Temporary Sockets

[benny_profane]

I think I remember discussion about temporary PCB sockets that had a spring pin and didn't require soldering. Are these a real thing? If so, can anyone point me in the right direction to them? They'd be really convenient during testing and circuit prototyping.

[EBK]

Pasting from a post I made over at DIYSB.  I haven't taken a closer look at any of these.

Hammer headers!  Also known as solderless or press-fit headers.


Also, this:
https://www.mill-max.com/products/new/compliant-pin-sockets

Don't know how easily removable these are though.

And these:

https://www.mpe-connector.de/index.php?lang=en&menu=16&product_group[]=6&action=Search&id_product=1731

[benny_profane]

Ah great! Thanks, EBK!

[madbean]

So I got one of the MilMax ones. They are really expensive. Over $5 for 5 pins. You read that right. At first I thought, no these don't look right. But, after inserting it in a PCB they seems to stick pretty well. Maybe well enough to use. But, at that cost it seems like too much to create a useful set of temporary sockets for multiple resistor and film cap testing.

Maybe they will come down in price someday.
https://www.mouser.com/ProductDetail/575-3464310541013000

Mouser doesn't seem to have the ones that are for .062" thick PCB. These are for .09" and thicker.

[benny_profane]

So I got one of the MilMax ones. They are really expensive. Over $5 for 5 pins. You read that right. At first I thought, no these don't look right. But, after inserting it in a PCB they seems to stick pretty well. Maybe well enough to use. But, at that cost it seems like too much to create a useful set of temporary sockets for multiple resistor and film cap testing.

Maybe they will come down in price someday.
https://www.mouser.com/ProductDetail/575-3464310541013000

Mouser doesn't seem to have the ones that are for .062" thick PCB. These are for .09" and thicker.

I was a little concerned that those would be hard to remove (they look like a drywall anchors). That price is rather crazy.

The last ones in the EBK post look promising. I haven't checked beyond the site yet.

Mostly I'm looking to have a way to temporarily secure wires for testing. Temporary sockets for components would be a definite plus.

[madbean]

I went ahead and cut one socket loose and press fitted it in a single pad. It actually holds quite well. I could lift the PCB with just the socket!

The more I've thought about it I've decided to buy a few more and just use single sockets to fit the part spacing I need. I spend a considerable amount of time soldering and de-soldering sockets in the design process so spending $25 on these is actually going to save me a lot of hassle in the long run.

[benny_profane]

Oh nice. How easy are they to take out and how robust are they when reused?

Most engineering dev boards use alligator clips or pin headers...but I wonder if there have been jumper wires made with spring ends to work on PCBs like a breadboard. That'd be perfect.

[gordo]

The temporary aspect would be nice for socketing transistors to find the right ones and then be able to double back and solder them in permanently.  Well, at least as "permanent" as solder is...