High-Precision Needle PCB Probing System - Quick Magnetic Holders, Low-Profile

[Cortex]

Hi to all e-hobbysits, technicians and engineers,

I have just completed the design of a new probing system for electronic circuits.
It can handle the tiniest IC's on the market, thanks to the extremely sharp needles.

It is a DIY to build KIT that gives a 10-piece probing system.

It is sold for $60CAD+shipping*.
See my eBay listing: https://www.ebay.ca/itm/Precision-Needle-PCB-Probing-System-Quick-Magnetic-Holders-KIT-TO-ASSEMBLE/263462899775


*Shipping is flat rate for international shipping fees (except Canada):
$12.00 CAD - Small Packet - International Air - 6 to 12 business days

I also accept requests to buy directly from me via Paypal, to save $5 CAD on eBay fees ($55 CAD then).

Description:
- Two different type of holders are provided, to be used in combination to maintain the PCB pinned down and steady.
- The pawn-style holder has a fine thread screw that allows the knob to be adjusted to the desired height. It can pinch the PCB or wedge it as desired.
- Three convenient thumb screws for easy and quick manipulation
- The boom has two axis of micrometric adjustments: up-down and left-right
- The boom also has a vertical swivel from its base for "coarse" adjustment of needle height
- Two different lengths of booms. Kit includes two of each
- Super low profile PCB holders at 5mm from base plate, for maximum ergonomy when using a soldering iron or other tools
- Tin coated copper wire 18 gauge allows a stable yet flexible positioning
- Copper wire allows bending and tilting of probes sideways to reach extremely tights spots, even on two adjacent 0.5mm IC pins
- Copper wire can easily be swapped for different lengths, with only two solders
- Can also be used to inject low power signals
- Magnetic base on all parts and anti-slip rubber for perfect stability
- Can hold virtually any size PCB
- Compatible with classic rotating PCB vises
- Easy to sharpen the needles' point with a fine sandpaper
- Designed for super fast setup time
- Each component is 3D printed from resilient PETG plastic

Kit contains:
- Four 2-axis micrometric booms, 2 long and 2 short
- Four pawn-style PCB holders
- Two corner-style PCB holders
- Screws, washers and nylons thumb screws
- Magnets
- Needles
- 18 and 22 gauge wires
- Rubber pads

Notes:
- Parts are pre-threaded
- Some soldering is required
- A small Phillips screwdriver is required to assemble
- Steel plates shown in photos are NOT included
- Any thin steel plate can be used, like an old PC cover (1 mm is ok)
- An insulator is recommended to cover the steel plate. A thin self-adhesive vinyl gives best results
- This is not for high speed signals above a few MHz. It has no coax or impedance control

Leverage the full potential of your 4 channel scope daily !

Norm
Cortex R&D Inc.
Canada

[Neomys Sapiens]

Nice. But why did you have to make it magnetic? I detest magnets on my workspace. Giving the feet some weight would be more sensible.

[Cortex]

I agree that magnets can be annoying when your tools and parts keep snapping against them all the time.  But the advantages of this system far outweigh the inconveniences.

Now, to get the force I needed, nothing even comes close to the performance of N52 magnets.  The ring magnet I use gives 8.58 pounds of pull force on a steel plate.  And I needed to add silicone rubber pads at the bottom of the pegs to prevent the PCBs from sliding around as I wedged the PCB.  Can you imagine the huge chunk of iron I'd need on each peg to get the equivalent result?!

When you get used to the routine of keeping things away, it's not that bad.  And it helps to have the magnetic field confined into a tight loop when it's on a steel plate.  So, when not in use, I store them in a bin, on a shelf away from metallic tools.

On the other hand, you can always remove the ring magnet and replace it by a stack of washers, and finish with a strip of 3M VHB double-sided tape to stick it to a heavy weight of your choice and shape.  The micrometric probes are even simpler, just push on the 3 magnet rods to remove them and use VHB again and a slab of iron.

[exe]

Interesting, it does not show up in search on ebay.co.uk . Does this mean if I want to buy something I have to check ebay.com, ebay.de, ebay.co.uk, ebay.ac, ebay.it, etc ?

[Mr. Scram]

Interesting, it does not show up in search on ebay.co.uk . Does this mean if I want to buy something I have to check ebay.com, ebay.de, ebay.co.uk, ebay.ac, ebay.it, etc ?

It depends, but some products are only visible from certain countries.

[alm]

Interesting, it does not show up in search on ebay.co.uk . Does this mean if I want to buy something I have to check ebay.com, ebay.de, ebay.co.uk, ebay.ac, ebay.it, etc ?

I'm guessing it does not show up on eBay UK because the item only ships to Canada.

[Berni]

On Ebay you need to set your shipping address to other places to see things that only ship there. Quite annoying.

Im not as much concerned about magnets as i am with using a large metal surface as the work area that has the potential to short things.

I tend to put one of these clamps(attachment) on my scope probe to create a sort of "tripod" out of it where one leg is the probe tip and the other two legs are the clamps handles. But for when i know im going to be probing something for a while i just solder a tiny wire to it and clip the probe to that.

[exe]

I'm guessing it does not show up on eBay UK because the item only ships to Canada.

Thanks, totally missed that .  Although, delivery to EU would double the price, so economically unreasonable... Nice idea anyway!

Are 3d models available?

[Cortex]

I modified the listing. It was written that international shipping was offered, but it was at the bottom of page.  Now it's quite clear - right at the top!!!
eBay is really f#$! up on this shipping calculator.  I can specify options for Canada and either "USA-or-International", but not the three of them.  Everybody is complaining about that, but they do nothing about it.  So I have to put some text in there manually, or create a duplicate listing just for international buyers.  Grrr!

