much alive and I was able to reuse dimensions from another project for the same computer. I made a RAM expansion board for Sharp X68000. You can check it out on https://github.com/stas2k/galspanic https://github.com/stas2k/galspanic
0x20cowboy 4y ago
But, I mean, you could get by with just a $10 soldering iron from RadioShack. It’s just harder to get into and tinker with is my point - which I think you just supported?
- _moof 4y ago
  I do surface mount with a $20 hotplate from Target. A lot of parts you can even do with a soldering iron. I know it looks scary but once you give it a try you'll find it's not really any harder than through-hole and doesn't require any special equipment.
midoridensha 4y ago
Not only that, but doing any rework with surface mount is usually much easier than with thru-hole or DIP chips. Removing a DIP chip usually means snipping the leads off (thus ruining the chip) and individually pulling each severed leg out with an iron and solder-sucker. By contrast, an SOIC-type chip can be removed in seconds with a hot-air gun.

Johnythree 4y ago

I find SMT easier than through-hole. And I say B.S. to your line of "rewire a stereo to broadcast instead of receive". There's very little commonality between a stereo and a Transmitter. Whatever, there are still thousands of Hams building Transmitters.

0x20cowboy 4y ago
Don’t know what to tell you other than I did. It only would broadcast around the house and maybe a few houses down. Here is someone else doing it as well: https://m.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=27&v=AudEdHpXTi4&feature=emb_logo https://m.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=27&v=AudEdHpXTi4&f...
Taniwha 4y ago
I teach kids how to solder at the local Makerspace, I start with SMT first because it's easier - through hole requires more skill and you have to be more aware of heat management to do it well. We stockpile old proto boards that were never used for practice and give the kids old motherboards and hot air to scavenge from for practice