Making an unavailable, proprietary USB cable with 3D printing

[@TeachingTech]

The channel is called 'Teaching Tech' but I'm fortunate in that I can learn from so many of my viewers. Thanks to everyone has has either given suggestions for alternatives or provided part numbers so I can make my own perfectly fitting cable. So it turns out this cable was not unavailable, but hopefully the process is still valuable for situations where it is. I certainly enjoyed making it (apart from the hot glue burn).

[@SamPinchesMakerShop]

...and love the encouragement to attempt repair rather than replace! Great vid Michael. 👏

[@MrGerhardGrobler]

Hot glue is an issue. But I can set mine to low, so it doesn't take the skin with it. But still flows enough to fill the gaps I need it to.

[@Eduardo_Espinoza]

The solution in my head turned out not to be as good as this one, at least I learned more in the lesson :)

[@How_To_Drive_a_TARDIS]

I love people beating proprietary things

[@Acheiropoietos]

This is mission impossible level stuff - brilliant!

[@JasonGrammenos]

It appears based on some quick searching that the mating connector for the usb port is a Hirose connector: part number HR30-6PA-6P(71) and the connector on the device is part number: HR30-6R-6SD(71). It is a solder cup connector, so you could use the same trick with cutting up an old usb cable and then just soldering on the new connector. You can also still get the rubber port covers Hirose part number: HR30-6R-C(31)

[@piotrokrutny477]

I checked the documentation and it looks like Hirose HR30-6P-6P(31) to me

[@fletcherreder6091]

@@piotrokrutny477 That's my conclusion as well.

[@JohnJones-oy3md]

I assumed as much. Very unlikely that a manufacturer of a short run item like this would go to the trouble of rolling their own connectors instead of just using off-the-shelf parts.

[@nolansykinsley3734]

I was gonna say something was off when I saw the connector had 6 pins and usb2 has 4 pins and a ground.

[@Esablaka]

It's definitely a hirose connector. I have literally soldered thousands of (different) hirose connectors. These connectors aren't that expensive and there are plenty of Chinese knockoffs available for even cheaper (though sometimes they are really bad quality, while others are basically like the real thing). Everything below like 12, 16 or 20 pins is also quite easy to solder.

There are many waterproof USB-C panel sockets available on Ali, so I'd probably go that way and replace the proprietary USB connector on the device with a standard USB-C one. I think they would fit easily (I've just found one which requires an M11 opening and contains also a waterproof rubber cover very similar to the original covers)

[@KaminKevCrew]

That's exactly what I've been thinking the whole time watching this video. There are a ton of 4+ pin, waterproof, circular connectors out there. They aren't terribly expensive either (as long as you're not buying autosport connectors, anyway), and they would almost certainly last much longer and be more reliable over time. Not to mention, if you replace it with something fairly common, like an amphenol connector, it's likely to be around for a long time and therefore be easy to replace.

[@gorak9000]

Is that even a proprietary connector though? It looks like a Lemo connector. They're fairly commonplace on scientific equipment. Expensive, but yet widely available

[@gonegliding2966]

​@@gorak9000 I use lemo connectors on a regular basis for scientific instruments (as you rightly mention) but haven't come across one that looks like that. So yes, similar, but not the same.

[@KaminKevCrew]

@@gorak9000 admittedly, I was working on my car and listening - rather than watching - the video. On further inspection, it does look like it is almost certainly either a Lemo or Lemo clone connector. I was able to find one image in a datasheet that shows the 5 around 1 configuration shown. Besides, since the product in question is/was decidedly marketed as a professional product, there's very little chance that VBox would have opted for a proprietary, rather than industrial, connector.

[@gorak9000]

@@gonegliding2966 That connector he showed on the other cable for the different model was definitely a Lemo, but other people in the comments identified this one as a Hirose, and even the exact part number. The logo on the dust caps is HRS, and an exact match with the Hirose logo

[@lensineer]

I work in an industry that has A LOT of strange and seemingly proprietary connectors. But in 99.9% of the cases it is a industrial connector from Lemo/Fischer/Hirose or also Molex/JST if they are internal ones. From my experience sometimes if you guess one you can send them a picture and they can sometimes tell you the right plug internals (with lemo you can pair housings with different internals)

[@ishizukahikaru643]

Yeah, I think be easier and cheap to just swap out the connectors to something simular size to the casing. And Molex/JST cables on the PCB are easy to rebuild. He could also consider mini DIN plugs and connectors which are widly available and offer metal housings. I was just cringing abit to the dildo butt plug of a connector which looks cumbersome.

