V3.57 PCB Kit

[jdownj]

I am new to MS, but have reasonable experience with automotive tuning, and a large amount of experience with PCB design and manufacture. Reading the FAQ I understand the reasoning for not providing Gerbers, etc for the boards. As I prefer to assemble my own equipment I will be working from a kit. I have a (Fairly Extreme) preference for working with SMD, and would therefore prefer the 3.57 board. As of now it does not appear that the 3.57 board is available as a partial kit anywhere.

I understand the risks that I would be taking building hardware that is not common with other configurations(Little to no advice on PCB/Soldering issues), but I would be very interested in purchasing a "partial kit", etc for the 3.57 board. Is this possible at all?

If not, are there any differences between the 3.0 and 3.57 that matter?

[trakkies]

I'm just an MS user who built my own from a kit, but I've got a couple of thoughts as I'm a pretty experienced constructor.

SM is for automated machine assembly. To build something this complicated at home using normal DIY tools simply beyond the abilities of near everyone. Even those like me who already have the basic tools for SM repair.

[jdownj]

I certainly understand where you are coming from, but I am in fact truly prepared for SMD assembly. My equipment was purchased for my work with DC/DC converters and switching power supplies so I have access to:

-Re-flow Oven
-Solder Paste(stencils are easier, but my RepRap PCBS I did with a syringe)
-Hot Air Soldering Gun
-Grounded pencil iron for single pad rework if needed

My preference for SMD is based on the fact that once a board is laid out, and the paste and components are in place, a few minutes in the re-flow oven, and if done right, you don't have to worry about ANY soldering problems... and no hours breathing rosin fumes

I would love original design files but I certainly respect the reasons why those are not published. In fact the MS team did a much more intelligent explanation for not sharing such than many similar(non-EFI) projects out there...

[Edit]
While slightly outside the scope of this forum, Thru-Hole components are becoming harder and harder to get, and I believe as hobbyists we are going to have to accept SMD anyway at some point...

[trakkies]

I certainly understand where you are coming from, but I am in fact truly prepared for SMD assembly. My equipment was purchased for my work with DC/DC converters and switching power supplies so I have access to:

-Re-flow Oven
-Solder Paste(stencils are easier, but my RepRap PCBS I did with a syringe)
-Hot Air Soldering Gun
-Grounded pencil iron for single pad rework if needed

My preference for SMD is based on the fact that once a board is laid out, and the paste and components are in place, a few minutes in the re-flow oven, and if done right, you don't have to worry about ANY soldering problems... and no hours breathing rosin fumes

[snip]

It is precisely that laying out which would given the average home constructor insurmountable problems.

Soldering (using leaded solder) should cause no problems for an experienced constructor. Nor will rosin fumes, unless inhaled all day every day. But a simple extractor fan will sort those anyway.

[Matt Cramer]

I understand the risks that I would be taking building hardware that is not common with other configurations(Little to no advice on PCB/Soldering issues), but I would be very interested in purchasing a "partial kit", etc for the 3.57 board. Is this possible at all?

Right now customers who are equipped to solder SMD parts are the exception, not the rule. There's so little demand for V3.57s in kit form (at least going by the requests we get) that at this point DIYAutoTune.com only buys V3.57 boards with the SMD parts pre-soldered on. The V3.0 kits can use economics of scale to bring their price down, but if we only were able to sell a couple dozen V3.57 kits a year, they'd be way more expensive.

If not, are there any differences between the 3.0 and 3.57 that matter?

Not much. The V3.57 has a PWM IAC driver as standard equipment, but that's about it.

While slightly outside the scope of this forum, Thru-Hole components are becoming harder and harder to get, and I believe as hobbyists we are going to have to accept SMD anyway at some point...

We have been having a more difficult time tracking down sources for some of the parts. But so far, we've usually managed to come up with decent substitutes. Hopefully the tools for at-home SMD work will be cheaper by the time the supply of parts dries up.