30 Mar
2002
30 Mar
'02
7:07 a.m.
On Sat, 30 Mar 2002, Loboyko Steve wrote:
Well, no, it isn't. Because the cost of getting a
PCB made is less
than the cost of a good electronics technician, I think it started to
die in the late 80's. And, of course, its practically impossible to WW
BGA chips, etc.
Adapters are available for surface mount chips (even BGA) so they can be
socketed and/or wire wrapped, but they are quite expensive.
I get stuff from: Jameco More expensive than they used
to be. Still
the best (non-mindbogglingly expensive Augat)sockets, but have gone up
in price a lot.
Check Mouser Electronics [http://www.mouser.com/], their prices average
around 20% lower than Digi-Key, and I've had very good experiences with
ordering from them. Due to where I'm located, UPS ground shipping gets the
parts here the next day too ;)
Incredibly, I still use a hand WW tool from Radio
Shack. It's cheap,
it works!
I think they still sell that one too.
A genuine Ok Industries wrap/unwrap tool (standard or modified type) has
become somewhat expensive. Last time I checked, these were going for
$25-30, but I remember them being priced in the $15-20 range. I personally
prefer the modified wrap type tool when making wire wrap prototypes, since
the connections will hold up to more abuse.
What would the parts count for this system be like if it were built with
individual TTL chips instead of the PAL/GAL type chips?
-Toth