I use KiCAD alot, and I’m pretty familiar with it. I found an open-source STM32 soldering station a while back and was meaning to build it putting my own spin on it. STM32 Soldering and Rework Station with TFT Display - Hackster.io. Wasn’t initially planning on changing the PCBs but the BOM was all LCSC weird stuff and some deprecated parts. Trying to mess around in EasyEDA was really annoying after using KiCAD for so long…
So I went through imported the schematic, then wound up redoing all 3 PCBs. I had to change random footprints and/or symbols for whatever reason. Probably to my own fault I ordered the PCBs before I really sat down to order the BOM…Then I noticed all the mistakes lol, I don’t think I’ve ever made so many. Stuff like SOT-23s with the wrong pinouts, diodes with the Cathodes as pin 2 on the footprint with pin 1 on the symbol. PCBs are probably still going to be salvageable (only 2 layer) but I’ll have a few funky bodges going on.
Moral of the story…I should have just redrew the whole thing using KiCAD symbols from the start. I don’t think importing the EasyEDA schematic really saved me anything.
Pinouts on IC packages and transistors do not magically change when you convert a project form another program to KiCad. KiCad also does not change track layout during conversion.
I am guessing, but what probably happened:
The conversion went well. You got a (probably working PCB in KiCad.
You started messing with the BOM, substituting parts with different pinouts. (There is no standard pinout for a diode in a SOT-23 package, all configurations are possible.
The PCB does not match with the parts anymore.
I think it’s quite important for you to go back and figure out what really happened, and where and why it went wrong. Understanding what happened helps in preventing the same mistake the next time.
I’m also curious why you spin your own PCB. I have a personal interest here, as I’m thinking of buying at least two of the chinese PCB’s so I have a spare. Either for a T12 or C245. I’m still in doubt about that.
There’s always one of these lol…I think I explained exactlty what happened.
How about it’s exacly like I said and I changed some footprints not realizing pin 1 on a diode is the cathode in KiCAD and in EasyEDA it’s the anode (just for example)? Your first point implies there would actually be a point to converting a project from EasyEDA to KICAD if you weren’t going to change anything, which there is not. I didn’t blame anyone or KiCAD itself, it’s all stuff I should have caught but the point is that you’re just better off redrawing the whole thing, who cares about wires, that’s the easiest part of drawing a schematic. I generally assume the first PCB I run will have mistakes anyway, this one amounts to a few BJTs that are going to be angled funny and some through hole diodes where the bands don’t match the silk screen…I’ll revise it down the road, it’s not the end of the world.
That’s a bit dramatic, it’s not a mystery.
Not sure what you are asking. What “Chinese PCBs”? If you’re asking why I decided to build my own station rather than buying something like the KSGER or Quicko, it’s definitely not about saving money, you can’t beat those Chinese prices especially considering the Meanwell power supply I’m using costs more than those units. I can’t even say how good this guy’s design is, but I know he’s been posting soldering stations for years. It’s a project more than anything but this is a 3-in-1 unit and I’m running out of bench space so I’ve been eying it for a while. I more or less copied his design (only substituting what’s necessary) so that it’s firmware compatible but I changed the PCBs so they fit the case I want to use better.
