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F18A DIY?


Hans23

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HeyBirt did a great video on from "Prototype to Product" using PCBWAY.

 

 

Typically you need to order some number of units, pay up front and then they ship to you the desired number of units built.

 

If someone wanted to up front the cash and be a stocking distributor that might be a way to go...

 

 

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18 hours ago, dhe said:

HeyBirt did a great video on from "Prototype to Product" using PCBWAY.

Typically you need to order some number of units, pay up front and then they ship to you the desired number of units built.

If someone wanted to up front the cash and be a stocking distributor that might be a way to go...

 

 

It would be cool to make a modern PEB. Not Floppy, but SD. Setup for modern printer, wireless and what not. And then use the same system. AND make it so that new stuff can be added to it. Also connection for Raspberry Pi. All into a smaller PEB. But I guess it is to much for one person to do. But this YT makes me dream ?

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On 1/11/2022 at 9:55 PM, dhe said:

HeyBirt did a great video on from "Prototype to Product" using PCBWAY.

 

 

Typically you need to order some number of units, pay up front and then they ship to you the desired number of units built.

 

If someone wanted to up front the cash and be a stocking distributor that might be a way to go...

 

 

Some providers offer the possibility to share a project, for example PCBWAY or OSH Park. For example https://oshpark.com/shared_projects/tlkbFvs3  or https://www.pcbway.com/project/shareproject/

Doing login, goto "Shared Projects", select something like "F18A",  and put it to your basket. That´s it....

My problem is the files needed to populate the board with SMD components. The BOM and the file for SMD assembly - position and orientation. Yes I speak english but the instructions are too complex for me and my opportunity to translate english to german.

So I need help to order the hole project with SMD Components already assembled. 

And if I ask for support here, everyone should benefit from it.

 

Greetings Axel

 

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1 minute ago, Archimedes5000 said:

Some providers offer the possibility to share a project, for example PCBWAY or OSH Park. For example https://oshpark.com/shared_projects/tlkbFvs3  or https://www.pcbway.com/project/shareproject/

Doing login, goto "Shared Projects", select something like "F18A",  and put it to your basket. That´s it....

My problem is the files needed to populate the board with SMD components. The BOM and the file for SMD assembly - position and orientation. Yes I speak english but the instructions are too complex for me and my opportunity to translate english to german.

So I need help to order the hole project with SMD Components already assembled. 

And if I ask for support here, everyone should benefit from it.

I guess Matt will eventually jump into this discussion, but as I have built a few dozen F18A's last year, here's my perspective:

 

Making a project ready for production by a manufacturer requires you to prepare a BOM that they can actually fulfill.  The flash chip and FPGA used by the F18A are somewhat obsolete and you'll not find them in the catalogue of the cheap manufacturers.  While the flash can be substituted, the FPGA needs to be the exact right type.  The buffer chip is easy to replace by a chip made by another manufacturer, but again, that requires research and experimentation.  I've been lucky with various slightly different parts and I've also put stuff bought on Aliexpress onto the boards that I built, with some success and some failures.  At a minimum, you'll have to supply the FPGAs to the manufacturer, and they may charge an engineering fee for putting it into their production line and have specific requirements regarding the packaging.

 

This is to say that while it is possible to get stuff built by cheap manufacturers, it is still work and it will cost money beyond the charges that you see them quote.  Too much work and too expensive, I'd say, if you just want a board for yourself.  Unfeasible if you're unable to communicate with the manufacturer due to language differences.

 

If all you're looking for is an F18A for yourself, you can put yourself onto my waiting list.  I don't currently have parts or plans to build more, but if the list fills again, I may get back to it.  You might also just wait for Matt to finish the F18A MK2.  He's been working it for a long time and some have given up on the idea that he'll ever finish, but if he does, it will be much better than the F18A, in particular because it will have digital video output.

 

-Hans

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21 hours ago, Hans23 said:

I guess Matt will eventually jump into this discussion, but as I have built a few dozen F18A's last year, here's my perspective:

 

Making a project ready for production by a manufacturer requires you to prepare a BOM that they can actually fulfill.  The flash chip and FPGA used by the F18A are somewhat obsolete and you'll not find them in the catalogue of the cheap manufacturers.  While the flash can be substituted, the FPGA needs to be the exact right type.  The buffer chip is easy to replace by a chip made by another manufacturer, but again, that requires research and experimentation.  I've been lucky with various slightly different parts and I've also put stuff bought on Aliexpress onto the boards that I built, with some success and some failures.  At a minimum, you'll have to supply the FPGAs to the manufacturer, and they may charge an engineering fee for putting it into their production line and have specific requirements regarding the packaging.

 

This is to say that while it is possible to get stuff built by cheap manufacturers, it is still work and it will cost money beyond the charges that you see them quote.  Too much work and too expensive, I'd say, if you just want a board for yourself.  Unfeasible if you're unable to communicate with the manufacturer due to language differences.

 

If all you're looking for is an F18A for yourself, you can put yourself onto my waiting list.  I don't currently have parts or plans to build more, but if the list fills again, I may get back to it.  You might also just wait for Matt to finish the F18A MK2.  He's been working it for a long time and some have given up on the idea that he'll ever finish, but if he does, it will be much better than the F18A, in particular because it will have digital video output.

 

-Hans

Hans, now I am on your waiting list too. Thank you.

Greetings Axel

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Yeah, I don't have time to think about anything else these days, it is all I can do to eek out a few hours to try and keep moving on the MK2.  Getting a board made is not hard, that just costs money.  The hard bit is all the design, testing, troubleshooting, firmware and software development, etc. that comes before making something into a final product.

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