We use those brass pads and holders at work, where we build gps circuitry and other microelectronics. I swear by them now. They increase tip life tremendously, because there's less thermal shock and oxidation without water involved. The holder really does help for solder splash-back, but nothing will completely stop those surprise wrist bites
Big fan of the brass tip cleaner thing, so much so that I rarely use a sponge anymore. I think POV is persistence of vision on that LED globe, very jealous of that kit.
I prefer those tip cleaners with the bronzy type material inside compared to sponges. I tried replacing mine with a kitchen steel wool thing. It worked okay but not as good as the one that came with my soldering iron. I really don't envy you for having to do that kit!
One method for installing the LED's onto the curved surface is to use a small amount of glue to connect all the LED's to the curved surface. Once the glue is dry then you could solder all the LED's at one time. Maybe one drop of superglue would work for each LED. Another method would be to take two small pieces of wood and clamp them together with the curved PCB between. Place one LED on your work surface and set the curved PCB vertical, just touching the back of the LED at a right angle. This way you could solder each LED by adjusting the curved PCB and your two small clamped wood blocks so the each LED is at 90 degrees when you solder it in place. Just some ideas. Take care.
1. Apply masking tape to edge of strip of cardboard, so some sticky side goes past the edge. 2. Carefully place LEDs face down onto tape one at the time to get spacing correct. 3. Check orientation. 4. Apply solder blobs to one side of PCB. 5. Put LED 'holder' in place, use flux and soldering iron to tack LEDs in place.
Glad you took my suggestion to heart and bought a metal ball tip cleaner! It was my most commented on post on UA-cam :) FYI I use double sticky tape on the base, and works like a charm.
I just finished that LED sphere kit. Definitely fits into the advanced category with the way they've chosen to mount the LEDS. I managed to get mine pretty straight just with a pair of fine point tweezers, and some patience.
I just built that LED spinner back in November. It's actually not bad on the main board. The killer is soldering the SMT LEDs on the EDGE of the board. Diabolical. I don't think I'd try it without a microscope. All I did was to tin the pads on one edge, then put the LEDs down on the table face down, rock the board onto the LED then touch the solder blob to lock the LED in place. Then come back along the 2nd side to tack the other side down. Worked great. But as I said, I used a 10x stereo microscope (which I do for all SMT stuff - makes even tiny stuff fairly easy). The only error I actually made on mine was I switched the crystal and the infrared photodiode (rotation sensor). once I fixed that it worked fine. Also, the software to change the display is essentially unusable, all the dialog boxes, buttons and everything are in Chinese.
I use a wet natural sponge... I really like it.. I keep my soldering iron somewhat warmer. (no temperature control) so its sometimes rising a bit high.. I cool I down in the damp sponge and it cleans perfectly and when it's dirty I'll wash it out and it's (almost) brand new!
Good point - I could attach the XOR output via a 1k resistor to the shift register input pulling it up to 5v briefly with a momentary action switch - that'll work :)
I understand that the wet sponge method of tip cleaning causes micro-cracking of the iron plating on tips such as Weller and have found that the brass swarf cleaner makes my tip last longer - oe-er, Matron!
Regarding the Banggood kit. Why not use double sided tape on the pcb and trim it with a sharp knife (I used scalpel and it works great) then stick and position the smd leds to the tape before soldering. They should stay put if the heat isn't applied for too long.
If you don't want to fork out for a specialist smd adhesive (or enjoy a challenge) how about this jig.... Take a piece of thin card (postcard-ish), glue the light emitting faces of the leds to it with a water soluble glue spaced apart so that when curved to the given arc they match. Hold the card to baseboard with blu-tak and the pcb with helping hands. Rince when done.
I bought a magnifying lamp to do my SMD, which I love. I got the 40 LED one for $20AUD. Plus I got loop glasses, which come in very handy to see bridging. I like SMD better than THT now.
Hi Julian, I just finished the LED Globe and it look great, it was a one day job, you guess it right the hardest part was the edge soldered SMD LED's. I just have one Problem it won't run at 5V it is just fine with 4,5V I did not checked yet why maybe the motor spins to fast to synchronize the LED's. By the way I'm a great fan of the banggood kits they are fine for an reasonable price. Best wishes from cold Germany.
Will you finally start doing surface mount soldering? It's really easy with a cheap used microscope on ebay. As long as you get the right Flux even lead free is very easy!
Glad your building the globe, I've been building led kits from banggood for the last few months. I've done the kanton tower and a few led cubes. I've had this in my cart for the last month. I'm going to order it now. Please keep on doing soldering projects, good project build videos are hard to find on UA-cam. And get the kanton tower or a 8x8x8 cube!
