pcb eyelet toolkit

andykmv

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does anyone here have a pcb eyelet toolkit with eyelets and swaging tools to repair damaged thru holes for vias, ic pads or component pads for double or single sided pcbs ?

anyone have any experience doing pcb eyelet repairs using these tools ?

i have been looking at the Keystone tools/kits and eyelets etc, and i only need the smallest couple of eyelet sizes initially.

the overall kits for 200-500 from the big pcb repair specialists cost too much for the minor repairs that i need to do.
can anyone recommend a good low cost alternative to the keystone or other tool kits ?
 
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does anyone here have a pcb eyelet toolkit with eyelets and swaging tools to repair damaged thru holes for vias, ic pads or component pads for double or single sided pcbs ?

anyone have any experience doing pcb eyelet repairs using these tools ?

i have been looking at the Keystone tools/kits and eyelets etc, and i only need the smallest couple of eyelet sizes initially.

the overall kits for 200-500 from the big pcb repair specialists cost too much for the minor repairs that i need to do.
can anyone recommend a good low cost alternative to the keystone or other tool kits ?

My approach is to stick a wire through the hole, and solder it to all of the appropriate traces on each side. It can be messy, but it generally works and doesn't cost a fortune.
 
Repairing vias is fairly easy, as long as they are not so small you need a microscope anyway. I just drill the hole out and run hookup wire from the tracks on side A to side B. Simple, quick and free. It can be incredibly neat too.
 
ok its the thru holes for IC legs that is the major reason for the interest in tools.

as you all say vias are eason to deal with cheaply and easily, but, if the repair is for someone else and it is to be a professonal repair, the tools etc are essential to getting it right for the long term.

last thing i want is some other repair person looking at my work and say "what a pile o crap im not touchin that" which would be unfair to the owner
 
I just don't see how you'd have some kind of magic eyelet that can repair a pulled through hole - it still has to make contact with the trace on both the top and bottom of the board, and invariably, one or both of those will be damaged from whatever pulled out the through hole.

You can just run a piece of stripped wire wrap wire through the hole, alongside the IC/socket pin, and solder it to the traces at the top and bottom of the board. It's the only way I can think of to make a reliable repair. If done right, it can look pretty neat. It'll never be perfect - but then again, it's a pulled out through hole. Normally that means "throw the board away and get another" if you're doing rework at the factory level.

-Ian
 
I just don't see how you'd have some kind of magic eyelet that can repair a pulled through hole - it still has to make contact with the trace on both the top and bottom of the board, and invariably, one or both of those will be damaged from whatever pulled out the through hole.....-Ian

you method is quick and easy but not the only way to repair these sorts of problems. here is a simplified summary of the process:
1. select eyelet to match damaged thru hole dimensions & pcb thickness
the eyelet is tubular that has a flange on one side that becomes the new PCB pad.
2. drill hole out to suit outside diameter of eyelet.
3. fit correct sized eyelet for hole diameter in new hole OVER existing pcb pad/trace on the good side.
4. Fit the pcb eyelet over the anvil pin. on the other side, fit the SWAGING tool into the eyelet (it should be protruding above the pcb). tap swaging tool. this will form a new flange so that both sides now have a flange, and forms the new complete thru hole with solder pads or lands.

as you can see there are some tools/components needed
- eyelets of various sizes (they are cheap and easy to get)
- the anvil and swaging tools of various sizes (more expensive and harder to get)
- PCB land and trace repair kits (easy to get, approx 35-55 each set) - the item referred to on ebay (PACE) is typical of the content and price - the "panels" of lands/traces are not cheap! wishing some chinese supplier of such tools/parts on ebay sold them, just havent found one yet.
- high temperature epoxy resin suit PCBS. this is stuff that needs to tolerate 360 degrees celcius during soldering operations to ensure the repaired traces dont lift after repair.

this is the stuff i am referring to
http://www.e-sonic.com/ and search for eyelet
http://www.keyelco.com/pdfs/p89.pdf (keystone brand among many)
http://www.practicalcomponents.com/products.php Circuit medic stuff and training/testing products
http://www.solder.net/PCB/default.asp
http://www.timemotion.com/Products/PCB-Repair-Kit--Best-Inc__WAS-01-137722.aspx

and here are some of the docos and resources on the web that describve the process in detail
http://www.circuitrework.com/guides/guides.shtml
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ozH2F3AX8BY

specific training resources
training/testing products http://www.practicalcomponents.com/products.php
http://www.blackfox.com/blackfox-courses/operator


and as with any tools used for advanced electronic repair, they require some investment in equipment to do complex repairs.

i am just hoping someone here has utilised these tools and give some feedback as to the effectiveness/neatness/ease of use and some suggestions on low cost suppliers of such tools!
 
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I've only used the magwire-thru-the-thru-hole method. But I did check out the pcb repair kits online and the result pictures they show look incredible. If you do get ahold of the eyelet tools and try it out, please post back here and tell us how it went!
 
Have you considered using a small lathe to make your own tools and eyelets? In the day when pcb boards where in the 6k to 10k making a perfect repair was very important.
Scrapping the top part of the trace to fit under the eyelet was important to get a good connection. Gold base expoy was the glue the eyelet. A press was use to mushroom the other side flat. You can make that perfect repair. Where no one could tell it hase ever been damaged.

I find it odd that anyone will go to that kind of trouble to fix an arcade board. I might still have some parts kicking around here but I think those eye lets were silver not cold.
If you have a jeweler friend he might be able to help you out..
 
Have you considered using a small lathe to make your own tools and eyelets? ..

i have a friend that is a toolmaker, but he doesnt have access to that kinda machinery at the moment

You can make that perfect repair. Where no one could tell it hase ever been damaged. ..

thats what i am aiming for - whether it is good enough to not be able to tell i am not that worried.

I find it odd that anyone will go to that kind of trouble to fix an arcade board. I might still have some parts kicking around here but I think those eye lets were silver not cold.
If you have a jeweler friend he might be able to help you out..

what can i say, i am an oddball ;). I dont have a jeweller friend, but i did check out jewellers swaging tool kits, but i wasnt sure if they were deisgned to do an eyelet job or not. i might have to check them again. the pcb eyelets are cheap and easy to get, no probs there!
 
i have a friend that is a toolmaker, but he doesnt have access to that kinda machinery at the moment



thats what i am aiming for - whether it is good enough to not be able to tell i am not that worried.



what can i say, i am an oddball ;). I dont have a jeweller friend, but i did check out jewellers swaging tool kits, but i wasnt sure if they were deisgned to do an eyelet job or not. i might have to check them again. the pcb eyelets are cheap and easy to get, no probs there!

A tool maker without a lathe is like a contruction guy without a hammer laughs.

You do know that eyelets reconstruction is do able for a dual layer board (Top and bottom traces). If you board is mutil layer meaning more than two you going run into problems. You might need to do some scraping and wire bonding to get the other layers to connect to the eyelet.
 
A tool maker without a lathe is like a contruction guy without a hammer laughs..

lol! he is in between technical type jobs, doing maintenance work at a college at the moment

You do know that eyelets reconstruction is do able for a dual layer board (Top and bottom traces). .
only talkiin classic arcades, 1-2 layer max!
 
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