Mailbag 40 ish AliExpress Electronic Trinkets

[@davidsherrick8633]

You can also buy 1/2 watt resistors instead of 1/4 watt to get the thicker leads which are much, much easier to work with on breadboards.

[@retireeelectronics2649]

Yes, then can put the 1/4 watt back in when hardwiring it if space is a premium.

[@GnuReligion]

Might be a fun device, if it were open source. Yup, that PHY+ ARM-M0 with BT is pretty cool. "A man with one watch always knows what time it is. A man with two, is never sure."

[@retireeelectronics2649]

So true, somehow loading their software onto my smart phone could create a dumb phone real fast. I will pass on that. Funny thing is, I never wear a watch, and not about to start. (-:

[@charlesurrea1451]

I'm curious about your problem with the copper wire breaking. I suspect that it needs to be annealed or that the chemistry is bad. Are you threading those by hand or are you using a spring winding jig?

[@retireeelectronics2649]

Was trying to hand wind the toroidal with 0.06mm wire. Wire would tend to twist and form a kink that would easily break. Might have better results if I put the wire under tension then gently heated it to make it less likely to curl. Will practice with the 0.12mm then if I get better at it then try the 0.06mm again.

[@JustJake_0]

Fire is always a risk with li-ion batteries, doesn't matter if they came from ali-express or anywhere else. Even iPhone and Samsung have been known to catch on fire. The only way that will ever stop is when someone comes up with a less volatile battery technology.

[@retireeelectronics2649]

Yes, Li-ion batteries have a very long history of issues. In Canada Li-ion batteries can not be shipped by Canada Post unless enclosed within a device that uses it. Might be why I have been looking for cheap AliExpress items that contain Li-ion batteries (-: Have had zero luck finding discarded puffer devices

[@johncoops6897]

They have had a less volatile technology for a long time. It is LiFePO4... do some research 😉

[@DustinWatts]

About the watches, there is only 1 touch point. at the bottom of the screen :)

[@retireeelectronics2649]

Yes, and the battery appears to have the charge discharge protection built into it. Was able to gently get a view under the Kapton tape.

[@DustinWatts]

@@retireeelectronics2649 Usually the ones with Kapton tape have protection. But it's good to always check!

[@jlucasound]

Interesting. Thank You Dustin. 👍

[@DustinWatts]

@@jlucasound YW

[@DustinWatts]

@@retireeelectronics2649 Another indicator is a small thin PCB.

[@shagreobe]

Is it me, but the brand name of the pink watch is OPUYYM...opium? lol

[@retireeelectronics2649]

(-: (-: Some company brand names just don't translate well or someone was having fun.

[@InterplainMusic]

You must be my duplicate person. I have thi obsession of buying things off Aliexpress. I also burn off the address the same. I buy mostly electronic components, like pots and caps and the few tools.

[@retireeelectronics2649]

Currently have a large order of pots with AliExpress, but with a Postal strike, these are now in some warehouse. Will have to switch to buying from Amazon now, oh well.

[@InterplainMusic]

@retireeelectronics2649 I have built a 3d printer with all the parts I have bought. Motherboard SKR and stepper motors and linear rails.

[@retireeelectronics2649]

@@InterplainMusic Excellent. That is one area that looks real interesting, but possibly very time intensive.

[@Tech-Relief]

Those Chinese breadboards are utter junk, I throw them in the garbage. The sockets don't hold wires properly and more then once a project appeared to fail but it was the junk breadboard.

[@retireeelectronics2649]

I have had mixed results with the breadboards. First problem is that resistor leads are a lot thinner now, old was significantly thicker. So using old stock then the new stuff the holes can be loose. Unrelated to the breadboards is premade jumpers or alligators that have just friction fit between the wire and the pin/alligator. Major point of failure and I had to go through all of mine and solder these. Less failures after that. Have a good day

[@Tech-Relief]

@@retireeelectronics2649 Yes so I bought a more expensive bread board module from Jameco in the US and pulled them apart. This is what I found: The cheap Chinese bread boards use strips of metal that is not springy brass but some other inferior metal and they are already opened wider than the diameter of those metal film resistors. The proper bread boards have plated brass strips that will hold on to thin wires and after putting a thick wire in them will spring back and still work with thin wires. Not so with the cheap Chinese boards. It is like use them once and then discard them?

[@retireeelectronics2649]

Good idea. I should take one apart and compare it to my Niche 206 breadboard that I think is pushing 30+ years old.