Looking for funky-looking components! - Page 1
Forum section: electronics / general

author: igendel
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: July 12, 2017, 04:56:11 pm
content: Hi all,I was given a somewhat unusual task: to develop a board with some simple functionality, but one that will look very impressive and "technological" to those who have no idea. I can even put components that don't really connect to anything, as long as the average electronically-challenged person will open the case and go "Holy c**** there's some serious hi-tech stuff going on in here!"Now, for the limitations:1. These decorative components should be easily available in digikey/mouser/etc., and cheap (maybe up to $2-3 a piece for a really fancy one)2. Could be THT or SMT, but not very big (think 14-DIP at the most) and still hand-solderableThe first thing that came to my mind were those little colored coils used in old RF circuits - are they still being sold? Any other ideas welcomed - uncommon shapes, colors, anything goes!Oh, and don't worry, it's not for some sham kickstarter project that Dave will rant about laterThanks in advance!

author: The Soulman
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: July 12, 2017, 05:19:03 pm
content: Maybe some generic part in a metal to-5 or to-39 housing with a heatsink attached:I bet this product is audio related, if it is make sure everything is symmetrical otherwise it wont sell..

author: igendel
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: July 12, 2017, 05:30:03 pm
content: Quote from: The Soulman on July 12, 2017, 05:19:03 pmHeh, actually not audio, -phile or otherwise, but Iamgoing to make the component arrangement and the PCB traces fancier than needed.An odd heatsink could be nice indeed, maybe in gold or copper

author: tablatronix
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: July 12, 2017, 05:47:31 pm
content: I am a fan of square capacitors like x2s, they come in nice bright colors, and look like little buildings.Clear or glass components might be interesting, large geranium diodes etc.And common mode chokes, I seen some nice colored ones.capacitors with the heat shrink removed, you can buff the aluminum.

author: buck converter
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: July 12, 2017, 05:59:09 pm
content: An inductor of every shape and size, but make sure the wire is exposed.rigid coaxcapacitor with voltage rating in the thousands and isclearlylabled

author: igendel
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: July 12, 2017, 06:03:50 pm
content: Quote from: tablatronix on July 12, 2017, 05:47:31 pmGood ideas, this last one especially mean

author: orolo
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: July 12, 2017, 06:04:49 pm
content: Lots of blinkenlights.

author: Cyberdragon
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: July 12, 2017, 06:08:49 pm
content: For prop sci-fi circuits here's some suggestions- A lithium cell battery (18650) so the board runs whether connected or not (charging circuit on the board using excessive and large parts) then maybe paint and decorate it to make it look like a tiny nuclear reactor or something (like a fusion cell from Fallout 4)- lots of blinking LEDs- counting LED displays- DIP chips- large and small surface mount parts- heatsinks- transparent flex daughterboards (if you want to go that far)- large coils (decorated)- metal can transistors or even ICs (IDK how available these are anymore)- EL wire glowing/blinking and going to random places (these are cheap, and drivers are easy to make)- homemade but well made parts (like those free energy nuts do, lots of nice hand wound coils and bits wrapped in foil)

author: igendel
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: July 12, 2017, 06:10:04 pm
content: Quote from: buck converter on July 12, 2017, 05:59:09 pmSpeaking of which, check out this beauty!http://www.mouser.com/ProductDetail/American-Technical-Ceramics-ATC/506WLSM1R10KT438TToo big and expensive for my needs, but what a bobby dazzler

author: igendel
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: July 12, 2017, 06:16:49 pm
content: Quote from: Cyberdragon on July 12, 2017, 06:08:49 pmQuote from: orolo on July 12, 2017, 06:04:49 pmSorry, I guess I wasn't clear enough - the PCB will not be exposed under normal circumstances and it can't be very big. It should simply look, to the curious-but-untrained eye, like a real circuit you'd find inside a super advanced high-end product.Naturally, there's going to be a real functioning MCU in multi-pin TQFP, and a couple of ICs in TSSOP or something like that.

author: Nusa
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: July 12, 2017, 06:22:20 pm
content: Sounds like the perfect case for buying chinese parts with prices too low to be real. Why pay for a genuine unrecycled component if all it has to do is look pretty?

author: igendel
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: July 12, 2017, 06:26:43 pm
content: Quote from: Nusa on July 12, 2017, 06:22:20 pmWell, the client pays for them, so...In principle you're right, but for now I just want to make one order of components and get it done.

author: tablatronix
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: July 12, 2017, 06:32:08 pm
content: You can fill alot of space with cheap radial led heatsinks.

author: igendel
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: July 12, 2017, 06:46:47 pm
content: Quote from: tablatronix on July 12, 2017, 06:32:08 pmNo, those scream "Powerful!", not necessarily "Sophisticated!"

