MakersBox

1,823 orders since Apr 05, 2014

Adair Village, OR, United States of America

Ships from United States of America.

Custom Work Available

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Orders ship on Saturday. I love to support workshops. Ask me about custom PCBs or bulk orders. See where my kits have gone at http://www.makersbox.us/2017/11/500-tindie-orders.html.

Overall Rating:

Review Breakdown

Average Ratings

Product: (4.90)

Documentation: (4.55)

Shipping: (4.77)

Communication: (4.79)

All Reviews

Chad | Nov. 20, 2017

An awesome fun kit to build!

For Programmable POV Fidget Spinner

I found out about this while I was in Orlando for a Maker Faire. I'm not into fidget spinners but I'm hooked on this one. The instructions provided in this kit were simple and easy to follow. I had no trouble soldering the boards together.

They are so awesome, we're thinking about teaching a class with these.

Norbert | Sept. 23, 2017

Great DIY kit for the SMD Challenge

For SMD Challenge

This kit includes everything you need to try out the insane SMD Challenge. (Okay, except the coin battery cell, but if somebody doesn't know which kind to buy in the local shop should just stop right now! :) )
All the needed components are included (for some there are even spare ones if you lose/destroy one), sorted out so it is very straightforward where they need to go.
Also the ATtiny is pre-programmed, so you don't have to bother doing that, just grab the solder iron, and rock-and-roll!
The documentation is also very helpful if there are things which are unclear.
The shipping was quick, with tracking included.

Stoney | Sept. 23, 2017

No problems

For Programmable POV Fidget Spinner

Assembly was flawless. My 65yr old eyes needed some help, but a lighted visor came in handy. Both units functioned perfectly, including the pre-programming that I would have been unable to accomplish. My only hitch came from my own over-aggresive grinding off the sharp nubs left from snipping the pins. Normally I would leave them, but these were for my young grandchildren, so I decided to smooth them down, and somehow cut thru a very small foil trace that needed bridged, my bad. These could be commercially available, but the price would be a factor. I am a retired electronics tech. but a novice should be able finish these also.
P.S. The grandkids went ga-ga over them! while the grown-ups competed for highest RPM.

Response from MakersBox | Sept. 23, 2017

As a grandpa myself, it warms my heart that this project is helping you make a connection with your grandkids.

I too, have been working on the solder joints to make them smooth. Here is a technique I think is applicable to this project especially:
https://www.instructables.com/id/Make-Beautiful-Solder-Joints/

My other weapon is these very inexpensive but extremely usefully Hakko flush-cut plyiers: http://a.co/hQYlo4n (you can get them from Digikey as well).

Finally, my trick for removing flux is to use Goo Gone. Acetone is a but much for me to be splashing around the sink.

I've cut a number of traces and wiped out a number of pads in all my gadgeting. Glad you were able to make repairs.

Ken

Norbert | Sept. 23, 2017

An easy way to know that You Can Surface Mount Solder

For I Can Surface Mount Solder

The product is a very straightforward DIY kit.
With the pretty good documentation and the self-explanatory way the components were packed, it only is up to your SMD soldering skills.
A nice plus is the pre-programming done to the ATtiny, so one doesn't have to bother doing that. Just solder everything together, and enjoy the beating heart!
The shipping was quick, with tracking included.

Donna | Aug. 27, 2017

Great Soldering Skills Test

For SMD Challenge

The SMD Challenge, though very frustrating, was fun. I basically proved my hand-soldering skills are only as good as I knew they were already. I knew I wouldn't have any issues down through 0603, as I've designed personal circuits that used parts down to that size. I was so hoping my 0402 skills would have been decent and that maybe by some miracle I could do 0201. The resistor on the 0402 I got soldered OK and while at first glance the 0402 LED looks OK, the LED didn't work. I thought perhaps I just installed it backwards, since the markings are so different on each LED and that particular one was marked on the bottom of the part, meaning you can easily flip it backwards when placing it and there's no way to easily verify it from the top (apart from trying to see the die itself). But after probing the test-points and looking at it closer under the microscope, it seems that I actually damaged the LED with too much heat while soldering it.

And the 0201, well, I got really really close to having it soldered. I thought it was actually in place, but it wasn't and popped loose and... well, I lost it. Those are so tiny you can hardly distinguish the part from a rogue solder splatter speck on your workbench. Thank goodness the kit didn't include a 01005!

Very fun kit and very useful to see if you are able to hand-solder those small parts or see what it would be like to try, without having to make your own board. Great job Ken on assembling and delivering such a fun kit!

Jan | Aug. 19, 2017

Great

For I Can Surface Mount Solder

Was the first order from Czech Republic and product is just great! Soldering tutorial was nice and helpful.

Response from MakersBox | Aug. 19, 2017

Hey Jan,

Thanks for the first review of this product! Glad it made it and you liked it. You could post a picture in the comment section of the Instructable. Maybe with it in front of some landmark to show us what it is like in the Czech Republic?

Happy Making!

