Today's soldering - Page 1
Forum section: electronics / general

author: fanOfeeDIY
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: August 26, 2017, 03:10:57 pm
content: I wired TX and RX wrong on my PCB and cut the both line and swapped it.What do you call these wires fixed on the PCB?It is called "Jumper wire" in Japan but I feel it is called differently in English.

author: fanOfeeDIY
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: August 26, 2017, 03:37:39 pm
content: I think I found it from googling.Blue wires or bodge wires.Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

author: nanofrog
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: August 26, 2017, 05:27:28 pm
content: FWIW, bodge wire is the term I'm familiar with.

author: A@ron
author_rank: Contributor
timestamp: August 26, 2017, 05:54:24 pm
content: Quote from: nanofrog on August 26, 2017, 05:27:28 pmthat's what I'm familiar with as well because that's the term Dave uses.It's something I often find myself having to run on some of these old gaming machines to do trace repair so I go through a fair amount of 30 ga kynar wire.

author: tpowell1830
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: August 26, 2017, 11:36:47 pm
content: Looks like a jumper wire to me, that is what I call it. Nice job covering the wires with glue?

author: mariush
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: August 27, 2017, 12:07:26 am
content: I wonder why you didn't cut the traces closer to the vias (near the bottom right in your image).You could have just scraped off the cover over the vias and insert the wire in the via and add solder, or just lay the wire flat over the via and use the whole round copper thing of the via to attach the lead wire.

author: tautech
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: August 27, 2017, 12:26:25 am
content: Quote from: nanofrog on August 26, 2017, 05:27:28 pm+1A bodge is to correct a mistake or omission in the original design.Quotehttps://www.collinsdictionary.com/dictionary/english/bodge

author: fanOfeeDIY
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: August 27, 2017, 12:32:40 am
content: Quote from: tpowell1830 on August 26, 2017, 11:36:47 pmI covered with Kapton tape, so it won't come off by scratching it by mistake

author: fanOfeeDIY
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: August 27, 2017, 12:49:29 am
content: Quote from: mariush on August 27, 2017, 12:07:26 amUsing the vias is the great idea!I will use them next time, I am happy that I posted my image here to have valuable suggestions.

author: fanOfeeDIY
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: August 27, 2017, 12:52:13 am
content: I found the words of the blue wires and bodge wires from here.https://www.techopedia.com/definition/17992/blue-wireIs it something between the generations or US and UK?Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

author: SeanB
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: August 27, 2017, 03:10:20 pm
content: Just call it a production line update instead.

author: nanofrog
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: August 27, 2017, 07:17:21 pm
content: Quote from: fanOfeeDIY on August 27, 2017, 12:52:13 amI've not heard this term until you posted it, but suspect it originated from an internal/proprietary color code for the 30AWG wire wrapping wire (Kynar) used for such repairs/design corrections (i.e. carried over to enough companies that the term was named after said color codes stuck, despite the actual wire size and insulation color could be anything that gets the job done.As to why it's not as commonly used (from my perspective at least), I'm not sure.For all I know, it may have actually started from a particular university or professor.EditDid a little digging, and it seems it originated at IBM. Sources (Babylon,hobbyprojects.com, andinterconnection.net). Thus making it a US term that I think has fallen out of favor, while bodge is a British-English term that seems to have reached a lot more shores./Edit

author: KL27x
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: August 27, 2017, 10:39:44 pm
content: I've never heard "blue wire," before.In my local area of the USA, "jumper" or "jumper wire" is universally understood. "Bodge wire" might give a half a second pause, but most people will understand it.In conversation I've heard people in the industry call ADC "A-to-D." Which I think is stupid. It sounds like A2D, which makes no sense, and no one writes it "A2D" or "A to D" to my knowledge. And worst of all, they use it like a noun, and if you expand A to D, there is no noun. And when spoken, quickly, it ends up sounding like "ADD."I don't mind when americans call solder "sol' der." But when they manage to say the word 20 times in 5 minutes, I feel like they are just being pretentious. I feel like in most parts of UK, they pronounce it more like "so' der," with a very soft L if any. In my part of America we are taught in school to pronounce it "sod' er," with a short O. Or perhaps better written as "saw' dur." Which is good enough for me, even if other people think it's stupid. I will stick with w/e my 3rd grade teacher unequivocally taught me.I am assuming OP is talking about English as used in Japan. Or is the Japanese word for this actually "jumper" in English letters and all?