Hi Ian, you are right the Kits are great, I think I have all of them ;) and also some of the clock kits. Just finished the 8x8x8 LED Cube with integrated MP3 Player. The Board ist pre Soldered but the Matrix of 512 LED's is a really fun to solder. If I found more time I will upload a video of it. www.banggood.com/3D-Light-Cube-Kit-8x8x8-Blue-LED-MP3-Music-Spectrum-DIY-Electronic-Kit-p-1091209.html?p=0V0809949687201412Y5
On that soldering kit, you might want to glue the LEDs on first? And also, if you're just using the USB hubs for power then you should consider rewiring it :)
It would be fun watching you do micro soldering! I don't envy you doing that at all. But I'm interested in you explaining the programming aspect of it. Cheers
Make sure you check all your I'cs Jillian I'm sure the odd dud has been slipped in there. I got 4 faulty Lm293D h-bridges in a tube of 10. The price is always tempting considering how much some U.k sellers charge for one piece. :)
I also buy a lot of cheap stuff via EBAY. I tell my family i'm trying to wreck the Chinese economy by choosing only items with free postage. But only yesterday, someone on the radio said that the appalling traffic congestion was caused by deliveries of on-line shopping. Now I don't know what to do...
Unfortunately USB3.0 ports come in all range of colours (not just blue) these days. The best way to identify USB3.0 ports is to look for the extra pins that only USB3.0 ports have.
I wounder if those shavings really are brass. To me that just looks like a pot scrubber. The same type of pot scrubber I use bought from the supermarket. I think its copper plated steel. I found one made from fine wire that seems to work better than the flat wire in this one.
well a mate of mine went to a local steel work shop and asked if they machined brass lately they had, so he got brass shaving for nothing, I have some too but I rather use a sponge.. Im more used to that..
yeah I've had at least one package show up every day since the new year haha, it's a strange addiction. although most of them are electronic components for projects I have planned, some are just weird things that only cost $0.99 so I just went "why the hell not"
I started getting into arduino thanks to Julian. It's a nice cheap hobby, everything costs a pound or two. Problem is you end up with a never ending stream of things costing a pound or two.
Problem? I see no problem :-D except when you need to buy a larger house to store all the gimmicks... or the wife walks out, which would free up a lot of new space...
hey julian i have a 4v lead acid battery and a 6v solar panel..and i want to charge the battery through that solar panel...can u plz tell me the way to connect together in order to charge the battery...
Well if the battery isn't a tiny one or the panel a huge one.. you can just hook the panel right up to the battery and it will charge it somewhat. Adding a dedicated solar charge controller would improve efficiency of the panel and protect the battery (stop charging when the max voltage of the battery is reached. But usually a fairly large lead-acid battery can just bleed off the extra power I'd assume. You would want to put a reasonably sizeds diode in the correct orientatio on the positive lead to stop the battery draining to the panel when it's dark, though.
interesting, my tips dont last very long, whenever i get a new tip & tin them, then after few days, they develop black area at one side of the tip. eventually it gets difficult and i need to chisel them.
No, the voltage drop isn't constant across the current range and it's a very efficient way to convert voltages. You will want to charge your lead acid battery a few volts higher than what's printed on it, so around 6v should reasonably charge a 4v lead acid.
Julian Ilett well I haven't received my packages yet. I might be receiving about 8 things tomorrow so that will be fun! There is no delivery in the us today so I won't get anything today.
Seriously? "Sponget"? "Outdreak"? Where do those guys learn ESL (English as Second Language)?!? Maybe Chinese orphanage? Boy Scout camp in Moscow? I guess they also don't know the difference between welding and soldering, either. :)
We use those brass pads and holders at work, where we build gps circuitry and other microelectronics. I swear by them now. They increase tip life tremendously, because there's less thermal shock and oxidation without water involved. The holder really does help for solder splash-back, but nothing will completely stop those surprise wrist bites
Big fan of the brass tip cleaner thing, so much so that I rarely use a sponge anymore. I think POV is persistence of vision on that LED globe, very jealous of that kit.
I prefer those tip cleaners with the bronzy type material inside compared to sponges. I tried replacing mine with a kitchen steel wool thing. It worked okay but not as good as the one that came with my soldering iron. I really don't envy you for having to do that kit!
Yeah, the kit looks like a lot of work!
hehe, mines a tuna can with some kitchen steel wools from poundland, screwed to a bit of wood for stability
I soldered the LEDs with solder paste, a small tip and a lot of patience. ;-) The result is really cool.
One method for installing the LED's onto the curved surface is to use a small amount of glue to connect all the LED's to the curved surface. Once the glue is dry then you could solder all the LED's at one time. Maybe one drop of superglue would work for each LED.