[@bigqflex]

I’ve spent a lot of time ordering from the Lemo catalog. It’s like a Swiss made choose your own adventure.

[@lensineer]

@@bigqflex and also the price is very "swiss style" ... I salvaged a lot of Lemo connectors from old hardware "just in case" because I know how expensive they can be.

[@AmstradExin]

@@lensineer Found them at a dump in a cable pile. They're so valuable to me I rather keep them.

[@twokool4skool129]

Should have tried the round pins from the old Dsub connectors. That's what a lot of those round proprietary connectors use because they don't want reinvent the pins too.

[@Esablaka]

The connector isn't even proprietary. It's a hirose connector and you can easily buy it online. Just solder your own cable to it and be done with it with 5 minutes of work.

[@dj1NM3]

@@Esablaka It looks like a mini-DIN connector, so not proprietary at all. Maybe the pinout is "scrambled" like the "Apple ADB" looking cable that Denon used to connect the controller to the CD player on their older dual-CD DJ players, you had to buy their special cable, rather than just any ABD cable. So you can't just buy any standard mini-DIN to USB cable, which is a cheap-as-chips commodity item and forced to buy from the device manufacturer.

[@Evilslayer73]

Like aviator plug with a secure locking mechanism

[@AmstradExin]

@@Esablaka It may look like a Hirose connector, but the case is different. I have a bunch of these cables as end-to-end connections. I want to use them on a bicycle. Mine are outdoor USB cables. Found them at a dump. These are super cool, probably the best types of connectors I have ever used.

[@diegoG21]

My man Michael may not be the sharpest tool in the shed for not looking at "Hirose connector" title of the cable datasheet he found, but damn he has the inventor spirit, and made my day a little better for showing me true human drive to accomplish a task.

[@adamcboyd]

Boy did you get lucky finding that schematic. It could still have been done but it would have been 10,000x harder. Good work!😊

[@andrey.p]

No luck involved. Racelogic are just great with the specs.

[@MyYewTubeAccount]

For future reference, you could have opened the PDF version of the DATA sheet in Illustrator, copied the vector of the plug, exported as a DXF or DWG then imported/opened in your CAD software and scaled to size (Y)

[@743x23]

Great Tipp, I prefer Libre Office Draw, which can do this with multipage documents to.

[@ScottPicton]

Or InkScape or any other vector based software :-)

[@eliotmansfield]

or just read the document and it tells you what the connector is

[@tissuepaper9962]

@@eliotmansfield engineer versus technician.

[@SnowGolem1TheL33t]

This is bloody awesome, personally I'd have just put a usb C port in it's place, easy enough to find a flushmount connector and modify it to fit the round hole, but totally respect the work put into this, insanely useful skill!

[@iamkian]

Liked, but would removing the old "usb" connector and replacing it with something newer not have been easier?

[@darekmistrz4364]

Especially that looking inside all connectors were on separate cables with internal plugs. Would have been a breeze to change that to USB-C socket

[@Manu-nr1yt]

I was searching for this comment. Thought the same. It should have been possible to drill out the inner part of this connector and glue a type C socket into it.

[@iamkian]

@@Manu-nr1yt That would have been a good fix!!!

[@chrisnorth3458]

Then he wont have had a how to video about 3d printing design

[@WoLpH]

Of course that would be easier, but the point is creating a video how to do this in case that would not have been an option ;)

[@axelSixtySix]

Hey Michael, first off, great job on your video about repairing the connectors on the race electronic box! I found it really interesting. But you know what would be even more exciting? Seeing it in action during a race! I bet a lot of us viewers would love to see that. Just a friendly suggestion for your next video. Keep up the awesome work!

[@TeachingTech]

I promise that you will not be disappointed ;)

[@KillerWhale806]

This is definitely the hardest way to solve this problem, and I really respect that.

[@capitalinventor4823]

I really appreciate these videos in which you have a real world issue and show how you fix it including the design. These are very helpful to me and I feel sad that you seem to be getting a lot of negative, or at least less than positive, feedback on this video. Thank you for all of your hard work and contributions to the 3D printing community.

