discussion Inspired

[Guest]

So. I was having a good nose around SMF, reading topics that sparked my interest when I happened across a thread where several members talked about making use of household items and cheap stuff from pound shops and it got me thinking. I work with computers and a majority of our work involves laptops. I have already gotten a load of white LED's from broken screens (that one was my boss's idea) so I got to thinking about what else can be rescued from broken laptop parts that would otherwise go in the bin.


So far, I have found some very fine plastic mesh from speaker coverings and cooling vents that could be made use of.


I also think I can make use of the clear plastic light guides that some laptops use to shape the activity LED's output.


The screws in laptops screw into brass threaded inserts. I can easily remove the inserts with a soldering iron then use them on models where a removable panel would be useful as the screws are nice and small.


If anyone has any other idea's that could inspire me further...

 

[dave]

The cooling fans can be used as ventilation fans for industrial buildings, underground bunkers etc.

 

[Gern]

Some of the electronic components you find soldered onto the PCB make useful boxes, small gas cylinders etc if you want to detail up a cockpit for example (obviously not so much use if you want every detail totally accurate). You'll probably need a soldering iron to remove them without breaking them though.

 

[Guest]

Some of the electronic components you find soldered onto the PCB make useful boxes, small gas cylinders etc if you want to detail up a cockpit for example (obviously not so much use if you want every detail totally accurate). You'll probably need a soldering iron to remove them without breaking them though.

It's a good idea but surface mount components are a nightmare to remove as they are glued onto the board and flow soldered. Using 2 irons to heat both ends and burn off the glue works but it is very easy to overheat and destroy the component.

 

[Ian M]

Small PCB's make quite good "decoration" for sci-fi builds....

 

[Gern]

It's a good idea but surface mount components are a nightmare to remove as they are glued onto the board and flow soldered. Using 2 irons to heat both ends and burn off the glue works but it is very easy to overheat and destroy the component.

I agree they can be impossible to remove sometimes but .....


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And as Ian said, you can get some good Sci Fi bits:


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The figure in Pic 3 is from a set of 28mm Sci Fi figures. One day maybe, I'll get round to doing the dio I have in mind for this!

 

[eddiesolo]

The cooling fans can be used as ventilation fans for industrial buildings, underground bunkers etc.

Indeed they can, this a fan and heatsink out of an old xbox 360.

 

[Guest]

Hmm, interesting. The type of components pictured are conventional mount rather than surface mount. A very good source for those is old audio amplifiers.


A word of warning tho, be wary of stripping down valve amps. Some components can hold a hefty charge for a long time.