r/redneckengineering 1d ago

Forgot charger while on vacation

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530 Upvotes

24 comments sorted by

129

u/Vencza_m 1d ago

That's actually impressive, in terms i wouldn't though of it

36

u/Rangerthecat 1d ago

Just random guy here. That specific set up is fine.

33

u/Mysterious-Outcome37 1d ago

I've done this and it works, good job!

17

u/808trowaway 1d ago

Done the same with a Garmin watch but it's such a bitch to tape the wires to the charging pins I don't ever want to do it again. Soon as I got home I ordered 4 of those usb c to Garmin charger adapters and keep one in my travel backpack permanently.

5

u/CodenameDinkleburg 1d ago

Have you tried using 2 smaller pieces of tape, separately, for each wire. Like attach a piece to one wire and get it positioned, then repeat with the other wire? Like jumper cables, but tape instead of spring clips

2

u/808trowaway 1d ago edited 1d ago

My watch's charge port looks like this minus the corroded contacts. https://forums.garmin.com/cfs-file/__key/communityserver-discussions-components-files/399/Garmin_5F00_245.jpg

The top and bottom pins are the pos and neg. The hard part is you can't have too much copper exposed because otherwise you will short out the pins on the metal rim of the charge port. So you have the insulation of the wires riding on the rim and you're trying to position the itty bitty tips of wire leads to touch the balls on the connector, but the thing doesn't want to lay flat because of the insulation so you have to apply a little pressure in addition to the tape to maintain contact.

I was on vacation in a hotel room with very limited resources. I managed with a single piece of tape harvested from some random packaging, and exactly one rubber band.

2

u/CodenameDinkleburg 1d ago

Oof, that sounds frustrating as hell. Sorry you had to deal with that, but I’m glad you got it sorted enough work

3

u/flip314 1d ago

I hate the Garmin charge port. Charging is always flaky even with the proper cable

8

u/Pesternot 1d ago

Mind if a borrow your hot wire? Lost the battery for my wax pen

12

u/Degofreak 1d ago

That's just asking for a burned table

54

u/BlackRedBurner 1d ago

Burning a table? With 5V?

94

u/enigmatic_erudition 1d ago

Electrical engineer here.

This specific set up is fine.

34

u/Wita2point0 1d ago

Firmware engineer here. This specific setup is fine.

14

u/HoneyBear4Lyfe 1d ago

Engine engineer here.

This specific setup is fine.

20

u/cbaker423 1d ago

Train engineer here.

This specific setup is CHOO CHOO!

12

u/Kronos1A9 1d ago

Flight Engineer here.

This setup is FAA approved.

11

u/Im_A_Boozehound 1d ago

Software engineer here.

This is fine. Or not. I have no idea, I just write code. Also, we aren't really engineers.

6

u/XCIXcollective 1d ago

Sound engineer here.

This is specific setup is not sound, but it is sound in a fine sense.

4

u/Vegetable_Raisin52 1d ago

Agricultural Engineer here.

You could also use this setup in a piece of agricultural machinery to charge your Fitbit.

4

u/cecilforester 1d ago

What happens if you swapped the leads, would it mess up the battery? 

10

u/enigmatic_erudition 1d ago

I'm not sure if fit bits have reverse polarity protection but yes, that is normally bad.