David writes – “Microcontroller hobbyist and electronic project enthusiast can stock up on useful parts by scrounging. Before you throw away an electronic device, take it apart. Examine how it was made and what parts were used. Look for reusable power supplies, microcontrollers, connectors, LCD, LEDs, knobs, meters and even the enclosure.
This article describes a recent scrounging project on a 3Com SuperStack II switch. This Ethernet switch was purchased to use in a home network for $10 at a Goodwill computer store. Unfortunately it was discovered later that the device had very loud fans and was actually only a 10MBit switch. Instead of just throwing it away, it was gutted for parts.” – Link.
Related:
Electronics archives – Link.
8 thoughts on “Scrounging electronic parts”
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Those little desoldering vacuum stations make this a simple task, pricy new but if you can find one used they save a lot of time and effort.
Those little pump bulb type ones are alright, but being cheap, well… you get what you pay for.
I have an older (analog) Weller repair station, has a soldering iron and a desoldering iron, built in vacuum pump, and it’s worked like a charm considering it was a dumpster dive find.
And as always, be careful with caps, especially if your taking apart an old power supply.
Parts fall from a board like rain with a little propane heat on the back side of the board, and a good whack with something heavy. I have also lightly clipped vice grips on caps on one side of a board, and heated the other with propane to get a part off quickly.
I’m no environmental safety expert or anything, but I’m pretty sure breathing burnt fiberglass isn’t healthy. You might want to watch your toes and eyeballs for flying solder also. All of this was done outdoors.
– James B
Parts fall from a board like rain with a little heat from a propane torch on the back side of the board, and a good whack with something heavy. I have also lightly clipped vice grips on caps on one side of a board, and heated the other with propane to get a part off quickly.
I’m no environmental safety expert or anything, but I’m pretty sure breathing burnt fiberglass isn’t healthy. You might want to watch your toes and eyeballs for flying solder also. All of this was done outdoors.
– James B
Parts fall from a board like rain with a little heat from a propane torch on the back side of the board, and a good whack with something heavy. I have also lightly clipped vice grips on caps on one side of a board, and heated the other with propane to get a part off quickly.
I’m no environmental safety expert or anything, but I’m pretty sure breathing burnt fiberglass isn’t healthy. You might want to watch your toes and eyeballs for flying solder also. All of this was done outdoors.
– James B