(A Slightly More Useful) Resistor Lead Bender

[finebyfine]

I bought one of those standard red plastic lead benders (ex: https://www.sparkfun.com/products/13114) but unfortunately even at the smallest size the spacing was too big for pedalpcb boards. Then I looked at a board I was working on and realized that the DIP-8 socket I had in place for 4 diodes was the answer! Soldered a few pin headers (I used standard and machined pins to help with different gauge leads) to a spare protoboard I had laying around and voilà. Useful? Maybe, maybe not! At the very least more useful than the red ones for ppcb boards. Figured I'd share

 

[peccary]

Great idea.

There is also a bender for 1/8w resistors that I have found works well with PedalPCB boards: https://www.jensentools.com/product...er-forming-tool-1-8-watt-resistors/p/664so802

But I kinda dig your DIY method.

 

[finebyfine]

Great idea.

There is also a bender for 1/8w resistors that I have found works well with PedalPCB boards: https://www.jensentools.com/product...er-forming-tool-1-8-watt-resistors/p/664so802

But I kinda dig your DIY method.

Damn wish I saw that one when I ordered mine! The 1/4w one is soo frustratingly close to being useful for pedalpcb boards at the smallest size

 

[peccary]

Damn wish I saw that one when I ordered mine! The 1/4w one is soo frustratingly close to being useful for pedalpcb boards at the smallest size

They are one of the most used tools in the garage for me along with the DMM.

My wife used to do a little jewelry making and I've stolen all of her little pliers and and have found them to be really handy in dealing with unruly leads. The round nose and flat nose are probably my favorite.

 

[finebyfine]

They are one of the most used tools in the garage for me along with the DMM.

My wife used to do a little jewelry making and I've stolen all of her little pliers and and have found them to be really handy in dealing with unruly leads. The round nose and flat nose are probably my favorite.

I have a bunch of tweezers and pliers from repairing watches too, ceramic tweezers are practically always by my side too - my absolute go to for anything too delicate for my stubby fingers, which in pedal building, is most things.

 

[SYLV9ST9R]

Damn wish I saw that one when I ordered mine! The 1/4w one is soo frustratingly close to being useful for pedalpcb boards at the smallest size

I did the same, bought one thinking it would be the answer, but I think it’s the same as yours… well I think having bent so many with pliers now, I’m not so bad at getting the right spacing. It’s always the smaller diodes that give me a headache…

 

[finebyfine]

I did the same, bought one thinking it would be the answer, but I think it’s the same as yours… well I think having bent so many with pliers now, I’m not so bad at getting the right spacing. It’s always the smaller diodes that give me a headache…

One of these days I'll bend an 1N4xxx without going "ah, fuck" afterwards

 

[JetFixxxer]

ooh going have to print one now. Never crossed my mind things like this exist.

Resistor Lead Bender by jzkmath

A resistor Lead bender for getting resistors bent to the correct dimension. Sizes range from 0.4" to 1.5"

www.thingiverse.com

Lead Bender (Multiple Sizes) by onebytegone

This is a tool to bend the leads on a component, such as a resistor, to a specific width to allow easy placment onto a PCB (Printed Circuit Board). This came about when I recently saw Erik's lead bending tool ( http://www.thingiverse.com/thing:6699 ), saw that he didn't have a version with...

www.thingiverse.com

 

[finebyfine]

ooh going have to print one now. Never crossed my mind things like this exist.

Resistor Lead Bender by jzkmath

A resistor Lead bender for getting resistors bent to the correct dimension. Sizes range from 0.4" to 1.5"

www.thingiverse.com

Lead Bender (Multiple Sizes) by onebytegone

This is a tool to bend the leads on a component, such as a resistor, to a specific width to allow easy placment onto a PCB (Printed Circuit Board). This came about when I recently saw Erik's lead bending tool ( http://www.thingiverse.com/thing:6699 ), saw that he didn't have a version with...

www.thingiverse.com

For what it's worth the lead bender that I have that spaces leads too large for pedalpcb boards goes down to 0.4" - the smallest size on the first one.

 

[peccary]

For what it's worth the lead bender that I have that spaces leads too large for pedalpcb boards goes down to 0.4" - the smallest size on the first one.

The 1/8w bender looks to be about 6mm, if you can use that to print something @JetFixxxer

 

[Feral Feline]

Thanks for this.

I, too, bought one of the red-plastic-bender-helper-thingerjiggers. Found it useless for pedals, though I'll keep it around for amps and vero/perf.

I also have the perfect proto-perf for your "pins & needles" method — a phenolic-based board.