And no, the fees are not ridiculous IMHO.  Actually, I make no money on shipping.

About the 3D models... sorry, they're not available.

[Cortex]

Im not as much concerned about magnets as i am with using a large metal surface as the work area that has the potential to short things.

To be honest, I took the photos with a bare metal slab to highlight the ferromagnetic requirement.  But when I use the probe in real life, they're sticking to a steel plate under my microscope, that is covered with a white, self-adhesive vinyl.  This provides a very thin but robust insulator against shorts and mishaps.

[TerraHertz]

You probably should mention that the 'probes' are just needles soldered into bits of bare wire. No coax or controlled impedance anything.
So these will be for low frequency measurements only.

[Pinkus]

FYI: By entering your item number (263447821265) in the German Ebay.de or if I enter your headline (High-Precision Needle PCB Probing System) in the German Ebay, your listing will not appear.

[Berni]

You probably should mention that the 'probes' are just needles soldered into bits of bare wire. No coax or controlled impedance anything.
So these will be for low frequency measurements only.

True that.

Tho even if it was coax all the way, still the ground loop would likely be too long for fast stuff. They are always a pain in probing (Well unless you got active probes).

[Cortex]

FYI: By entering your item number (263447821265) in the German Ebay.de or if I enter your headline (High-Precision Needle PCB Probing System) in the German Ebay, your listing will not appear.

I don't understand why.  Here when I try ebay.de it works both with the number and the search text.  Are you sure you have the International option selected?

[Cortex]

You probably should mention that the 'probes' are just needles soldered into bits of bare wire. No coax or controlled impedance anything.
So these will be for low frequency measurements only.

Yes I agree.  I was planning to mention that, but first, I needed to make a setup and come up with some actual scope captures of square waves for 3 different high frequencies (ex: 1MHz, 10Mhz, 50Mhz) so the user can decide wether or not this is acceptable.  In the meantime, I just added generic warning to the notes.

My next design would include an optional boom with a probe clip holder at the end, so you can use any probe you like, even expensive active ones.  If you have a few models to recommend, I'd like to see them, or get the part number/manuf.

[Cortex]

Quote from: alm on January 21, 2018, 10:45:38 PM

>Quote from: exe on January 21, 2018, 09:41:09 PM

Interesting, it does not show up in search on ebay.co.uk . Does this mean if I want to buy something I have to check ebay.com, ebay.de, ebay.co.uk, ebay.ac, ebay.it, etc ?

I'm guessing it does not show up on eBay UK because the item only ships to Canada.

Try again, I just changed the listing again so it is Canada+International instead of Canada+USA only.  I really don't understand why eBay is limiting me to 2 out of 3 options!
I also reduced the shipping fees to $12CAD.

Come on guys!!!   Encourage me!  I worked so hard on this 

[Ysjoelfir]

That's a really cool idea, I like it very much! Sadly my budget is more or less nonexistant so I can't afford a kit right now. But I hope you will keep up thinking about great ideas like this

[exe]

Come on guys!!!   Encourage me!  I worked so hard on this 

Okay, okay, I bought one set .

But I'm afraid I'll have to pay hell a lot of money for VAT and "processing" ((.

PS where to get a metal plate?

[Berni]

You probably should mention that the 'probes' are just needles soldered into bits of bare wire. No coax or controlled impedance anything.
So these will be for low frequency measurements only.

Yes I agree.  I was planning to mention that, but first, I needed to make a setup and come up with some actual scope captures of square waves for 3 different high frequencies (ex: 1MHz, 10Mhz, 50Mhz) so the user can decide wether or not this is acceptable.  In the meantime, I just added generic warning to the notes.

My next design would include an optional boom with a probe clip holder at the end, so you can use any probe you like, even expensive active ones.  If you have a few models to recommend, I'd like to see them, or get the part number/manuf.

I wouldn't really design it for any specific probe model since there are so many out there. Rather make it some sort of spring loaded clip like a giant clothes pin that can grip around round things between 5mm to 20mm in diameter.

My favorite active probe is the HP 1152A (2.5GHz single ended) but this old probe is particularly bulky with a quite stiff cable. Would need a pretty strong grip on it to hold it so id just design it around standard passive probes that tend to come with scopes and just design it so that its capable of gripping slightly thicker probes than that.

[Cortex]

Quote from: exe on January 25, 2018, 08:13:52 AM

PS where to get a metal plate?

Thanks for the purchase!  Let me know if I can improve something.

About the metal plate, it doesn't need to be as thick as the one in the photos.  It can be just 1mm thick and it will be just as good.   


Here are a few examples:

• Side covers from old PCs.  As a bonus, the hardened powder paint makes an excellent insulator against shorts.  Same with old tape decks, amps, etc.
• Covers from dead CD or DVD drives.  Good for small circuits.  Easy to move around under the microscope
• Most hardware stores have a stock metal section.  Check there.  I like to walk around through the aisles, and watch for any kind of parts that could have a secondary use.  I'm always surprised to find something unexpected

Let us know what you found, with photos if possible.

[blundar]

Very interested.  Ebay fees suck.  Sent you PMs to get a paypal invoice and bypass fees.

[Cortex]

Very interested.  Ebay fees suck.  Sent you PMs to get a paypal invoice and bypass fees.

Sure no problem.  I will get back to you in private.

[Cortex]

I have improved the design to include an extra thumb screw on the coarse vertical offset of boom.
Also got rid of the annoying Torx screws.  Now all standard Phillips.