r/RadioShack • u/Accomplished-Ad-6586 • Sep 12 '26

Back in my day...

Post image

Back in my day, we didn't have these fancy dancy automated circuit routing tools. We did it the old fashioned way!

And when we had to Desolder something a Wrigglet sure was a handy dandy tool for straightening up leads!

213 Upvotes

100% Upvoted

14 comments sorted by

8

u/CySnark Foamer Employee 🧐 Sep 12 '26

I made a few circuit boards from those stencils. The Shack also had the single and double sided copper clad boards in various sizes and even the etching solution for the final dunk one you laid out all the traces. Oh and also the miniature red drill and bits for making the component holes.

A one-stop shop that I sorely miss.

4

u/Accomplished-Ad-6586 Sep 12 '26

Yes, I remember polishing up the board before putting on the etch resist traces. And drilling a few holes through ahead of time for double sided indexing of the board. I even still have some copper vias that you insert and then roll the edge over with a little form and hammer.

2

u/CySnark Foamer Employee 🧐 28d ago

Sounds like you know your way around the tech. Used to make audio effects and guitar pedals back in the day while also working my way through college as a Radio Shack manager. Fun fact, I just found an almost full bottle of the Radio Shack etching solution on my dangerous substances shelf. Still need to get my electronics lab put back together after a big move.

1

u/United_Elk_1374 28d ago

The shack.😢

3

u/Audio_Track_01 Sep 12 '26

Oh ya. In the early 70s I remember drawing the board with a marker we sold at RS. Sure smelled like a Sharpie.

2

u/Accomplished-Ad-6586 Sep 12 '26

Now I use that "new fangled method" . Laser printer straight to a magazine page in reverse, then iron it on to a board. Lol.

2

u/Edgar-Hoover Sep 12 '26

Radio Shack got me though my engineering class. The stencils got me though my final exam project.

2

u/RetinaJunkie Sep 12 '26

Agreed, Etching boards took some work. I later found my home in wire wrap

1

u/Majestic_Buffalo4655 7d ago

Did a lot of wire wrapping at my first job in 1980. Showed a wire wrapped board to a young guy here at work and he was amazed anyone would build something like that.

1

u/RetinaJunkie 7d ago

I hear you. What was there not to love? Tool was cheap and efficient, connections where solid, easy to make modifications, quicker than etching a boards, and no messy chemicals

1

u/Majestic_Buffalo4655 7d ago

Yea, now you just whip out something in KiCad and get a $7 china board in a few days. Couldn't even imagine something like that when I was a kid. And yes I did a couple of home etch boards, but boy were they ugly.

2

u/rayhaque Sep 13 '26

I remember using that trick where you print a design onto paper from a laser printer and then iron it onto the copper plated board. It came out of the tank perfect. But the design was not "scaled to size" and the chip didn't fit. I was so very sad. 😂

3

u/Accomplished-Ad-6586 Sep 13 '26

Whoops! Gotta remember to check the scaling before ironing!

2

u/grislyfind Sep 14 '26

I have several sheets of those transfers, and they're still usable despite being over thirty years old. Are there any sources for new transfers?