[@TeachingTech]

Thanks for the nice feedback. I would say that plenty of people are being very helpful an constructive with pointing me towards the part numbers I need. I appreciate their help.

[@MrGerhardGrobler]

I am not so fancy or skilled. But I have been inspired to find solutions at home, rather than go online for stuff I cannot readily afford. Your videos inspire to create and innovate.

[@thomasives7560]

I've had the same problem interfacing some old military gear with Lemo connectors. They (Lemo, Tyco, et.al.) change the connector standards constantly and the interfaces are all different. Thanks for the project ideas, I think the 3D printing community can come up with some Lemo connector "libraries" that will enable the use of commodity pins and 3D printed assemblies that will make these older connectors useful again. Thanks again for your work, hopefully this will inspire some crafty folks to keep the connector designs flowing. Cheers!

[@MiguelAbd]

I love this kind of video! It's the main reason I bought and ender 3. So far I have repaired small stuff such as window shutters to recreating an old plastic part that was broken in a power washer. The magic of 3D printing is it's flexibility 😊

[@kjamison5951]

Gnarly looking burn - I have also had hot glue ‘accidents’ with consequences. Of course, great job on the cable and connector. I have also used my 3D printers to generate quite a few useful items at home as well as at work where they have been adopted by my colleagues. They have saved time (and therefore costs for the company) as well as raising some eyebrows and guesses as to their function.

[@Ardren]

Great work! As others have already pointed out, it's a good idea to remember that *everyone* is lazy. Rarely will a company make an actual propriety connector, it's much easier to use something off the shelf (even if they might tell you it's custom).

[@OutOfNamesToChoose]

😂Got to love the feeling of panic from forgetting to plug something in before testing; it's happened to all of us. Love the solution you came up with! For future reference, a little T-7000 for waterproofing the sides/outside of the housing's final assembly could be very useful. It's the adhesive used in phones that is rubbery and waterproof, but can be pried apart if future access is needed.

[@aaro_n]

"that truly was janky" the words of every great project!

[@JNunes-ik5tt]

Why not replace the female connection on box side with a femald usb A connector? Even the PCB has a socket for the plugs. In the end we now that the purpose of the video is to show that is possible to recreate a discontinued connector and for some cases it is very helpfull.

[@iamkian]

my thoughts too.

[@fredflintstone1]

@@iamkian I agree with both of you, but I suppose it would not have made a 3D printer video though 😞

[@Bildschirm100]

I have to agree with a few of the other commenters that a USB-C breakout board in a custom enclosure (maybe with a screwcap) would have been the best idea, especially because the original connectors were using JST connectors to connect to the PCB.

[@bridgetclinch3678]

Thanks to getting an Anycubic mega X a few years ago, I can now CAD and rewire pretty much anything, it is such a great skill to have.

[@tinayoga8844]

I have had the same kind of problem. This was before 3D printers were available. My solution was to inset the wired pins into the mating connector. The used epoxy to glue all the pins into one mass. This gave perfect alignment to the existing connector. After it was all secure I worked on making it more aesthetically pleasing. A fast quick and dirty way to make a custom connector. I do agree with you that 3D printers are great for this kind of problem, though slower than my old solution if you only need one or two.

[@mikejackson9585]

Great project, but one thing I'm looking to start doing more of is 3D printed silicone molds. Silicone is very easy to work with and can look great. That TPU cover would have been a perfect side project for that and likely would look identical to the others. Something to consider in the future.

[@OmikronZeta]

Sounds interesting! Replacement electrical plugs with screw-terminals are always more bulky than the factory overmolded ones

[@jamesocker5235]

The pin out diagram is the holy grail, nice job, great lesson and great experience for you and us. One of the first thing I printed when Igot my printer was a plastic spring mechanism for a drawer that was of course unavailable.

[@stitchfinger7678]

I gotta agree, its hard to beat the satisfaction of recreating some unobtanium My folks' in-wall oven from like the early 80s had a knob crack apart on them and they were using robogrips to set the oven temp xD I just borrowed the sibling Mode knob and recreated it real quick

[@NefariousElasticity]

Even if the cable and specific connector type are somewhat available for purchase, it's still satisfying making your own cables to bring old kit back to life. I bet this cable works just as well as the genuine article and was a fraction of the cost to build as well.

