Determination and hard work - Part 1 & 2 & 3

[led-fan]

Here's my story on my journey over the last year to resurrect Pulsar LED watches......I've been a bit busy learning PCB design and more importantly micro RISC programming..........

FIrst here is another broken Pulsar LED. Broken wire bonds doh....

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Next step bring out the veroboard abnd start programming......

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Brush up on basic PCB design and get busy with the laser printer, iron and ferric chloride

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My girlfriend calls it a watch for Elephants !

check out my next installment - Here's part 2

My last post showed my LED design journey learning PCB skills and more importantly programming. Here I'm trying to miniaturise.

Here's one of my attemps to build a very small PCB at home. Drilling 0.3mm holes was a challenge.



Problem is it was too unreliable mainly due to homemade vias.

Only one way to go from here have proper PCBs manufactured.......



Here's the jig I tested and applied yet more programming time !



Sadly I killed the main display, so i'll ask again...Please does anyone have any dead p4 modules I could buy ?....Please ?

At this stage I moved on to another Pulsar the brilliant 3013 module....[

In my last 2 posts I made a valiant attemt to repair from scratch a Pulsar DOW module. I very sadly killed the display with too much heat

Oh well don't give up I'll try fixing a 3013 module using my new skills.

Here it is all nicely asssembled under my microscope.



And here is my fully working baby.



it's taken me a good part of a year to get here but it works.

Oh what fun

[Kasper]

amazing stuff...thats dedication..love it.

we are trying to see how we can get these 3 post in 1 post..it's easier for people to comment.

or you could post pictures in another way.
"i take all my pics with my dell streak android phone...then i copy them to my dropbox in android so i have them also on my desktop.
then i open picasa and export the pictures in a smaller resolution and a watermark to my dropboxfolder on my pc so i can post the pictures here. "

you can take pictures with everything you have offcoursse and trow them in a dropboxfolder on your pc.

[led-fan]

Thanks Kasper.


Thanks for the praise, appreciated. I have had a rather unhealthy addiction to LED watches for awhile now.


Yeah good point it dawned on me last night I could use a photo hosting site.

Oh well you live and learn.

[bucko170]

Nice work

I have merged the three posts into one and moved the follow on posts, looks like I have messed up the last two photographs in doing so, sorry!

[led-fan]

Thanks Bucko.

PM left and thank you for the help, cheers

I have added the missing pics via Photobucket


Cheers

[bucko170]

Thank you, I did at least learn were I went wrong so if I need to do it again I now know how.

Is it expensive to have a PCB manufactured?

[led-fan]

I went to a very nice helpful chap in China he charges about $60 for 10 PCBs including courier delivery

[egomon]

Woow. So nice to see that somone is so dedicated. I'm so impressed . I have one spare Pulsar P4 display if you still need one?

Best regards

Egon

[led-fan]

Thanks Egomon.

Yes please I would love a p4 display this will allow me to finish my dead P4 classic DOW.

[vpn]

I've just finished reading the thread, and I've thought: holy cow! That's been surely a very hard work. But I truly admire your determination to bring the Pulsar back to life. It's great to see it back from the shadows!

[led-fan]

Again many thanks for the possitive comments.

Yes it was truly a slog but very much worth it.

[led-fan]

Here's the final result.............

[bucko170]

Very impressive work

Did you start out with any prior knowledge or was it all learned from scratch?

[led-fan]

I have some knowledge of electronics but it was old school through hole stuff. The real hard part for me was learning programming but there is some really great online tutorials that helped (and masses and massses of hours practising). It is also the first time I have designed proper PCBs and had them professionaly manufactured. Having a well designed PCB makes a big difference and really improves the reliability, you just gotta make sure it correct by checking, checking and checking some more before putting the order in. I have found that my SMT skills have improved over the various iterations but a must is a good stereo microscope and good quality LMP solder.

Hanno gave me some good tips too especially how to remove displays.

[SASM]

Great work! If it took you just one year this is not a bad time at all and I know what I am talking about. I am always impressed what people can archieve if they just don´t give up. Great work!

A small tip: Don´t send the data to China, even if you can save a few bucks. Let your fellow countrymen earn some money at home and ask Majestyk about his experience or look at the "new" Pulsars at ebay.

Hanno.

[vpn]

Fantastic! Everytime a Pulsar comes back to life it's a joy. Love the picture Led-Fan! This proves that determination can even make you move mountains. I think you've become my favourite LED watch hero after I've seen what you've done on that Pulsar.

[led-fan]

Thanks guys lets say I'm in a very happy place in fact that place is supping a few steins in Munich in celebration !!!

Point taken Hanno but my Chinese guy only has PCB design info and not the all important code !

BTW you are the one that inspired me to have ago !

[dutchsiberia]

Very impressive!

[led-fan]

I have been busy honing my new learnt skills and have now brought back to life a Hamilton QED:




It's a lovely watch and the new affectionately called Rawsar module is running beautifully. I have even set the oscillator precisely with an oven controlled Frequency counter. I suspect I will have to do this again sometime as I believe Xtals “wear in”.

More interestingly I have managed to fully revive my P4 DOW Classic.
I would like to thank at this point Egonman who donated a dead P4 module, alas it separated from its substrate despite being super careful. Nevertheless the donation was much appreciated and free too.
I have not stopped there though. I managed to scoop a cheap dead P4 watch on Ebay and have successfully removed the display and graft it onto my board…..What a relief and many lessons learned I can tell you.
A few programming issues were overcome especially around the HG flicker switch including adding a function to turn the “flicker” on and off.

Here are a few pics for you....Enjoy

We have seperation - This was before I even tried to melt the solder




Yet more programming. I'm getting to enjoy it now !



The Rawsar module in it's new home:




The end result and what a result too:

[vpn]

That's sweet! I'm amazed by your determination and the efforts you've put in order to resurrect these beauties. There's no limit to willpower, I must say! Hope you'll manage to resurrect some other watches in future!

[led-fan]

Thanks vpn.

Yes there will be more as I bought my self a big box of Synchronar bits, that's my next LED destination.

Watch this space !

[vpn]

That's cool! I guess that resurrecting a Synchronar will be an hard task, since I've heard "horror stories" about the module. I've bookmarked the thread!