Looking for a better breadboard - Page 1
Forum section: electronics / beginners

author: jtruc34
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: September 25, 2019, 07:59:46 pm
content: Hi,Three months ago, a bought the breadboard WBU-204 from Wisher Enterprise. After having used it for a while, I find that the wires a really hard to put in compared to another breadboard I have from an unkown manufacturer. They are 22AWG, so they should be pretty standard.Why is that? And what better alternative could I find?If it is a brand that I can find on distrelec.ch, it would be even nicer.Thanks.

author: tooki
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: September 26, 2019, 12:02:42 pm
content: 3M. I’ve bought those from distrelec before.If you’re planning a trip to USA soon, you can order them directly from the factory at about 1/4 the cost:https://www.eevblog.com/forum/chat/3m-breadboards-for-cheap/For what it’s worth, though, it tends to be low quality breadboards that are easy to insert into. High quality ones like 3M and wisher tend to be stiffer. I sometimes use tweezers or small pliers to insert leads into the 3M boards.

author: tggzzz
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: September 26, 2019, 12:16:18 pm
content: Whichever breadboard you use, you will find you spend more time debugging the breadboard than your circuit.Much better to bite the bullet and use rat's nest or manhattan techniques over a solid groundplane.

author: dcbrown73
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: September 26, 2019, 01:04:33 pm
content: Quote from: tooki on September 26, 2019, 12:02:42 pmI keep needle nose pliers at the bench for this.

author: dcbrown73
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: September 26, 2019, 01:12:12 pm
content: Quote from: tggzzz on September 26, 2019, 12:16:18 pmWhile in many cases, this is without question true. Breadboards do have their place. Especially for people just getting into the hobby building small low freq circuits.I try not to warn people away from breadboards. Just warn them of the potential hazards they could face when using it depending on the circuit. You can build a lot of things on a breadboard without issue. Especially when testing concepts that your learning.

author: tggzzz
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: September 26, 2019, 01:16:47 pm
content: Quote from: dcbrown73 on September 26, 2019, 01:12:12 pmUntil the varying resistance in an intermittent causes puzzlement. Or an audio frequency circuit oscillates at RF due to the the inductance of wire, stray capacitance and mutual inductance.Nowadays I refuse to try to debug someone's circuit if it is on a solderless breadboard.

author: dcbrown73
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: September 26, 2019, 01:17:57 pm
content: Quote from: tggzzz on September 26, 2019, 01:16:47 pm...and I certainly don't blame you.

author: tooki
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: September 26, 2019, 05:17:11 pm
content: Quote from: tggzzz on September 26, 2019, 12:16:18 pmPlease stop with the perpetual anti-breadboard crusade. You don’t need to hijack every single thread about breadboards with this crap.By taking an absolutist stance, rather than a realistic, measured approach, you also impugn your credibility, since plenty of people make all kinds of circuits on breadboards successfully. No, you’re not gonna do a high power microwave transmitter on one. But they work really well for most of the stuff beginners start with, as well as for plenty of digital logic circuits, etc. Learning the real-world limitations of a tool is also very important, as dcbrown said. (And frankly, I think you’re exaggerating more than just a little when you say you’ll spend more time debugging the breadboard than the circuit. I haven’t found that to be the case at all. Additionally, the problems you claim can also happen with other construction methods. You aren’t seriously going to claim that a perfboard or point-to-point audio amp can’t oscillate, are you?)Breadboards have their place, and it’s just wrong to pretend they don’t. Breadboardssignificantlylower the barrier to entry for beginners, by making it quick and easy to experiment, and to reuse parts. It’s ridiculous to suggest that beginners should start soldering together everything right from the start. There’s a reason why kids start with LEGO, not with bricks and mortar.

author: scatterandfocus
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: September 26, 2019, 05:38:39 pm
content: Quote from: tggzzz on September 26, 2019, 12:16:18 pmNoob question here on using copper clad board for manhattan construction. Why is it good to have a such a big groundplane, as opposed to much smaller ground traces on a pcb or solderless breadboard?

author: tggzzz
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: September 26, 2019, 06:05:44 pm
content: Quote from: scatterandfocus on September 26, 2019, 05:38:39 pmThere are many many advantages, particularly low inductance and resistance.FFI, Google for benefits of a ground plane.