[@RabidBadger_]

Points for preserving the device's original configuration. That said, I probably would have pulled a USB socket off a scrap circuit board, printed a housing for it that fit the hole in the case and soldered on pigtail from the old connector.

[@OmikronZeta]

Or buy a panel mount USB port, probably even available for the same diameter hole as the existing proprietary connector

[@miserepoignee9594]

Really cool to see this project! However, I feel like it would have been 10x cheaper and 100x easier to just get a suitable off the shelf connector and socket, change the proprietary panel-mount connector on the box, then make a new wire harness to go from the pcb inside the box to the new, non-proprietary panel mount connector you bought. The pcb end of the connection appears to use a readily available Molex connector.

[@ochowells]

10x cheaper? He spent like $2

[@Esablaka]

No need to even replace the port. You could just buy the hirose connector that was on the original cable. Then solder an old usb A cable to it and be done with it and still have a water-resistant connection.

[@RichardBetel]

@@ochowells that’s if you don’t value his time designing, printing, and testing. Which is fine: he clearly didn’t count it that way, ignoring the fact that he got an episode out of it…

[@MCsCreations]

Fantastic work, Michael! 😃 A tip: every time when you work with hot glue you should have a container with some water. This way, in case of accidents, you put your finger inside and it's immediately cooled. Anyway, stay safe there with your family! 🖖😊

[@Pridanc-oj4ot]

I appreciate your creativity. Helping all of us see ways to get there from here from none were obvious. TY.

[@Pridanc-oj4ot]

Fat fingers. .."from here where no way was obvious".

[@macswanton9622]

A permanent feature to your channel could be proprietary connectors. It's arguably the most satisfying middle finger to greedy manufacturers

[@14croper]

I do wonder if he actually gave middle on purpose.

[@OrangeSheep14]

This video was so interesting. Sure there were other ways, but seeing you reverse engineer and successfully build your own production of some obsure port is so satisfying.

[@nickkropat8857]

Great project, I learn a lot from your content. You can dissolve hot glue with isopropyl alcohol (spirits). soak a part if possible and you can gently peel it away

[@AleksKinokusMain]

I disagree that the cable is worthless. You paid attention to do everything right. It turned out pretty well! Я не згоден, що кабель не коштує нічого. Ти приділив увагу щоб зробити все як треба. Вийшло досить добре!

[@contrarian8870]

I don't like bulkiness, I like to minimize things as much as I can :) @07:39, on the flat inner side of the round pin holder, I'd add a ring of 4-6 protruding finger-like spikes, 3-4 mm tall, running in a ring 1-2mm outside the metal pins. The fingers would be slightly bent in, to the center, like logs in a bonfire. Then I'd solder the wires to the metal pins (no heat shrink), insert the pins into the holder, then pour some superglue to cover any exposed metal (up to the wire insulation). The glue would flow under the plastic "fingers" and between the forked ends of the pins. Once the glue sets, the inward fingers would hold everything in, preventing any slippage (even if the superglue didn't fuse to plastic, which it probably would). The connector would be only as long as the forked ends (7-10 mm?)

[@CookerCeiling38]

I don’t know how you do it. Perfect timing always.

[@jamwaffles]

These connectors look very similar to if not the same as the Hirose (HRS) HR30 series. Maybe they'd be worth a look at for a more permanent solution?

[@maadmaxx123]

Was just about to say that. These look exactly like the HR30 series... especially since the silicone covers say HRS on them.

[@KeenanTims]

The documentation he was able to find also mentions Hirose. It's a pretty good bet that's what they are (specifically HR30-6P-6P). They're about $8. The caps are LF07WBR-C2 ($4). Though it wouldn't be the first time a vendor ordered custom 'almost off the shelf' connectors for a product like this. I enjoyed the reverse engineering anyway. Using heatshrink to hold back the shield is a new one for me, and a useful tip.

[@TimGray]

You are way more patient than I am I would have hardwired a USB cable inside and removed the strange connector and waterproofed it with black silicone.

[@Underestimated37]

Great idea, the only thing I personally would’ve added is some form of strain relief, so that if you pull the cable by accident you don’t wreck the connector.

[@chancelorofdisdain8425]

Impressive how you fabricated an electronic legacy cable out of fashion(?). 3D printing used to create components that have technical utilization, as opposed to say printing a pikachu, is always great to hear about and entertaining to watch. With your skills you should produce these cables en mass to sell online. I'm sure you aren't the only one needing one. And you could offer them at a fairer price and make some bank . Thanks for the video. * Reason 3 would be that hot glue is an insulator and not conductive. (A fact I needed to Google.). Poyce mon.

