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A few quick reference pictures about fitting the PCBs into a cartridge:
IMG_20190526_221012.jpg

The prog board has enough space to fit with sockets.

IMG_20190526_221151.jpg

The char board doesn't have enough space for sockets, so the ROMs have to be directly soldered onto the PCB if you want to use a cartridge shell.

IMG_20190527_210112.jpg

Without sockets it fits.
 
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I have a TOP3000 on the way from china now! Hope to join in on the testing asap! :D
 
They look like the turned pins from a socket. Maybe they could work without the plastic frame?
You'd still need lots of them...

http://dkc3.digikey.com/PDF/UK2011-EN/P0540.pdf
Looking at the catalog page they seem to consist of a turned metal pin and a small spring insert. While you can easily make the pin on a cnc lathe, the insert may require special tooling...
 
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They look like the turned pins from a socket. Maybe they could work without the plastic frame?
You'd still need lots of them...

http://dkc3.digikey.com/PDF/UK2011-EN/P0540.pdf
Looking at the catalog page they seem to consist of a turned metal pin and a small spring insert. While you can easily make the pin on a cnc lathe, the insert may require special tooling...
Would these pins work with your boardsets? I might just bite the bullet and get a bunch of these to use with them.
 
Would these pins work with your boardsets? I might just bite the bullet and get a bunch of these to use with them.
I'll have to check tonight, but my gut feeling is that they require a larger diameter hole.
I asked @caius about those pins and he pointed me to these on EBay. Much more affordable than the Digi-Key pins:

https://www.ebay.com/itm/2-pcs-Mach...e=STRK:MEBIDX:IT&_trksid=p2057872.m2749.l2649
These will add as much height as a normal socket.

Edit: I guess you could remove the plastic and drill out the holes, but then you'll lose the plating inside the hole.
 
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Would these pins work with your boardsets? I might just bite the bullet and get a bunch of these to use with them.
I'll have to check tonight, but my gut feeling is that they require a larger diameter hole.
I asked @caius about those pins and he pointed me to these on EBay. Much more affordable than the Digi-Key pins:

https://www.ebay.com/itm/2-pcs-Mach...e=STRK:MEBIDX:IT&_trksid=p2057872.m2749.l2649
These will add as much height as a normal socket.
Edit: I guess you could remove the plastic and drill out the holes, but then you'll lose the plating inside the hole.
If you could check the figment of the pins that would great. If they require a larger diameter hole, could you possibly revise/update your design to support these pins on your next run of boards?? Thanks for looking into it, it’s much appreciated :)
 
If you could check the figment of the pins that would great. If they require a larger diameter hole, could you possibly revise/update your design to support these pins on your next run of boards?? Thanks for looking into it, it’s much appreciated :)
Current hole size in the design: 0.8mm . Though some of that may be lost from the hole plating process, unfortunately I have no way to measure that properly...

The mounting hole for the special pins requires 0.91mm diameter, so they will not fit in the current board. If someone can give me the hole size required for the cheaper pins I can look at changing the design.
 
If you could check the figment of the pins that would great. If they require a larger diameter hole, could you possibly revise/update your design to support these pins on your next run of boards?? Thanks for looking into it, it’s much appreciated :)
I'm currently looking at the re-order and what can be changed in the design.
The Mil-Max pins require a 0.91mm mounting hole. That is definitely doable without major impact on others.
The single-row pins suggested by caius and ShootTheCore are most likely going to require a larger hole, if they are similar to the turned-pin sockets I've got on my desk they'll need a bit holes a bit larger than 1.3mm, assuming you want to bury them similar to the Mil-Max pins. (If anyone has used them like this, can someone confirm the required diameter?) I'm a bit worried that this will make the boards less usable for everyone else who wants to use normal sockets or solder the chips directly.

The options are:
- leave boards as they are. If you want to test ROMs before installing them, order a forth set for tests and use normal sockets.
- leave boards as they are, but drill out the holes to the required diameter. Not sure how well that would work, that may be quite time consuming, and you may need to solder the pins from both sides to get good contact.
- change the holes to 0.91mm for the Mil-Max pins. I have not tried the pins, and I'm not sure how much of the diameter is lost from hole plating, so it may be a good idea to go to 0.95mm or something. I don't mind doing this if nobody has objections?
- change the holes to something like 1.3mm (If someone can confirm the required diameter.) I don't mind doing the design change, but I'm reluctant to order all boards with this design.

What are everyone's thoughts on this?
 
I would go for the mil max ones, they are not that much more expensive over the eBay ones. The cost of those added to the cost of your boards is not even close enough to the cost of getting a donor cart. So for me it doesn’t really take anything away. So my vote is on the mil max ones, smaller hole diameter, the price does drop if you order enough for 3 carts. Plus they seem like quality made. If you make updates to your boards to use these put me down for 4-5 sets.
 
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