I bought the phenolic early on in my solder-journey, as a newb not realising: the phenolic just isn't as robust as the fibreglass boards, and the incredible humidity here in HK makes the phenolic unstable and flexy — which would lead to cracked solder joins and that in turn would result in intermittent, hard-to-diagnose faults. So I've got these (formerly) useless boards that I'd never build a circuit on, but won't scrap them either.

They've already warped, won't lay flat. Why even sell them in the local DIY-electronics shop, given the known local conditions, is beyond me. That's like if Canadian Tire only offered summer-tires year round — no all-seasons or winter-radials, just summer-tires even though they know it's going to snow...


So thanks again, @finebyfine, I hate to see stuff go to waste and you've just saved these crappy boards of mine from a purgatorial-existence.

 

[Barry]

Great idea.

There is also a bender for 1/8w resistors that I have found works well with PedalPCB boards: https://www.jensentools.com/product...er-forming-tool-1-8-watt-resistors/p/664so802

But I kinda dig your DIY method.

Yes but shipping is 3 times the cost of the darn thing

 

[peccary]

Yes but shipping is 3 times the cost of the darn thing

I bought some solder iron tips, and few other goodies from them as well to make it worth my while. Jensen has a lot of good stuff if you need any tools/toys.

 

[Barry]

I bought some solder iron tips, and few other goodies from them as well to make it worth my while. Jensen has a lot of good stuff if you need any tools/toys.

I'll have to do a deeper dive this weekend, see what I can find

 

[smith77]

I bought my electronics components from industrial electronics repair and I must say that the quality of the parts were really good and I also repaired my PCBs which are working perfectly.

 

[burger-patty-and-bacon]

The 1/8w bender looks to be about 6mm, if you can use that to print something @JetFixxxer

Hi there, peccary. Just wanting to confirm that the 1/8 watt version of this does indeed allow to bend the leads "tight" enough for PPCB boards? You said the 1/4W version was not tight enough but the eighth is good? My sanchez needed some super "tight to the body" bends and I had to make a jig but it was not the greatest. Would like to have a bender that will for sure work on 1/4W to get them to the right spacing. Seems like this is the one?

ELECTRONICS TOOL ~ LEAD BENDER ~ FOR FORMING 1/8w RESISTORS Made in USA | eBay

<body><p>ELECTRONICS TOOL ~ LEAD BENDER ~ FOR FORMING 1/8w RESISTORS Made in USA. </p><br /><p>Great little tool for neatly forming small 1/8watt resistors.</p><p>Makes your hard work look neat and clean.</p><br /><p>This is made in USA. High quality, impact resistant plastic. </p><br...

www.ebay.com

 

[music6000]

When I first started building pedals like 5 or 6 years ago I tried all the little gadgets that looked essential or I thought would make things easier or perhaps more professional looking. Turns out they only made things more difficult or were in my way. I use less today than ever and feel like I get better results. It's kinda like those people who say tone is in the hands. You could give hendrix anything and he would still sound like Jimmi. I use my hands and it works just fine lol and pretty much all guitar pedal pcbs are spaced the same, I assumed those lead benders are more for amp and larger builds with various spacings for leads.

I use the thumb technique, meaning I hold the component with my left hand & bend with the thumb on my right hand!!!

 

[peccary]

Hi there, peccary. Just wanting to confirm that the 1/8 watt version of this does indeed allow to bend the leads "tight" enough for PPCB boards? You said the 1/4W version was not tight enough but the eighth is good? My sanchez needed some super "tight to the body" bends and I had to make a jig but it was not the greatest. Would like to have a bender that will for sure work on 1/4W to get them to the right spacing. Seems like this is the one?

ELECTRONICS TOOL ~ LEAD BENDER ~ FOR FORMING 1/8w RESISTORS Made in USA | eBay

<body><p>ELECTRONICS TOOL ~ LEAD BENDER ~ FOR FORMING 1/8w RESISTORS Made in USA. </p><br /><p>Great little tool for neatly forming small 1/8watt resistors.</p><p>Makes your hard work look neat and clean.</p><br /><p>This is made in USA. High quality, impact resistant plastic. </p><br...

www.ebay.com

I've had fine luck with both the 1/4w and 1/8w bender. It depends on the spacing the PCB was made for: for example, I only have 1/8w 10k resistors, but I will bend those on the 1/4w bender if the board calls for 1/4w resistors.

 

[spi]

I didn't even know lead benders were a thing. And all this time I've been bending leads by hand like a sucker.

Thanks @finebyfine for the brilliant idea.

 

[finebyfine]

I didn't even know lead benders were a thing. And all this time I've been bending leads by hand like a sucker.

Thanks @finebyfine for the brilliant idea.

I have used the one I posted on maybe 5 only different occasions hahaha I really just prefer using ceramic tweezers which are kind of my default hand tool when not soldering