Another method would be to take two small pieces of wood and clamp them together with the curved PCB between. Place one LED on your work surface and set the curved PCB vertical, just touching the back of the LED at a right angle. This way you could solder each LED by adjusting the curved PCB and your two small clamped wood blocks so the each LED is at 90 degrees when you solder it in place. Just some ideas. Take care.
1. Apply masking tape to edge of strip of cardboard, so some sticky side goes past the edge.
2. Carefully place LEDs face down onto tape one at the time to get spacing correct.
3. Check orientation.
4. Apply solder blobs to one side of PCB.
5. Put LED 'holder' in place, use flux and soldering iron to tack LEDs in place.
Glad you took my suggestion to heart and bought a metal ball tip cleaner! It was my most commented on post on UA-cam :)
FYI I use double sticky tape on the base, and works like a charm.
I just finished that LED sphere kit. Definitely fits into the advanced category with the way they've chosen to mount the LEDS. I managed to get mine pretty straight just with a pair of fine point tweezers, and some patience.
Your tips should last longer cleaning them with brass wool.
Looking forward to the comparisons of the sponge vs copper scrubber thingy.
looking forward to that POV kit in action!
I have no idea what you are talking about 90% of the time, but I love your videos. Way better that LED Clive!
I just built that LED spinner back in November. It's actually not bad on the main board. The killer is soldering the SMT LEDs on the EDGE of the board. Diabolical. I don't think I'd try it without a microscope.
All I did was to tin the pads on one edge, then put the LEDs down on the table face down, rock the board onto the LED then touch the solder blob to lock the LED in place. Then come back along the 2nd side to tack the other side down. Worked great. But as I said, I used a 10x stereo microscope (which I do for all SMT stuff - makes even tiny stuff fairly easy).
The only error I actually made on mine was I switched the crystal and the infrared photodiode (rotation sensor). once I fixed that it worked fine.
Also, the software to change the display is essentially unusable, all the dialog boxes, buttons and everything are in Chinese.
I use a wet natural sponge... I really like it.. I keep my soldering iron somewhat warmer. (no temperature control) so its sometimes rising a bit high.. I cool I down in the damp sponge and it cleans perfectly and when it's dirty I'll wash it out and it's (almost) brand new!
I think for that kit, POV stands for Persistence of Vision.
Was about to comment the same thing.
Does a HC595 power up with outputs at zero ? If so your LFSR will need a way to force a '1' somewhere to get things started
Good point - I could attach the XOR output via a 1k resistor to the shift register input pulling it up to 5v briefly with a momentary action switch - that'll work :)
POV will be Persistence of Vision as opposed to Point of View I suggest ;-)
Ah yes, you're right :)
I understand that the wet sponge method of tip cleaning causes micro-cracking of the iron plating on tips such as Weller and have found that the brass swarf cleaner makes my tip last longer - oe-er, Matron!
"Five Minute Teardown" was introduced officially today.
The shavings are far better! Such less hassle and get the tip far cleaner! Will never go back to the wet sponge now.
Regarding the Banggood kit. Why not use double sided tape on the pcb and trim it with a sharp knife (I used scalpel and it works great) then stick and position the smd leds to the tape before soldering. They should stay put if the heat isn't applied for too long.
I think POV in this case stands for Persistence Of Vision, instead of Point of View. Nice video btw!
If you don't want to fork out for a specialist smd adhesive (or enjoy a challenge) how about this jig.... Take a piece of thin card (postcard-ish), glue the light emitting faces of the leds to it with a water soluble glue spaced apart so that when curved to the given arc they match. Hold the card to baseboard with blu-tak and the pcb with helping hands. Rince when done.
Spacing them would be quite tricky - they have to line up with solder pads on the PCB.
seen a few videos on the solder cleaner. I've always used sponges for years. might have to fine the brass wool a try.
i use both a sponge and shavings, they do different jobs really.
Julian, did you ever make the rotating kit? I don't remember ever seeing a video about it.
I bought a magnifying lamp to do my SMD, which I love. I got the 40 LED one for $20AUD. Plus I got loop glasses, which come in very handy to see bridging. I like SMD better than THT now.
Yes! Postbag time! 👏👏👏
Warning: SMD LED's are very heat sensitive. Use lowest possible temperature.
Hi Julian,
I just finished the LED Globe and it look great, it was a one day job, you guess it right the hardest part was the edge soldered SMD LED's. I just have one Problem it won't run at 5V it is just fine with 4,5V I did not checked yet why maybe the motor spins to fast to synchronize the LED's. By the way I'm a great fan of the banggood kits they are fine for an reasonable price. Best wishes from cold Germany.
