ok the problem is this i need a tig welder but i really dont want to be paying the prices that are being asked for ones that really arent up to the job so ive found a recipe that uses an arc welder as the power supply which is great as i have 2 of those, anywho on this site is a load of drawings but i dont understand them, im kinda hoping that someone here can work out where all the bits go on the pcb, i will be using a bread board until my cnc machine is up and running(designed and built by me just doing the pcb now) so if you can do it for that format it would be great. i know im asking a lot but i really dont understand it although i can build a pcb if its got a diagram showing me where the components go. please help i would very much appreciate it.
www3.telus.net/public/a5a26316/TIG_Welder.html
Hmmm.
First off, I am a robot guy but I am also a metal worker and welder. In fact, I weld very well (I can torch-weld alumin(i)um). I’m gunna give this to you straight… This is over your head and here is why I say that. By the way, I am just trying to save you some wasted time and heartache…
You are asking for someone to convert a “drawing” into “where the parts go on the pcb”. I cut and pasted the URL you gave into my browser and took a look at the site. The “drawings” you speak of are actually schematics. In terms of “where things go” on a PCB, they can go anywhere you want. There is not a simple step in-between. This is not an issue of where things go, but more what is connected to what. In this case, the only way to show you what is connected to what is indeed what you already have --the “drawings” (schematics).
If you are interested in learning how to read schematics and make something from them, that is a different question. I often get on people here for asking about step 87 when they have not figured out step 3, you skipped ahead to step 9872. It’s like saying “I want to build a skyscraper, I can’t read blueprints so I need someone to read them and tell me where to put all the I-beams”.
Don’t get me wrong, this seems like an AWESOME project. But for sure, it would be something to build up to. Start with some simple schematics and go from there. After a while, you will find them quite logical and easy to follow, you just gotta walk before you run.
One more – Consider the pcb layouts they show as worthless… They say in the start of the article that they will not provide any gerber files so really, those PCB layouts are just unusable pictures.
actually that helps cos ive
actually that helps cos ive been looking at those for a while now wondering where the bits went (wood for the trees moment) bread board it is should make things interesting, ive built a few things like electronic speed controllers to car ecu’s so it is a big step up but you dont learn anything without getting stuck in and the occasional smell of burnt flesh.
I totally agree with Chris
I totally agree with Chris and if you’re not sure what you’re doing these currents and voltages can easily kill you. Start off with something simple (like get an LED to blink) and revisit this in a couple of years.
Your life is worth more than the price of a TIG welder.
I don’t want to scare you…
This can indeed be done, it is just a lot of work and the opportunity for a tiny mistake to screw the whole works is a lot… Going from schematic to board --either PCB or breadboard is simply connect the dots in reverse. You print a hard copy of the schematic, grab a highlighter and start. For example:
pin whatever from chip whatever goes to ground. Connect that and highlight that connection on the schematic showing you did it. Next one: pin whatever goes to a resistor, then to power --same thing, connect it and highlight it. When the whole schematic is highlighted, you finished it. If you do this SLOWLY and RELIGIOUSLY-STEP-BY-STEP, checking each connections as you make it, you will be all set. An analogy would be making a cake with only a flashlight… You can never see the whole cake, but if you measure exactly one cup of flour and exactly 350 degrees and exactly 35 minutes baking etc. it will work.
A metric ton of patience here could make up for any lack of know-how.
Actually, that’s a crappy analogy…
A better one would be that you don’t know how to make a cake but if you follow the recipe exactly… etc. etc.
