eyelets and radial capacitors

[Tarazed]

I am creating an eyelet board for my MiniBlok II amp project, and am uncertain about how to space/position the eyelets for radial capacitors. On the one hand, it seems to me that the eyelets should be positioned close enough so that the capacitor leads can be soldered without having to bend them. On the other hand, doing it this way would required that the capacitor be positioned above the eyelets so as to keep the body of the capacitor out of the solder - maybe using a fat toothpick as a spacer? Is there a best way to space eyelets when using radial capacitors? Thanks!

 

[M Gregg]

I am creating an eyelet board for my MiniBlok II amp project, and am uncertain about how to space/position the eyelets for radial capacitors. !

Think like this,

If the capacitors are ever replaced the size will probably not be the same (upgrade or other)

By putting the eyelets under the capacitors you have more chance of a short and its more difficult to change the parts.

It depends on how much room you have and if you want to lay them down and fix them to the board to prevent vibration etc.

I would bend the leads out at 90 deg and then solder to the board. Leave about 3mm from the capacitor before the bend to avoid shorts to the case.
You can sleeve the legs if you want. PTFE is good for this and doesn't melt.

Also you can then solder to both sides of the board should you want to.

What you don't want is the capacitor sitting in a pool of solder melting the plastic around the cap and possibly creating a short to the case.

Each to their own I guess.
NB remember to keep electrolytic caps away from hot parts. Temp reduces service life.

Regards
M. Gregg

 

[M Gregg]

Something else you can do,

Is drill the board to exact size (like a PCB) push the leads through and bend them back through eyelets mounted about 5-10mm at each side. this gives support and may look better. However it makes them very difficult to change and if you upgrade you will have to re-drill the board. (Its messy)

NB if you can change caps without having to remove the circuit board it makes upgrades/repairs easier. (that's why turret tags/strips are better)

Regards
M. Gregg

 

[Tarazed]

Thanks for this info! This is my first non-kit amp project, and though modest in scope it is still a bit of a plunge into the fog. It will be pretty exciting to get this amp working, and (if it sounds good) building a second one for stereo. In any case, it will help me to gain a better understanding of how (tube) amps work.