author: bd139
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: August 28, 2017, 12:11:35 am
content: One place I worked they called it "oh crap wrap" because it was always proceeded with someone saying "oh crap"

author: David Hess
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: August 28, 2017, 03:10:07 am
content: I made a mistake like that once in a layout. Vcc and ground got reversed between the top side and the bottom side so I had to cut the traces and add two jumpers on 100 boards.

author: boffin
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: August 28, 2017, 04:18:47 am
content: Quote from: fanOfeeDIY on August 26, 2017, 03:10:57 pmIt's used to be "ECO" (engineering change order) for that sort of patches on PCBs.

author: zeqing
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: August 28, 2017, 08:25:51 am
content: jumer wire , standard name...

author: Ian.M
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: August 28, 2017, 09:30:11 am
content: IIRC, traditionally they were colloquially referred to as 'green wires'. Solder resist was historically green, so if your board was going to be seen by a customer, choosing a shade of green for your bodge wire colour, so it would visually blend in against the resist often avoided awkward questions.The O.P.'s made rather a mess of those bodge wires. IMHO the track cuts should have been done inline so a short bare link with two bends in it could have joined one pair of ends, and the other (insulated) wire run round it (not crossed over - thickness issues), as short as possible, then tacked down with a drop of superglue gel, UV cure epoxy or PCB lacquer.

author: fanOfeeDIY
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: August 29, 2017, 05:04:35 pm
content: Wow,Jumper wire, blue wire, green wire, A-to-D, oh crap wrap, ECO and bodge wire.Never thought all these names exist. Worth posting the thread even for the topic of bodge wire.

author: fanOfeeDIY
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: August 29, 2017, 05:08:43 pm
content: Quote from: KL27x on August 27, 2017, 10:39:44 pmI Japan it is called "jumper" as it is but only in Japanese pronounce, and the "wire" is used the Japanese equivalent "sen".So the pronounce will be like "Jumpaa sen" (there are no "r" sound in Japanese)

author: fanOfeeDIY
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: August 29, 2017, 05:12:33 pm
content: Quote from: Ian.M on August 28, 2017, 09:30:11 amYes, initially my group was shorting inline between the cuts and adding another wire run round it.I attached the picture.I also like the suggestion from mariush of using vias.

author: Ian.M
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: August 29, 2017, 07:45:25 pm
content: Getting better, but the straight wire shouldn't be. Its ends should lie exactly along the tracks its soldered to.Take a cheap small flat bladed jewellers screwdriver and notch the end with a fine triangular file (or better a tringular diamond hone). The notch should be about half as deep as your bodge wire diameter and its edges must not be sharp. Take another such screwdriver and sharpen the end to a chisel style blade. Start by preparing and lightly pre-tinning all tracks you need to solder to and apply a little flux. Then take a few inches of bodge wire - long enough to hold - and strip enough to work with. If you want an insulated bodge wire part the insulation again at the desired length and slide the parted off bit down the wire so its:bare--bare-Solder the end along the track so the wire is inline and continues it. Right next to the solder joint' use the notched screwdriver to pin the wire against the board and bend it till it lies flat in the desired direction. Right at the end of the track you want to solder it to, pin it in place again, bend it to lie exactly along the track and solder it while holding it in place. Just past the end of the joint, notch it half way through by pressing with the chisel bladed screwdriver, and bend the wire a couple of times till it snaps at the notch.

author: Mr. Scram
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: August 30, 2017, 01:48:17 am
content: Quote from: Ian.M on August 29, 2017, 07:45:25 pmIs there a reason to complicate it?