[@SG_01]

During the 486 era my dad got us a keyboard with an 8-directional cursor key cluster. It was interesting, and definitely worked well.

[@jugglelulz]

Super inspiring! This task to most people would definitely seem impossible.

[@noahwheeler1176]

One other thing to try in the future is emailing the manufacturer or distributor directly. VBOX specifically kinda prices gouges but I bet they have a AUS distributior who would be able to point you in the correct direction with either the connector or the wire itself.

[@GuillaumeLT]

YT suggest this to me. I'm subscribing because you seem to use 3D printer to produce usefull stuff and not just plastic decorations.

[@RamaPararampa]

Though I love 3d printing and other home fabrication techniques, in this case I would just open the box and replace this Hirose to something standard as I did many times. Maybe using some 3d printed adapter between factory hole and new socket, maybe cutting the hole bigger. I appreciate you did it all for educational/example/inspiration purproses. But dude, you are so creative guy and you lose your time/skills to reinvent some exotic plug instead of use some mini USB and use your time to make something really unreplaceable.

[@nhand42]

Great design. I don't have any advice on improving the design - looks good to me - but the filling of the hot glue. I work with terminators that need to be watertight and they have a fill hole and a leak hole. You assemble the connector dry then inject silicone into the fill hole until it comes out the leak hole. Then you know the whole thing is chock full of silicone and ready for service. I wonder if a similar thing could be done with hot glue.

[@andrey.p]

Funny, my first 3D print was also an addon for my VBOX lite. I made a case for video streaming device I made from RPi Zero and a video capture card, to grab video from the "preview" port and stream it over WiFi.

[@rolanddube2169]

Very cool! You did a great job of reverse engineering that connector and breathing new life into something that was obsolete yet still useful.

[@nerddub]

even if the part is a Hirose connector, as the many youtube engineers have pointed out, but the concept of the video is solid. how to take something unknown (for whatever reason) and reverse engineer a solution. is it the BEST solution? no, and wasn't claimed to be. did it work? YES. good tutorial overall, full of useful info. nice job

[@AndrewAHayes]

I bought a Sony HiFi about 10 years ago that had a proprietary link cable system between the componants and then back to the amplifier, these cables have 19 pin D connectors, that cant be found anywhere. I came home one day to see the CD player on the floor and the culprit was my cat, the cable that was plugged into this component was damaged and despite trying I was unable to repair it, I called Sony support and to my utter disbeleif they said they did not have this cable, searching online for the part number drew a blank also. I managed to make a very janky fix by soldering some extension wires to the one end of the cable that was ok (ish) and soldering those wires to the board where the socket was soldered, I also aquired a HiFi cabinet to protect it from my cat. I would like to print the19-pin D plugs and this video has inspired me, I have FDM and resin printers and I will make the prototypes with FDM and once the design is finalised I will print in resin.

[@KaminKevCrew]

After chatting in one of the comment threads here, it looks like that's a Lemo connector. At least, I was able to find an image of a connector with 5 pins around 1 in a Lemo datasheet. VBox markets all of their products (as far as I'm aware) as being firmly in the professional market. Given that thing appears to have cost a few thousand dollars when new, it's extremely unlikely that they would have opted for a proprietary connector. Lemo connectors are very common, available in a wide range of configurations, and are extremely durable and easy to use. Additionally, they are very common in many professional application, from heavy industry to cinema. I think you would have been far better off finding the correct connector and soldering that up to a USB cable. It will be more reliable, support more insertions, and be easier to rebuild if you ever need to. With the solution you've come up with here, there's a pretty good chance that the pins you're using are going to significantly reduce the lifespan of the sockets on the receptacle, as they are almost certainly a different shape and size. In the worst case scenario, you could easily have outright replaced the connector with a different one of a similar formfactor that would be a very reliable and permanent solution. I don't know about you, but I'd rather spend 20 minutes and $20 to browse a datasheet on DigiKey and buy the right connector as opposed to multiple hours and revisions to make a sketchy reproduction with the incorrect pins. It just feels to me that this isn't a great application for 3d printing.

