I had a good friend send me som Vero / Stripboard from the UK. Fabulous stuff!
For those that don't know, Vero board or Stripboard is perfboard with a copper strip the entire length of each horizontal row of holes. Cuts are made to break the horizontal strip with a special cutting tool, or a drill bit just twisted a couple times by hand. Cuts would be made in the case of an IC - take for example a 26-pin dip package. You would need to cut 8 traces by twisting the drill bit between the rows where the IC is to be inserted. 8 traces, that is unless two lined up pins from the adjacent row connect - 1 and 16, for example. The board is easy to use, but does take some thought in regards to layout to minimize the need to cut traces or use jumpers. Meccano, the same makers of the Erector Set, offers this handy layout sheet for working with Stripboard. See http://www.eleinmec.com/article.asp?11 and choose your format - word, pdf, etc. for viewing. If I order board myself, I get it from Rapid Electronics in the UK at http://www.rapidelectronics.co.uk/rkmain.asp?PAGEID=80008. I can't understand why this stuff never became popular in the US. Then again, I can't understand why the majority of good electronics and computer magazines are no longer published in the USA either. 73, de Joe, N6DGY -----Original Message----- From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] On Behalf Of [EMAIL PROTECTED] Sent: Sunday, November 13, 2005 11:55 AM To: Discussion of AM Radio Subject: Re: [AMRadio] Dumber than a rock question . . Barrie, you can buy push pins specially made to fit tightly into those perf board holes and then solder your connections and parts directly to the stakes/pins. It is a popular way of anchoring things to perf board. I prefer a metal chassis and terminal boards for larger tube stuff. However, for BOARD type construction the BEST thing is called VERO BOARD. It is hard to find in the USA though. On 13 Nov 2005 at 11:37, Barrie Smith wrote: > Well, guys, I've built a heap of stuff over a many year period, but > have never used perfboard. > > I'm in the process of building an in-shack controller for an antenna > matching device that is at the base of one of my towers. This unit > has a 90 microhenry coil therein, with four latching vacuum relays > which will short out turns as needed for matching. > > Since the latching vacuum relays have no auxilery contacts, I bought > four small perfboard latching relays which will be in the control box > in the shack. These relays will actuate the vacuum relays outside and > also light a LED, so I will know how many turns are shorted on the outside coil. > > I bought some perfboard (for the first time), and took a look at it > last night. The relays fit in the holes just fine, with a small > amount of pin sticking through the other side. > > So, what the hell do I do with it? Wrap some wire around the > protruding pins and solder it? Put the wire in an adjacent hole and > run a solder trace? > > Well, I told you it was dumb! > > 73, Barrie, W7ALW > > > ______________________________________________________________ > AMRadio mailing list > Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/amradio > Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.html > Post: mailto:AMRadio@mailman.qth.net > AMfone Website: http://www.amfone.net > AM List Admin: Brian Sherrod/w5ami ______________________________________________________________ AMRadio mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/amradio Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.html Post: mailto:AMRadio@mailman.qth.net AMfone Website: http://www.amfone.net AM List Admin: Brian Sherrod/w5ami
