MattKendrick.com

A Quote About Failure

Monday, May 8th 2017

While looking for inspiration, this quote hit me. Reminds me of the words of Yoda: "Do. Or do not. There is no try." via quotefancy.com

Category: Quotes (2)

Tags: motivational

Just something that hit me this morning during prayer and reflection. Sometimes we get so wrapped up in what we can and can't do. I've learned it's better to focus on what you can do. Keep in mind, your best effort today isn't your all-time best. Keep working toward your goals. You'll get to be where you want to be in time. But for today, focus on what you can do. This applies everywhere: relationships, work, hobbies, sports and etc. Don't beat yourself up or be defeated over something you can't do. Focus on what you can do. The rest will come in time.

image via pixabay.com

Category: Personal Growth (1)

Tags: inspiring

SMD Project Kit 2: Surface Mount Soldering Practice Kit

Saturday, March 12th 2016

Been working on some more surface mount soldering practice. One of the reasons I'm focused on this right now is because my cousin has a project for me to work on that involves SMD work. I want to make sure my skills are up to par before going any further.

The completed kit above I got from eBay. It was less than dollar with shipping. Granted it took several weeks to arrive from China. But it was well worth it. I threw the quarter in there for scale. The kit has several sizes of resistors with different values. On the smaller units, I had to utilize a magnifying glass to do most of the work. I also was careful to use flux this time. I think that made a huge difference. Especially when it came to drag-soldering the IC. Speaking of. The IC is a LM339 comparator chip. But honestly I can't tell you exactly how it's used in this circuit.

Matter of fact, there isn't a whole lot of documentation with this kit. It's possible that the kit is mainly testing for polarity. If you get a lit LED after hooking 7-15 volts DC to it you're good. Kinda like a pass/fail test. Either you get a gold star or not. However it is a really good practice kit for the money. I've got some more kits lined up from Flyandance. Hopefully I will get around to doing those kits as well. I'll be sure to put them up too. See ya next time!

eBay: SMT SMD Component Welding Practice PCB Board Soldering DIY Kits SCW
Found a video of someone assembling this kit: YouTube

Category: Electronics (2)

Tags: soldering, smd, smt

Flyandance DIY Tiny SMT LED Chaser Kit

Thursday, March 10th 2016

I posted this video on Youtube a few weeks ago. I haven't had much of a chance to repost it on here. But if you're looking to get into surface mount soldering this is the kit for you. I'm a absolute newbie. Well let's just say I went through two kits to get it right. Enjoy!

eBay: http://goo.gl/cSckju

Category: Electronics (2)

Tags: electronics, kits, 555 timer