[@fredwupkensoppel8949]

Awesome project! My approach would have been to remove the proprietary connector altogether and replace it with a DIN connector or similar, but you do you!

[@dgoddard]

I would think it would have been easier to attempt removing the connector from the device and wiring in something that would allow you to use a common cable to attach it. But I obviously don't have one of these in my hands to know better. Great vid and use of 3D printing though.

[@Loneman_OG]

👍 _THIS_ is exactly why I started 3D printing; no more balsa + Bondo for me, ever since! 😄

[@Friend_of_the_One-Eyed_Ladies]

Respect for staying on mission during the hot glue incident. Thumbs up for that alone!

[@oleurgast730]

Actually in the past I simply searched for the pins I need, put a tape onto the socket, pushed the pins through the tape and used some epoxy to fix the pins to make the connector... While 3d-printig is nice and definitly is the better solution if you need multiple parts, classic solutions still work... Making your own connector by 3d-printing for smal batches is quite nice for realy obsolete connectors you barly get (or only for high prices) like the 23pin dSub (Commodore Amiga Monitor and Diskdrive port).

[@salemabo8147]

I love this type of videos , great work man

[@stardustjustlikeyou]

If you need to take that connector apart for maintenance, just use a heat gun to heat up all the glue in the center of the connector and it'll probably pull right out. Separate the connectors while the glue is still hot and then let it all dry and you can just peel off the extra. Cool video, makes me want to get into 3d printing. I probably would have gone into the machine and soldered an actual USB port somewhere in the casing, but I like your approach better.

[@satibel]

tbh you can probably just cut the cable at this point, it would be less annoying unless you just need to reseat a pin

[@avejst]

Great walk-through of the process Great design Thanks for sharing your expirence with all of us 👍 😀

[@802Garage]

Love that you're a car enthusiast. Do you have a second channel for car stuff or do you still post it all here when you make it?

[@greg4367]

Educational, as always... and inspirational

[@vizionthing]

You have a plug for this unit for the camera, I wonder why you didn't just measure the pin diameter and order some piano wire the same size? Edit: that same piano wire can be used to make the correct drill too, using a Dremel to grind a simple spade point works very well.

[@BloodyMobile]

Using enough RPM, you don't even need the spade point. I've drilled plastic with toothpicks in my Dremel and just for once letting it rip above 20k xD It rarely gets to do that because for all I'm using it for, it's basically vaprizing the material already at those RPM. But for a tiny friction drill is that more of the "low end".

[@MarkParkTech]

I would highly recommend making one of these with a usb extender cable, so you can have a type-a port on the end of the plug, then you can leave the plug in, and just deal with the usb cable itself. Added bonus, if the cable gets mangled and stops working, you can just replace it with an off the shelf usb A to A cable. No need to break it open and resolder anything.

[@satibel]

I'd use an usb B connector (those chamfered squares you find on printers) instead of an usb A, but that's a good option.

[@wiedapp]

Granted, it wouldn't cost you 'nothing', but these JST connectors on the PCB are more or less available on every corner of the net and new connectors to fit in the holes of the housing are in production for industrial use. That looks like an M8 or M12 connector or something compareble to me, with a custom plug face. If it's custom anyway, you can replace it with bog standard connectors as well. These connector types are used for sensors and sensor boxes on industrial machinery, mostly for assembly machines.

[@MIK33EY]

Great solution but I think there was an easier way. You could’ve gotten yourself a female usb port and used it to replace the port. Desolder the four wires from the port & solder them onto the appropriate pins of the female port - quite easy after finding the pin-out. Then print a housing to replace the port to maintain the waterproofness to surround the USB female port and then you’d be left with only needing standard USB leads. Hell, you could even go for Type-C female ports and replace all the connectors for even greater user friendliness. Just an idea.

[@makerbit3970]

Idea for future project. Make a silicone mold to inject resin that would encapsulate the wires after your pin alignment housing. This could shrink down the overall size of the connector. If you could make a jig that would hold the wires in place, the whole piece could be resin. You could use the 3D printer to make that initial mold.

