Helpful tools thread

channelmanic

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Hey folks,

Just thought I'd start a thread about tools we use when fixing game boards. This thread is about tools... not test equipment... not soldering stations.

Just tools... tools that most everyone will find useful at one time or another.

Duck Bill Pliers... a.k.a. flat nosed pliers. VERY useful for straightening out chip pins. If they aren't flat enough to get inbetween the pins on chips just put 'em on a grinder and grind down the outside of them a bit. You MUST find a pair that the jaws mate each other when closed. The cheap Chinese pliers don't always mate properly. Can be seen in the upper left of this picture.


Welding tip cleaner.
.. a.k.a. desoldering iron tip cleaner. Can be found at your local Lowe's for cheap. UPC 879686000150 is the one I picked up there... Task Force model SGY-C3.


Titan brand folding tamper proof Torx set
. Has T6 through T10, T15/20/25/27/30 in one small folding tool. Perfect for control panels, CPS2 carts, and other things you find that have those tamper proof Torx screws. Don't recall where I got this one... probably Northern Tool. Edit:AutoZone has these...


Kobalt insulated screwdriver set Picked this one up at Lowe's. Nice set... not as nice as some of the professional European insulated screwdrivers but quite a bit cheaper. Not for use in discharging monitors though! (There's no place to clip a gator wire! Duh!)


Kelly clamps and hemostats come in very handy for pulling out solder from the desoldering iron's tube or for retrieving pesky screws that fall down inside things.


Hard drive magnets! If you have a dead hard drive then tear it apart and pull the magnets out. Not only are they great for hanging papers but they are awesome for magnetizing screwdrivers. Just BE CAREFUL! If you hold them wrong and they clamp together on your skin you WILL get blood blisters. Those things are scary strong. KEEP AWAY FROM MONITORS. (Duh!)


Not really a tool, but a cleaner: Goof-off in the little metal can with the fold-over squirt top. Reminds me of an old Ronsonol lighter fluid can. Works WONDERS in getting label residue off of EPROMs, etc.


4" Bench Vise. Everyone should have one. Great for holding metal parts to be modified. Also great for assembling ribbon cables with those IDC connectors. I use mine to build replacement CPU ribbon cables for Ms Pac Man and ribbon cables for Galaga, etc.

What other tools do you have that have been very helpful?
 
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Helping hands - Alligator clips with a base to hold wires/connectors etc while soldering.
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Magnifying visor (for us old farts :) )
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Dental Picks (good for, well, picking at things).

Old business cards - good for burnishing leaf switch contacts, and sticking notes on things.
 

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  • An IC extractor:

ic-extractor-tool-for-plcc_iiqrku1321840884241.jpg


Here's a cheap eBay link ($1.69 shipped!):

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=220877800938

Doing as much eprom and board work that I do, I use my IC extractor a lot.

  • Bic pen: I use the Bic pen shafts for makeshift pcb risers/standoffs. Great 'in the field' solution.

  • Digital Multi meter: Nearly impossible to do anything in this hobby without a DMM.
 
  • An IC extractor:

ic-extractor-tool-for-plcc_iiqrku1321840884241.jpg


Here's a cheap eBay link ($1.69 shipped!):

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=220877800938

Doing as much eprom and board work that I do, I use my IC extractor a lot.


I hate that damn thing, it always slips off, i have much better luck with the small flat head bob roberts sent me






  • Lil red plastic tube from canned air: works great for bending back header pins
  • T-Pins: From your local craft store/sewing dept. Use these to probe connectors ect...
66901-0000-3ww-l.jpg
 
I hate that damn thing, it always slips off, i have much better luck with the small flat head bob roberts sent me

I have trouble with very small (12 pin) and very large (40 pin +) chips, but for your typical 2716 or other eprom chips, they work very well. You have to make sure you have a good 'bite' on the chip before you begin working it out.

I've used small flat tipped screwdrivers to remove some of the tougher chips too, but the problem with that is it takes longer, is not a clean approach, and sometimes you don't have the clearance you need to get the screwdriver in from the side because there may be other components in the way.

+1 on the hobby pins, though. I keep a few pins of various sizes/shapes in my work box too. I use them for all sorts of things - de-pinning connectors, probing, cleaning, etc.
 
The IC extractor shown is actually for getting chips out of PLCC sockets, not DIP chips.

plcc.jpg


For DIPs you need a wider gripper, or you end up wrenching one side out and bending the pins. I just use a thin flat bladed screwdriver, you have to use a lot of force with an IC puller and when the chip finally moves you end up hurling it over your shoulder. :)
 
The IC extractor shown is actually for getting chips out of PLCC sockets, not DIP chips.

plcc.jpg


For DIPs you need a wider gripper, or you end up wrenching one side out and bending the pins. I just use a thin flat bladed screwdriver, you have to use a lot of force with an IC puller and when the chip finally moves you end up hurling it over your shoulder. :)

I have trouble with very small (12 pin) and very large (40 pin +) chips, but for your typical 2716 or other eprom chips, they work very well. You have to make sure you have a good 'bite' on the chip before you begin working it out.