author: aargee
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: July 12, 2017, 06:55:52 pm
content: Find some recent motherboards, heat sinks and whatnots on them are usually built for visually appealing aesthetics.

author: Vtile
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: July 12, 2017, 07:42:00 pm
content: uA741 in goldplated TO78 hermetic case is still today a seriously looking component.

author: Lord of nothing
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: July 12, 2017, 08:09:56 pm
content: there are some interesting public displays:http://www.lg.com/de/business/informationsdisplays/digital-signage/sonderdisplaysfor example a mirror display:http://www.lg.com/de/business/informationsdisplays/digital-signage/lg-49MS75A

author: jimdeane
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: July 13, 2017, 07:00:45 am
content: At Fermilab in the room that housed the old Cockroft-Walton, which was retired several years ago (maybe at end of the last Tevatron run?), they have a new proton generator and initial accelerator at the head of the Linac building. But it's tiny. To make it more...interesting?...one of the engineers built a blue LED cube (looks like maybe a 4x4x4) that cycles through some patterns. I laughed at that -- some people might think it's some advanced physics tool, when the bland box beneath it is doing all the physics work. There was also (at least in 2014) a big panel above with some random-ish light patterns displayed on it, reminiscent of the older Star Trek effects. It's in good fun, impressive to the uninitiated, amusing to others.https://photos.app.goo.gl/wIbDbNe1AkEeThMp1

author: igendel
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: July 13, 2017, 07:20:19 am
content: Quote from: jimdeane on July 13, 2017, 07:00:45 amBlue science physics quantum cubeBut again, I'm not looking for special effects or impressive interfaces (actually, lights/displays will waste power that I may need if the device is on battery). I just need impressive-looking components.Quote from: Vtile on July 12, 2017, 07:42:00 pmAnd expensive! Everything TO78 I could find so far is >$20 a piece, what is the world coming to?

author: alm
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: July 13, 2017, 07:47:32 am
content: Cerdip with the gold nameplate? Bonus point if you can make those gold-plated PCBs like HP used in the old days.Straight PCB-mount SMA connectors? Coils with visible wire? Relays with transparent case?

author: igendel
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: July 13, 2017, 07:53:15 am
content: Quote from: alm on July 13, 2017, 07:47:32 amGold gets extra points, certainly. Relays are too big.But where do I find small coils with visible wires?

author: JoeN
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: July 13, 2017, 08:28:53 am
content: Here's a good start:http://www.ebay.com/itm/Multi-lot-of-Computer-components-for-gold-recovery-includes-vintage-ICs-ect-/253041396512search "ic gold recovery" on eBay for lots of weird stuff, mostly all extremely overpriced junk, this looks like reasonably priced junk if the price stays at the opening bid, which it may, because it is junk.

author: alm
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: July 13, 2017, 08:39:44 am
content: Quote from: igendel on July 13, 2017, 07:53:15 amSomething like this might work:https://www.digikey.com/product-detail/en/bourns-inc/70F204AI-RC/70F204AI-RC-ND/3074102Obsolete, but a couple of dozen in stock at Digikey. I just used the parametric search and filtered on through-hole parts with dimensions that are not too big. Then ignore all coated ones.When I was recently disassembling something, I found these caps quite striking, silvery with interesting textures on the end caps and on top:https://www.digikey.com/product-detail/en/epcos-tdk/B32562J1106K000/495-6850-ND/3491006

author: CJay
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: July 13, 2017, 10:20:28 am
content: Piles of Mil surplus stuff out there, you can buy all sorts of unobtanium for pennies and you'll get things like glass encapsulated crystals, ceramic chips with gold sintered caps, gold leadframes, weird mil-spec only chip packages, *loads* of metal can transistors etc.etc.

author: rollatorwieltje
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: July 13, 2017, 10:44:18 am
content: On eBay you can get Soviet era ICs quite easily, those look great.

author: igendel
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: July 13, 2017, 11:43:06 am
content: Let's just get back a little on track here - these things from ebay are beautiful but I have to be able to find the same components in the future too, if the clients wants to produce another 100 or 1000 units. My board should eventually go into an actual product.

author: Berni
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: July 13, 2017, 12:08:53 pm
content: Quote from: igendel on July 13, 2017, 11:43:06 amThat makes things a lot more difficult since there is a reason that these high tech components are so rarely seen in products. They are expensive! Only the high end specialized gear can justify the price of these components. Anything that you want to be able to buy in 1000 quantity in the next few years is brand new components that sell for there list prices.Most of these old interesting components that people are showing here also carried a hefty price tag back in the day. A lot are custom made for one specific purpose, produced using lots of slow and fiddly manual labor, extensively tested to assure reliability. But now that they are old obsolete technology means that they can now only be sold as pretty looking objects rather than state of the art electronics.