[@Gejuch2233]

It's all cool and all, but in my opinion, if you're designing that plug, it would be more convenient to make a shape that corresponds to the shape of the socket. That way, you couldn't put it in the wrong orientation, and it wouldn't require such a precise operation

[@apoxhu]

Wanted to say the same

[@BigBankBailey]

I have found cutting paper clips helps a tons when needing some extra pins btw super cheap and strong

[@RailTownFan]

This is what 3d printing is for! 👍🏻💯

[@RomanoPRODUCTION]

Hello Mickael, you have done a pretty good decent job recreating the proprietary USB connexion. But hey, you have all the requiered skilled over the years. So it is not surprising. Sorry for your piece of skin. Have a great day!

[@wojciechbajon]

You can always can swap plug. If you need high waterfroof you can use "Aviation Plug" - eg GX12. If not buys some waterproff USB-C plug. BTW: You can apply heat to pins to install it. Just as bolts inserts.

[@satibel]

tip for inserting the pins: make the holes slightly undersize, heat them up to ~100C with a soldering iron while inserting them. (you can go hotter, but the hotter you go the higher the chance of having to clean molten plastic off of the pins, though that's easily done with a knife.)

[@kevinm3751]

What a fantastic project and keeping in your mistakes added some great humor! Thanks for sharing your project!

[@StormBurnX]

While I wholeheartedly agree with the idea behind this video... I feel like this really is the finest case of everything looking like a nail when you have a hammer in your hand. A situation like this could so much more reliably, effectively, and affordably be resolved by simply de-soldering the original connector from the board and replacing it with something that isn't proprietary. Or, hell, even just soldering a cable directly to the board where the connector was, and having the connector mid-cable if it's even necessary.

[@yakine13]

Dude is a hero to handle the burn for us in the recording

[@RANhxcCORE]

I winced when the glue hit your thumb lol!! we've all been there :D

[@frendobendo4433]

Due to the bulkiness of the connector I'd be worried about it wiggling its way out of there on an actual race but I also do not know how the device is mounted. Doesn't take away from the fact how cool it is to be able to design functional parts that fit properly. I got a decent level of satisfaction just creating a simple animation pegbar that fits a 3 hole round punch so I'd imagine making stuff like this and having it work feels pretty good.

[@BeatlesCuber]

My only recommendation is ive heard rubbing alcohol (ipa) can help remove hot glue, might have helped prevent peeling your skin off. Have a wonderful evening Michael.

[@louis-ericsimard7659]

Very well done, and as usual extremely well explained !

[@damustermann]

I blew on the screen to cool the hot glue on your finger, hope it helped. Awesome video, always good edutainment.

[@boelwerkr]

How i did it: - find nails the fit exactly. Start electroplating copper on them for corrosion resistance or do make a better fit. - solder cables on the ends - apply some silicone spray to the connector and put the pins in the sockets - use epoxy clay around the pins to make a pug that conforms to the connector. Works fine and is rally fast of you find the right nails.

[@IrocZIV]

Something for others to note, if you do use hot glue with PLA, it can melt thinner prints.

[@azyfloof]

2:42 "When we get to the bottom, we have some promising leads" Promising *leads* 😜

[@patrickwasp]

I would try to replace the proprietary connector with a usb c port instead. That way you don’t have to keep a special cable to connect to it since the mod is self contained.

[@sevequinn7070]

Excellent use of 3d printing!

[@satibel]

more often then not there's a "contact us" link somewhere on the bottom of the website, and even if it's unlisted, a lot of manufacturers for this kind of product are helpful and if the cable is unavailable they can give you the part number to order/make a new cable. even on cheaper parts, a friend had his microphone fail on a $40 headset, and the manufacturer replied "unfortunately we don't sell them, but we can send a replacement for free."

[@OnnieKoski]

Great job! I love seeing your process.

[@fortunateson6070]

I was going through random cables at work today and saw something like this, it looked like a USB cable with S-Video at one end.

[@darren990]

i feel your pain with the glue drip happened to me this week the pain is 10/1000000

[@charleshines2142]

I am glad you can do it. The word proprietary always makes me think of Apple or Dell and thusly makes me cringe in horror!!

[@WoLpH]

I would suggest using pogo pins the next time. They sell those in all sorts of shapes and sizes and it would allow you to tightly squeeze them into the 3D print so they won't slide back.

[@kingofcastlechaos]

Bummer, I have a case of those cables in my gara............just kidding! Another good video. I used to be a competitive welder in college and my shirt caught fire during a 6G pipe weld. It was the final championship and there was no way I was stopping with under an inch to go. The proctor yelled in my ear that I was on fire and I said I know. He waited as long as he could and then hit me with a fire extinguisher (gag) but I made it and got first place. Props to the guy for waiting - usually a kid on fire is a big deal, but he knew I was almost done and waited. It was a different time.