I must have gotten the deluxe version of the welder cleaner (tongue in cheek).. Mine have rubber pads to protect the work surface from scratches.
I use the flux covered brass shavings but I also use a YiHua Chinese solder station. Cheap for cheap works well...
On the LED light bar try using a drop of super glue to hold each LED in place before soldering. Just a thought.
Will you finally start doing surface mount soldering? It's really easy with a cheap used microscope on ebay. As long as you get the right Flux even lead free is very easy!
Glad your building the globe, I've been building led kits from banggood for the last few months. I've done the kanton tower and a few led cubes. I've had this in my cart for the last month. I'm going to order it now. Please keep on doing soldering projects, good project build videos are hard to find on UA-cam. And get the kanton tower or a 8x8x8 cube!
Hi Ian, you are right the Kits are great, I think I have all of them ;) and also some of the clock kits. Just finished the 8x8x8 LED Cube with integrated MP3 Player. The Board ist pre Soldered but the Matrix of 512 LED's is a really fun to solder. If I found more time I will upload a video of it.
www.banggood.com/3D-Light-Cube-Kit-8x8x8-Blue-LED-MP3-Music-Spectrum-DIY-Electronic-Kit-p-1091209.html?p=0V0809949687201412Y5
I believe the 74XX164 or 165 doesn't have a storage register in between, although I don't know if it comes in CMOS.
I think you will find that POV is persistence of vision
I've got the Hakko brass wool cleaner and like it a lot! Interested to see how this cheaper unit performs.
I do enjoy a postbag.
A bag of chips..... in the post. Happy days.
Whoop, whoop! Another kit!
Brass for lead free solder, sponge for leaded solder.
On that soldering kit, you might want to glue the LEDs on first? And also, if you're just using the USB hubs for power then you should consider rewiring it :)
That's what i was thinking, a tiny dab of superglue.
Have you heated super glue with a soldering iron?, very unpleasant.
indeed I have and you're right, very unpleasant.
haha, ya i been using the "sponget" lol for years. just a scouring pad that i get from the dollar store. Works great. Also cleans a messy pot , hehe
I sometimes use superglue to fix parts before soldering. The glue however doesn't mix well with solder.
It would be fun watching you do micro soldering! I don't envy you doing that at all. But I'm interested in you explaining the programming aspect of it.
Cheers
The USB chip is using all 4 ports as the turntable port counts as one.
jak p the datasheet shows that it's 1 input and 4 output ports.
Please replace the sponges. They eat solder-tips.
Hey Jillian, I am wanting to control a 12v device using the arduino, that can only give out 5v, so would using a relay be my best bet?
Make sure you check all your I'cs Jillian I'm sure the odd dud has been slipped in there. I got 4 faulty Lm293D h-bridges in a tube of 10. The price is always tempting considering how much some U.k sellers charge for one piece. :)
I also buy a lot of cheap stuff via EBAY. I tell my family i'm trying to wreck the Chinese economy by choosing only items with free postage. But only yesterday, someone on the radio said that the appalling traffic congestion was caused by deliveries of on-line shopping. Now I don't know what to do...
Use that read glue that they use to hold down for parole wave soldering
Unfortunately USB3.0 ports come in all range of colours (not just blue) these days. The best way to identify USB3.0 ports is to look for the extra pins that only USB3.0 ports have.
I wounder if those shavings really are brass. To me that just looks like a pot scrubber. The same type of pot scrubber I use bought from the supermarket. I think its copper plated steel. I found one made from fine wire that seems to work better than the flat wire in this one.
Cliff Hartle I'm pretty sure your right. It's definitely not brass.
I just checked the pack of Scotch Bright brand cleaning pads and it does say Copper coated.
Cliff Hartle "Chore Boy" makes 100% copper scrubbers.
well a mate of mine went to a local steel work shop and asked if they machined brass lately they had, so he got brass shaving for nothing, I have some too but I rather use a sponge.. Im more used to that..
A year later - Where's the kit build video? :D
Some smd glue may helps with the leds on the kit.
my favorite segment :)
Thanks to you and big clive I'm well on my way to a 100 little packages received from china... :-D
scrub, 380 here. lol
yeah I've had at least one package show up every day since the new year haha, it's a strange addiction. although most of them are electronic components for projects I have planned, some are just weird things that only cost $0.99 so I just went "why the hell not"
I started getting into arduino thanks to Julian. It's a nice cheap hobby, everything costs a pound or two. Problem is you end up with a never ending stream of things costing a pound or two.
