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Question about Breadboards

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Bjørn

Sat Apr 10 2010, 02:20PM

Registered Member #27 Joined: Fri Feb 03 2006, 02:20AM
Location: Hyperborea
Posts: 2058

It is a matter of using a suitable method to solve a given task, there is no method that is suitable for everything. A manhattan style project for modern 32 bit microcontrollers would be a spectacular waste of time and sanity.

It seems that some people always have problems with bad connections, breadboards or otherwise. I suspect environmental factors that causes corrosion. Hot and humid seems to be a bad combination, particulary with copper wires that are not tinned.

wylie

Sat Apr 10 2010, 02:57PM

Registered Member #882 Joined: Sat Jul 07 2007, 04:32AM
Location:
Posts: 103

I bought a snazzy looking 'breadboard' last year, and soon discovered I had bought a method of creating 1024 potential dry joints in a single project, the aspiration of the inhabitants of some other planet.

* 10^6

I think the reason I'm so attached to RS breadboards is because I wanted a grown-up alternative to LEGOs. Now that there's adult LEGOs to play with (the robotics stuff), i should probably move on from the breadboards.

But hey, if you just want to hook up 5 different colors of LED and play with color mixing.....do you really want to have to solder or glue anything for that? BAM: Breadboards.

ragnar

Sat Apr 10 2010, 03:23PM

Registered Member #63 Joined: Thu Feb 09 2006, 06:18AM
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Posts: 1425

wylie wrote ...
But hey, if you just want to hook up 5 different colors of LED and play with color mixing.....do you really want to have to solder or glue anything for that? BAM: Breadboards.

Actually, yes I do want to solder. My last PCB was two 20mA current sources side by side just for testing LEDs. While you can change conections, breadboards are totally unrepeatable. You only have to make a PCB once.

While I may be bordering on OCD, I feel breadboards are highly unhealthy for people with short tempers. It only goes downhill once you've melted / oxidized a contactor inside the board, I'm with Mary on this one.

Proud Mary

Sat Apr 10 2010, 03:35PM

Registered Member #543 Joined: Tue Feb 20 2007, 04:26PM
Location: UK
Posts: 4992

wylie wrote ...

I think the reason I'm so attached to RS breadboards is because I wanted a grown-up alternative to LEGOs. Now that there's adult LEGOs to play with (the robotics stuff), i should probably move on from the breadboards.

Interesting you should mention Lego now, as I've been on the verge of buying a set for several weeks. I want to find out how much 'give' is necessary in the blocks for them to lock together.

Would blocks of lead cast from a Lego mold lock together, I wondered, or would it be neceesary to coat the blocks with some lead-loaded polymer that had some 'give' in it for them to lock together to build a demountable bespoke shielding wall?

This is a bit OT, so I'll just add that BjÃ¸rn is right to say that it's horses for courses where prototyping ways and means are concerned.

ShawnLG

Sat Apr 10 2010, 05:33PM

Registered Member #286 Joined: Mon Mar 06 2006, 04:52AM
Location:
Posts: 399

The only good qualtity breadboards that I have ever used are by Global Specialties. Radio Shack did sell a good brand breadboard with their brand label "Archer" on it from Global for many years. Now Radio Shack only sells a cheaper brand of breadboard. I think this is also from Global Specialties.

Here is a page on Global's breadboards:

Global Specialties Site:

Global Specialties sells two different types of breadboards, economy and premium. Only buy the premium type.

quicksilver

Tue Apr 13 2010, 01:48PM

Registered Member #1408 Joined: Fri Mar 21 2008, 03:49PM
Location: Oracle, AZ
Posts: 679

"Archer" circa 1970 12Vdc power supply's were pretty beefy for the money (8A) but the latest Radio Shack breadboard has that old issue with some perforations being so damn tight, it's surprising (& annoying).
Luckily, I have a electronic surplus store in town and they MAY just have Globals or at least something other than the junk I am struggling with.

The Manhattan concept appears to be a great thing IF you can find thinner boards. Else you're forced to punch out your bridges. Perforated copper board appears to be suited for that type of building..... I only wish there was a real large scale surplus source for boards of various type because several people could pool their money & get a real lengthy supply of boards.

Hon1nbo

Tue Apr 13 2010, 02:01PM

Registered Member #902 Joined: Sun Jul 15 2007, 08:17PM
Location: Pacific Northwest USA
Posts: 1042

I still use breadboards for early prototyping, but I do need to stop, yet making the circuit on protoboard is just too much considering I tend to have oddly shaped components for any protoboard I can find, an if I make a mistake I waste a board and time (on my senior project I tried this with what I thought was a fool proof circuit, only to find it is not working due to my desgin. At least I took the tie to use one for my keypad matrix, as I found my old design to be inadequate and in minutes had a new super-effective design.
PCBs are nice for those who have the time to lay them out, etch them, maintain chemicals, and not make a mistake the first time, but I like to test things out first.

As said before, To Each His Own

Jimmy

thedatastream

Wed Apr 14 2010, 07:45AM

Registered Member #505 Joined: Sun Nov 19 2006, 06:42PM
Location: Yorkshire!
Posts: 329

Gah, breadboards :( After using shonky ones at uni fora couple of years I discovered matrix board and skywiring on my industrial placement and have never looked back!

I usually skywire a prototype and then do it a bit more nicely on matrix board using Visio as a crude CAD package.

each to his own ++

quicksilver

Wed Apr 14 2010, 02:59PM

Registered Member #1408 Joined: Fri Mar 21 2008, 03:49PM
Location: Oracle, AZ
Posts: 679

I've seen a picture of a matrix board... They are a perforated board with no copper; correct? However they are not so inexpensive and it appears (correct me if I'm wrong here) that you can really only use them once or twice.
That's the type of design wherein you wrap leads to pole-pieces to components; correct? It seems very flexible (design-wise). I've not tried it yet however.

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