author: CJay
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: July 13, 2017, 01:15:11 pm
content: Ah, if you may need to make a thousand, that makes a difference.OK, yes, the colour coded RF coils are still sold, as are trimmer caps in various colours, I'd also throw in some big ass axial leaded resistors with pretty stripes, gold plate always goes down well and if you want a bit of added spice, maybe some colour coded gold plated test points?You can always have copper and silkscreen art (Japanese book with an awesome Manga/Anime character etched into it and it was functional, think it was an FPGA book, it was discussed here recently)Blinkelinghts, the tiniest SMT LEDs can impress if they're lit, maybe even include a small micro to make them flash in sequence, call it a test sequence or something.There's a ton of scope for creativity here that could easily be harnessed and actually create visual art that works.

author: LordNobady
author_rank: Contributor
timestamp: July 13, 2017, 01:46:23 pm
content: What can also work are gold plated (RF) connectors. ( like the ones used on RF modules )

author: Fungus
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: July 13, 2017, 01:53:57 pm
content: For general public just put lots of 2W resistors (find a pretty color) and bare-copper inductors.Lots of wiggly impedance-matched PCB traces, too.

author: HackedFridgeMagnet
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: July 13, 2017, 02:02:39 pm
content: Red winding lacquer looks good imo.https://www.digikey.com/product-detail/en/eaton/CTX210655-R/513-1679-ND/667409

author: FrankBuss
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: July 13, 2017, 02:31:15 pm
content: I like these old TO-3 cases:https://www.digikey.de/short/3vtmp0And the coil you are searching:https://www.digikey.de/short/3vtmznOf course, use only these resistors, or bigger:https://www.digikey.de/short/3vtmmrNothing wrong with using a 10 W, 10 k pullup resistor for your microcontrollerPhotodiodes look nice, too:https://www.digikey.de/short/3vtmb8Old-style LDRs are cool as well, but more expensive.Looks like they still sell these can-type packages, but expensive:https://www.digikey.de/short/3vtm50And last but not least, you should have lots of fancy LEDs, like this:https://www.digikey.de/short/3vthcnUnfortunately I couldn't find one of these old ceramic ICs with the gold traces on top, this would be the best. I guess you can get these only as collector items from eBay.Challenge: create a circuit which does actually something useful with these parts

author: igendel
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: July 13, 2017, 03:02:29 pm
content: Quote from: FrankBuss on July 13, 2017, 02:31:15 pmYes, photodiodes! There are certainly some cool parts in this category, available and cheap(check out this one, although a tiny bit too expensive:https://www.digikey.com/product-detail/en/luna-optoelectronics/SLD-68-026/SLD-68-026-ND/5423686)Quote from: FrankBuss on July 13, 2017, 02:31:15 pmOne thing at a time...

author: SeanB
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: July 13, 2017, 06:49:01 pm
content: Instead of photodiodes, use IR detectors, as they also come in a metal can with a lid. As a bonus they still work if you power them, even without the fresnel lens they are normally behind, though they are a lot less sensitive.

author: mariush
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: July 13, 2017, 08:41:14 pm
content: Go to surplus stores or recyclers / scrap yards or even some places like Freegeek (or other that revive old hardware or tear them apart) and pick some old dedicated server power supplies or oscilloscopes , you'll find plenty weird planar transformers, chokes, inductors, opamps and ICs on ceramic substrates (especially in oscilloscopes), precision resistors on ceramic substrates..You'll pay for weight or even nothing at all if they're stuff for very old systems that aren't rare and then you can just desolder the chips and you have your stuff. No need to buy new unless you don't want to bother with washing the parts or spend the hours to desolder them from existing boards.

author: mariush
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: July 13, 2017, 08:48:40 pm
content: Oh since you seem to be from Israel, you should check out Surplus Tech Smart, some company from your country which also has an eBay page :http://stores.ebay.com/surplustechmart/and they have an actual website with contact info :http://www.surplustechmart.com/They were popular for a while because they listed on eBay damaged oscilloscopes and linear power supplies that seemed to have survived explosions or at least car crashes (military stuff i suppose)Give them a call and explain your situation, maybe they'll be willing to give you some circuit boards or at least some hardware that has none or very little resale value. .. and maybe since you're from Israel as well they'll be willing to give you a more preferential treatment.

author: The Soulman
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: July 13, 2017, 08:57:05 pm
content: ^ Potentially 1000 identical pieces required, new would be easier.

author: igendel
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: July 13, 2017, 09:23:59 pm
content: Quote from: mariush on July 13, 2017, 08:48:40 pmYou know my local market way better than meAs I said somewhere above, for my current project I need a more dependable source for the long run, but this information will probably come in handy elsewhere.Thank you all for your suggestions, I think I have enough to work with at this point!