Problem? I see no problem :-D except when you need to buy a larger house to store all the gimmicks... or the wife walks out, which would free up a lot of new space...
+petti78 here: Ditto :)
that globe light probably has 2 colours as alot of light things these days! if it were 1 or the other they would of said i think.
They do say, you have to select either the red or blue LED kit.
you should just use some solder paste and hot air when you assemble that kit..
Use the copper strips, I've been using for a long time and I never got a hairline crack in my finest bits!
I think the question is, How many times does it rotate 270 degrees :P
could you use another 7555 in astable mode to produce a clock to the storage register that was some small time increment after the data clock?
The 2nd 7555 would be in monostable mode, but yes I think that would work.
I just used one timer and put an inverter between it and one of the clock inputs of the 595, seems to work.
always love a bit of Chinglish packaging
Hello I just watched your video and you look like you need a tool for mounting the led's if you do let me know I might be able to help
Marcus Jeff what kind of tool have you got?
8:18 The POV stands for "persistence of vision" not "point of view" :P
I guess it depends on what kind of videos you like watching... ;)
hey julian i have a 4v lead acid battery and a 6v solar panel..and i want to charge the battery through that solar panel...can u plz tell me the way to connect together in order to charge the battery...
diy electronics I guess you would need a special charger to do that but I might be wrong. I am sure you will find an answer via google
LostName i have already googled it...bt i was unable to find any solution...maybe i have to upgade the panel upto 9v or 12v..!!!
Well if the battery isn't a tiny one or the panel a huge one.. you can just hook the panel right up to the battery and it will charge it somewhat. Adding a dedicated solar charge controller would improve efficiency of the panel and protect the battery (stop charging when the max voltage of the battery is reached. But usually a fairly large lead-acid battery can just bleed off the extra power I'd assume. You would want to put a reasonably sizeds diode in the correct orientatio on the positive lead to stop the battery draining to the panel when it's dark, though.
The 6v panel might be enough in bright sunlight, but you would need a reverse polarity protection diode.
What magnifying glass do you use?
It's one of those free ones they give away at exhibitions :)
The POV stands for persistence of vision not point of view.
those brass wool are any better than wet sponge ?
iceberg789 I find they're better than sponges. Mine leaves my tip nice and shiny.
interesting, my tips dont last very long, whenever i get a new tip & tin them, then after few days, they develop black area at one side of the tip. eventually it gets difficult and i need to chisel them.
a 25w iron.
50 cent kitchen scouring pad..
should i connect a couple of diodes in series in order to drop the voltage upto 5v something???
2000jago send me the link
I have a very limited range of 1 on 1 offerings ;)
Julian Ilett and what that means??
No, the voltage drop isn't constant across the current range and it's a very efficient way to convert voltages. You will want to charge your lead acid battery a few volts higher than what's printed on it, so around 6v should reasonably charge a 4v lead acid.
Not everyone is so fluent in English ;) It's funny because his username is diy electronics :')
brass shavings my backside. ..mine are copper coloured steel. ..
POV is persistence of vision.
POV is supposed to mean "persistence of vision" and not "point of view" :)
I have a mini post bag tomorrow. I am not making a video on it but if I did it would be a Alice1101983 special!
Why wait - have it tonight!
Julian Ilett well I haven't received my packages yet. I might be receiving about 8 things tomorrow so that will be fun! There is no delivery in the us today so I won't get anything today.
POV=Persistence Of Vision, Julian, not Point Of View in this particular case ;)
People must be mad to fund UA-camrs directly, this is all I hear all the time now money this money that.
Art! yes, please 😃
I want to solder that globe kit so badly. I would get it but it costs 18 packets from china :/
POV in this instance is Persistence Of Vision, not Point Of View ;)
Higgeldy piggeldy? Too funny!
74HC164.
I found a HC164 in my parts drawer! But I think the 595 will work if I invert the shift clock and connect it to the storage clock
for fucks sake dont do a multi part video of soldering 5 components in a video
You betrayer of the spongets
RoHS = Restriction of Hazardous Substances Directive
should have been "Eclectic Electronic Entities"
It was initially :)
Scissors? Bleh. Missing the sharp knife!
+Paul Sampson I believe he said it broke
Yes. I know. I saw/heard. This isn't helping - >sob
The words chinglish I've ever seen...
^ monostable duh :o
persistence of vision, not point of view :p
Seriously? "Sponget"? "Outdreak"? Where do those guys learn ESL (English as Second Language)?!? Maybe Chinese orphanage? Boy Scout camp in Moscow? I guess they also don't know the difference between welding and soldering, either. :)
5 th comment!
i've done led kit. is so cute... after you balance it 😂😂😂😂