author: Ian.M
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: August 30, 2017, 06:11:16 am
content: Its really not that complicated - mod the tools once then use them for the next ten years, and it takes far far longer to describe than to do. Why do it? Well I'd say: Neatness, professionalism, and also, if you ever have to jumper three or more closely spaced tracks, you will seriously regret it if you have'nt learnt to jumper stuff neatly.A further note: if you also want to use the notched screwdriver to hold the wire while tack gluing it, the end needs to be as highly polished as possible, and with a thin film of wax melted onto it so the glue doesn't stick to it,Everyone who does PCB rework on the cheap should customise a set of cheap jewellers screwdrivers - you want the crappy ones with brittle tips because they are hard enough to hold an edge - to make the probes, scrapers, blades etc. that are most useful for the work you usually do.

author: tooki
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: August 30, 2017, 11:47:37 am
content: Quote from: Ian.M on August 29, 2017, 07:45:25 pmAny chance you could be persuaded into making a video demonstration of this method?

author: Ian.M
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: August 30, 2017, 11:53:12 am
content: Quote from: tooki on August 30, 2017, 11:47:37 amSorry, no. I no longer have access to any decent video cameras or editing gear.Give it a try from my description. You should pick up the skill pretty quickly if you have good vision and steady hands. Flux is essential, as you have to carry the solder to the joint, as you cant feed it with your other hand committed to holding the wire in place (and holding the solder).When cutting off the excess wire, to avoid stressing the joint or the track to PCB bond, maintain light pressure on the chisel tip screwdriver till the wire snaps.

author: PlainName
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: August 30, 2017, 11:58:22 pm
content: QuoteDon't know where they got their info from but I've never heard the terms 'blue wire' or 'purple wire' as listed there. And 'bodge' is a dodgy fix akin to something Heath Robinson may have done.Looking further, I note that their definition of patch cable includes RJ45 for Ethernet but doesn't mention a quite vital property: that the patch cable is stranded whereas the standard non-patch is solid core. Indeed, they say:QuoteWhich is bollocks. That's a good reason for being circumspect about the info on there, IMO.

author: Quarlo Klobrigney
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: September 03, 2017, 01:03:34 am
content: Just use some Teflon coated wire available at you nearby Radio Shackas "wire wrap wire". It works a treat and won't burn.

author: cdev
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: September 03, 2017, 01:11:45 am
content: Green Teflon-insulated wire is the color - in my limited experience- that Ive seen used most often for post-manufacturing fixes and modifications.

author: macboy
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: September 05, 2017, 04:10:14 pm
content: At my previous company, we called them "barnacles".

author: cdev
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: September 06, 2017, 09:59:08 pm
content: Do you mean the patches themselves?Is that because they kind of hang off the PCB, like barnacles on a boat or pier?Quote from: macboy onYesterdayat 10:10:14

author: KL27x
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: September 06, 2017, 11:06:52 pm
content: QuoteI cut the wire with a tiny chisel. If I'm caring to be very particular, I might even pare the end of the wire down with a mitre cut at ~30 degree angle to the board, tapering the ends to gradually meet the PCB.Heck, once, I preflattened the 30 AWG bus wire with a hammer and anvil. Then soldered it on. Then tapered the ends. Then sanded the wire flat to under 4 mils max thickness using stone files and tiny sanding blocks.Another trick I have used for maximum flatness is to use copper tape to make jumpers. Alternating layers of kapton tape for insulation can let you cross jumpers with minimal vertical bulk.But most of the time... it does not matter, anyway.QuoteFar more common is Kynar insulated wrap wire. It strips much more neatly, but it will start to melt at soldering temp. All Kynar wrap wire isn't equal, either. Some formulations are less flexible but strip easier, and these are generally made for cut/wrap/strip bits.

author: nanofrog
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: September 06, 2017, 11:12:23 pm
content: Quote from: KL27x on September 06, 2017, 11:06:52 pmTalk about dedicated to doing a quality job...

author: KL27x
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: September 06, 2017, 11:20:14 pm
content: ^More a matter of having a stereomicroscope and fascination with making tiny tools and seeing how far I can take things.

author: nanofrog
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: September 06, 2017, 11:27:42 pm
content: Quote from: KL27x on September 06, 2017, 11:20:14 pmAs I have such a tool, I have to ask you please stop putting ideas in my head.