Ken

Clayton | July 31, 2017

A wonderfully frustrating kit

For SMD Challenge

I had been watching this project on Hackaday.io since it was first posted, and when I saw the kit had been listed on Tindie I ordered one immediately. It arrived quicker than I expected, and I started trying to assemble it as soon as I could. The 1206 and 0805 parts went smoothly, the 0603s weren't too bad, and the 0402s were easier than I expected. The 0201s proved to be too much for me, with quite a bit of swearing while soldering the resistor and so many attempts to solder the LED that it ended up falling apart. I'll be ordering a few more LEDs on my next parts order to see if I can succeed on the second or third try, but I'm honestly not too hopeful. All in all, I had a delightfully frustrating time, and it was a lot of fun to see how far I got before I failed.

The only documentation problem is that most of the datasheet links on the Tindie and Hackaday.io pages don't work for me, either loading forever or giving an error message. The part numbers are all there though, and pasting them into Octopart works fine of course, so it's not really a big deal.

EDIT: I successfully soldered the 0201 LED on the third try! Also, the datasheet links seem to work now, so I gave back the missing star for documentation.

Michael | May 14, 2017

Great kit

For Easy Joule Thief Soldering Kit

I bought this kit as a beginning solderer, and it was very easy to understand and put together. The PCB is excellently made, and the 10mm LED is a good size and shape for making an LED lamp.

Josh | Nov. 7, 2016

Good easy shield

For Yet Another Programming Shield

I wanted a shield with a ZIP socket, instead of 3 or 4 standard sockets... This was a fast easy build, operates nicely. Blazing fast shipping Arrived well packaged & complete. My new standard for doing chip burns... Great documentation available.

Albert | Aug. 27, 2016

Nice gadget to have.

For Easy Joule Thief Soldering Kit

I do love this little thing and i do use it at night to help my girlfriend to see leaving the bedroom.its nice to have a little light to see with.thanks albert.ps i may make coppies of this.

Richard | May 28, 2016

These are amazing!

For Easy Joule Thief Soldering Kit

We go thru so many batteries! Now go thru them a second time. I'm going to buy some for AAA when they are in stock. I'd like one for 9v too. The reasonable price sealed the deal.

Ron | May 21, 2016

I love these Geek Hearts

For GeekHeart

I am a Geek at heart so this was perfect. I bought one for each student. They all wrote a poem for mother's day and programed them onto the heart. We made little cards up that stated what we did and how we did it, as well as what was on the heart. We put it all in a handmade mother's day card. It went over great. Have done this 2 years in a row now.

David | Feb. 18, 2016

Fun to Make

For Easy Joule Thief Soldering Kit

It was enjoyable to put together for a beginner. Nice feeling of accomplishment seeing the LED light up, powered by an (almost) dead battery. Great kit!

Darrell | Oct. 19, 2015

Fun kit to build and learn

For Easy Joule Thief Soldering Kit

Just put one of these kits together and it was fun and easy! Good documentation with large, easy to see photos. Step-by-step explanation and links to materials to learn more about the circuit you just built. I'd recommend this kit to anyone, beginner to experienced, just for the fun of it! Review Image

Lavon | Aug. 25, 2015

Great kit and seller

For SnapNsew Kit: A Soft-Circuit / Embedded Platform

Great, solid built kit which is easy to use in sewable circuits. Holds solder well, snaps apart easy, and conducts great!

Blake | Aug. 13, 2015

Worked Perfectly

For Yet Another Programming Shield

The YAPS worked great. It was simple to put together. I actually just put it together based on the silkscreen on PCB and then thought I might should look at the actual instructions they have online, just in case. Turns out everything was put together correctly. I use it to program Attiny85 with my Arduino and it's worked exactly as it's suppose to.

Evan | June 1, 2015

Quite handy

For Easy Joule Thief Soldering Kit

Create package
It was easy to put together, there's an instructables.com post on how to put everything together.
Very handy, I've been able to since make a reverse joule thief to charge my lipo batteries

Allen | April 18, 2015

Awesome product!

For Yet Another Programming Shield

The "Yet Another Programming Shield" was very easy to assemble and had great directions available. I have only programmed ATMEGA328P-PU chips so far but I'm sure it will work just as well for the ATTINY chips.

Damayantha | March 29, 2015

awesome

For Easy Joule Thief Soldering Kit

It was really fun to build and it made a great physics demo Review Image

Gwendolyn | March 17, 2015

Great little project and quick delivery.

For Easy Joule Thief Soldering Kit

This is a great little project. We have made joule thieves before (see image) but had to source all the materials and build them ourselves. It is hard to beat the price of the Easy Joule Thief Soldering Kit even sourcing and building them ourselves.

Tom | Feb. 5, 2015

Great intro for kids

For SnapNsew Kit: A Soft-Circuit / Embedded Platform

I had a really great time building this w/ my 6yo daughter.
It was a fun intro to circuits, soldering, etc for her.
Highly recommend as a parent+child project.

Josh | Jan. 12, 2015

Good Product, Good Documentation, Good Everything

For Easy Joule Thief Soldering Kit

I bought one of these, and they were such a hit with our family that we ended up buying more than a dozen. They're simple, easy to put together, great for learning how to solder, and are quite enjoyable after the assembly. I highly recommend them, especially as a little glowing trinket or something to use up those "dead" batteries.

Response from MakersBox | Jan. 12, 2015

Thanks for the review! I'm glad your family enjoyed it.

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