Homebrew PCBs

I've done that on thin board where I needed the circuit to be very
thin but wasn't willing or able to use SMT. Plus this was a long time
ago when SMT was very newly available and I wanted to use what I had
already.

Only rather than bending out, I snipped the leads flush with the
bottom of the part. Not up to NASA standards, but works for a few
low-vibration small boards.

And I'm about to do the same again, got 4 boards to finish quickly and
don't have suitable drill bits. And this project is very much on the
cheap.

Steve

--- In Homebrew_PCBs@yahoogroups.com, John Johnson <johnatl@m...> wrote:
> You know, I've been wondering why people drill holes at all.
> How about SMDIP (Surface mount DIP) instead of SMT?
> I.e. design your board so that the components mount on the
> trace side of the board. To mount DIPs, bend the legs out 90 degrees
> and solder it down like a surface mount device. You would have to adjust
> the width between the rows of pads to account for the extra width. Using
> Eagle's Offset Pads would probably do the trick. You can also surface
> mount normal, visible, passive components. Drill holes for connectors
> and things that need physical strength. You could probably do double
> sided boards like this, even with components on both sides.
> Drilling the vias, of course.
> 
> Regards,
>    JJ
>