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A few hacks to make bread boarding easier…
1. Hacking the power buses
The power buses on a breadboard are constructed in multiple pieces. To get continuity down the length of the bus you need to add jumper “staples” like so.
With this hack, we peel back the adhesive tape on the back of the breadboard, then thread some wire to connect the metal strips together. I used 24 AWG wire from a cat5 cable.
Alternatively just use self adhesive copper strips. i.e. The stuff that has conductive adhesive and is used to repair circuit boards.
2. Fun with colors
This one is pretty simple. Just get your permanent marker out and color in the positive and ground power buses.
3. Gold test points
“Everywhere, the glint of gold”
These test points are made from a set of Swiss Machine Headers
Just cut the metal pins away, then take the shorter end off.
4. Make your own staples
These “staples” are used to bridge small distances on a breadboard.
Constructed of 22 AWG wire and some heat shrink tubing, they are very easy to make.
5. Swiss Machined Combs
There are times when you need to connect a bunch of tiepoints together. For example you may need to ground multiple pins on an IC. These “combs” make the job easier.
Simply solder a piece of wire across the top of the header, then cut the excess off.
6. Getto micro-sd socket
Feel like playing with micro-SD cards?
Just use a micro-SD to SD adapter and solder some pins to the bottom. I used swiss machine headers because they are easier to insert than standard square headers.
The SD card has 9 connectors on the back, but for many applications only 7 are needed.
7. My LED joined the resistance
This LED has a resistor on the lead making it easier to use.
8. Hacking an IDC connector
IDC connectors don’t work well with breadboard because the rows of pins are too close together. With this last hack we use a right angle IDC connector and bend the pins so they fit.
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