[@hitch4526]

I think your design could be nicer if the backshell were shorter, with just enough surface area for your fingers to make contact and pull/push. To prevent pins from recessing back inside the shell, I'd backfill with something non-conductive like polyurethane, epoxy, or silicone. I think I'd go with polyurethane for just the right amount of rubbery give to simulate effects of a floating-backplane to compensate for imperfections. Letting cure while plugged in will help center your pins. Take a look at the mil-spec drawings for amphenol and canon plugs; Either company has a suitable substitute for the other company, as well as a means to decipher part numbers to pin arrangement, connector size, etc..., and vice-versa. From there, you could probably make your own 3D printed insert (what holds all the pins in their place) IAW the design, a beefy backshell somewhat close to the design, and then order a collar with either bayonets or threads. I've always seen bayonets on Canon plugs and threads on Amphenol plugs.

[@Thatusernameisnotavailable.]

Janky? I haven't seen anything you do, that I would consider "janky." If you'd like to see "janky", I have some projects you could take a look at. In fact, much of my work has been Referred to as janky. Some call me the "Picaso of Jank." I have enjoyed every video, I have had the pleasure of watching. All of them are very fun to watch, with great content and super informative. My brother and I are both into 3D printing. He is much more into it as he owns 6 or 7 printers, including an expensive Raise3D printer. I only own one, but soon I will have another. We are often referring back to your videos for information, as well as talking about them in conversation. As far as being a teacher, your students should consider themselves very lucky. My technology teachers were irritable old geezers. It was quite obvious they didn't really want to be teaching a class. They just wanted to play with cool tech and have government funding pay for it. That being said I'm sure I speak for more than just my brother and I when I say THANK YOU! for all of your hard work. Thank you for putting in the long hours, editing, filming, and printing. Oh yeah, and sorry for getting burnt by hot glue. I hope that you can continue to create this kind fantastic content for years to come. This way, dense people like me can use your knowledge and skill to learn, so we can look like we too know what the hell we are doing... occasionally. 😄 P.s. WOW! Look at the all the Karentrolls. "Upon further inspection that connector is a Hippo Dee Doo Da 6789-8670-54." You should do this. Its less time consuming. 🤓💩

[@rickseiden1]

My first thought would have been to find a way to put in a normal female usb plug instead of making one to fit what was there, but I'm pretty sure it would have been a big mess, and this is a better solution.

[@akiko009]

That's really cool. Though you could've just purchased a HRS HR30 series connector with the 6R-6SD pattern. Part number is HR30-6P-6P.

[@guyb7995]

Great work, I wonder if a better approach would have been to design and print an a replacement USB outlet on the box itself to get rid of the proprietary connector altogether. It looks like the circle how has enough room to mount most female USB connectors with you designing and printing the shroud for the circle to hold it in place. Internally it just looks like some 4 pin JST connectors, but you could also just cut the cable to the current connector and repurpose it. Then you can use a standard USB cable to connect to it.

[@tHaH4x0r]

Although useful, its a bit of an overkill and feels a bit like 'when you have a hammer everything starts to look like a nail'. In the datasheet you show in 3:49 it says that its a Hirose connector, and its most likely HR30 series. No need to custom model and print a replacement connector for a cable, if that connector is still widely available. Alternatively, the connector from the plug to the PCB seems to be a JST-PH or similar. You could have just ordered one of those 'standard' USB female connectors, and soldered those wires to that new plug. That way you could use a regular USB cable with the unit, instead of having to faff around with custom connectors. Also, if you plan on gluing everything together, why not do away with the screws and just use glue to hold the parts together? Alternatively, you could have modeled a 'ring' on the back side of the pin holding part, and fill that with some epoxy with the pins inserted. That way you could still disassemble the two halves, but the pins would stay put.

[@unsaltedskies]

@tHaH4x0r couldn't have said it better myself. Personally, I'll appreciate the video for sharing approach/thought process though I didn't get much out of the video myself. Would have been really interesting if the connector was seriously obscure with no datasheet for pin outs and dimensions to see how the problem would have been approached with more unknowns. Completely agree with everything you've said.