I've used small flat tipped screwdrivers to remove some of the tougher chips too, but the problem with that is it takes longer, is not a clean approach, and sometimes you don't have the clearance you need to get the screwdriver in from the side because there may be other components in the way.

+1 on the hobby pins, though. I keep a few pins of various sizes/shapes in my work box too. I use them for all sorts of things - de-pinning connectors, probing, cleaning, etc.


yea i have both the PLCC and dip ones, i hate the PLCC pullers especially for the larger ones they always slip off. Dips i 95% of the time just use the screwdriver but yup your completely right about when there are other components close by.

i still use the small screwdriver on the PLCC's tho as well but just to get the 2 corners up a lil out of the socket so the puller can try and get it's legs under there. i still notice the puller can sometimes bend 1-2 pins. (it could definitely be user error tho lol)
 
I have a pair like this, but I prefer the standard type. I find it too difficult to judge how much insulation you'll actually remove with the more fancy ones.

the piece of blue tab that slides sideways is the gauge that tells you how much you are taking off, though their minimum setting is too long for me, so i stick something on top of that and now it's right for what i do.
 
One that I've been making a LOT of use of lately is a set of test lead adapters: "Micro-Scale Test Lead Kit" from Radio Shack, cat # 278-039. These are adapters that slip on the end of your multimeter probes and lets you go handsfree, work on conformal coated boards, or get into very tight spaces such as when working on radio transceivers. :)

$21.99

Has the following adapters:
2 needle pin
1 battery current probe
2 micro plunger clip
2 nano plunger clip
2 pin socket
2 alligator clip
2 magnetic probe
2 breadboard pin
 
LED headlamp - The first thing that came to mind. This has been invaluable for digging around cabinets, highly recommend!
LED_Head_Lamp_13000.jpg


Another surprisingly useful item is a tiny (kids?) folding footstool. If you get the right kind, it can stand inside or outside the cabinet at just the right height to hold boards, test equipment, etc.

LeChuck
 
I have found that using a mechanical pencil with a metal barrel to be very useful for straightening IC pins - even works for those troublesome times when you have dropped a PGA chip and pins get bent.
 
  • An IC extractor:

ic-extractor-tool-for-plcc_iiqrku1321840884241.jpg


Here's a cheap eBay link ($1.69 shipped!):

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=220877800938

Doing as much eprom and board work that I do, I use my IC extractor a lot.

  • Bic pen: I use the Bic pen shafts for makeshift pcb risers/standoffs. Great 'in the field' solution.

  • Digital Multi meter: Nearly impossible to do anything in this hobby without a DMM.

While an IC extractor might be a good idea, I wouldn't recommend that one it's for PLCC chips, not DIPs, and most of the stuff I run into on these boards is DIP.

FYI, DIP packaging is where you have a plastic or ceramic rectangle, with pins on two opposing sides.

PLCC (plastic leaded chip carrier) is a square plastic carrier with pins on all 4 sides. The pins sort of bend under the chip. The sockets have slots in two opposite corners, which the metal bits of that puller fit into.

I'm certain that you could use that thing to pull a DIP, but you'll want to be careful, the little hooks on the ends aren't really long enough to get a solid grip. This does means it's probably easier to maneuver, but also easier to slip with.
 
While an IC extractor might be a good idea, I wouldn't recommend that one it's for PLCC chips, not DIPs, and most of the stuff I run into on these boards is DIP.

FYI, DIP packaging is where you have a plastic or ceramic rectangle, with pins on two opposing sides.

PLCC (plastic leaded chip carrier) is a square plastic carrier with pins on all 4 sides. The pins sort of bend under the chip. The sockets have slots in two opposite corners, which the metal bits of that puller fit into.

I'm certain that you could use that thing to pull a DIP, but you'll want to be careful, the little hooks on the ends aren't really long enough to get a solid grip. This does means it's probably easier to maneuver, but also easier to slip with.

With practice, I've gotten pretty good at using it for DIP chips. Yes, you're right, the grippers can some times slip off, but I'm always cautious to make sure I've got a good 'bite' on the chip before I start working it. and I always pull in very small rocking motions in each direction to ensure I don't get an errant pull which would bend chip legs. After a few hundred chips, I got a feel for how the chips feel when they're coming out and I can pull them pretty easily now. If I get a stubborn one I'll still go back to the flat head screwdriver method, but it take a lot longer, and I bend more legs THAT way than any other method.
 
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