OSH Teensy 3's - problem with USB connector SMD soldering

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stevech

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Even with good care in handling, among the Teensy 3 boards I have from OSH, two have had the USB connectors come off the board.
I don't think I'll order T3's from them again until they have a more robust method for the USBs.

I suppose it's an issue with the strength of the adhesive used, not soldering.

Not much impact in terms of expense. Just frustrating.

But I've had no trouble with the fab process used by PJRC.

Click to enlarge

OSH Teesnsy 3 USB connector.jpg

I brought this to the attention of OSH as a ticket. But I wouldn't blame them for saying - be more gentle!
 
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I suppose it's an issue with the strength of the adhesive used, not soldering.

Could also be a function of the reflow material used. The clean breaks on the OSH boards suggest to me that there was little to no glue used to hold the USB connector down. The solder dollops look sheared, either because they were too thin or because they were too soft to handle the forces of inserting and extracting USB connectors. It wouldn't surprise me one bit if the solder used by Laen is not RoHS compliant (aka tin/lead) while the solder used by Paul's fab house is RoHS compliant (which presumably is a harder silver/tin mix).

I have had no issues with Paul's boards either but in my own production I rely on through-hole USB connectors. The added anchoring makes the connector that much more solid. The downside though is that the through-hole connectors are pretty disruptive if every square mm on the board counts, so SMD remains a popular mounting option - just not one that I care for or use.
 
Well- OSH quickly responded - they want to analyze the failed boards. This is a good sign from a well regarded company. And for the trouble of sending to them, they'll replace.
Exceeding expectations - rare these days. Good thing.
 
Yeah, that's really weird.

The purple Teensys are being manufactured in the same line, by the same manufacturer. The only difference between the purple OSHPark boards and the official PJRC Teensys is that I manufacture the bare PCBs for him instead of his normal fab.
 
Hi! I've the same problem and post on the announce topic:

I know that everyone is happy with the price offered by OSH Park, but it was frustrating for me... Living in Brazil, I waited more than 2 months to receive my board, but after I welded the headers, I connected the board to test the pins with the multimeter... do not need much, just plug the USB and the connector crash! Take a look:
View attachment 2027
CHOKED!

I resampled the image to fit here, but if anyone wants to see with a higher resolution, let me know...

There's something weird... I already order a replacement directly from PJRC. Now I only have to wait more 2 long months... :(

Good to you stevech. You can send the board for OSH analyzes and have a fast return, but me... living on a Circus-Country called Brazil, how long I'll wait? 4/6 months? I think it is not worth open a ticket... SAD... :/

I'll try to mend my board as Paul describes on a topic. But now, I'm scared to order anything from OSH Park...
 
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Maybe the failures are a quirk.
I do also note that the USB connectors have a very, very firm grip (friction required to extract) on the plug. I am very careful to not twist, lift, swivel. But I'd estimate the force required is 10x that of the same plug going into my smart phone.

I reduced this problem for bench test work by using 7 slot USB hub with a an on/off switch per port.

But when I do unplug, it is very worrysome that the force required is just too much for the bonding strength used on those surface mounts. I've tried a variety of USB cables. Perhaps you guys could look at this aspect.
As of now, I really minimize the number of unplug cycles - each time is an OMG, please don't break!
 
Follow-up...
Osh Park promptly replaced the Teensy 3.1 described above. This is a very good gesture from them.
Good company.

Steve
 
I reduced this problem for bench test work by using 7 slot USB hub with a an on/off switch per port.

That's interesting, haven't seen ones with on/off switch per port.

I use a USB Type-A M/F extension cable (long enough to get from back of PC to desktop), and then plug the Type-A Male/Micro USB cable into the extension cable. Then just unplug from the extension cable when needed, so as not to cause wear on the teensy connector.
 
Chiming in here, that I had an OSH park one die, the microUSB ripped off when I accidentally gave the USB cable a rough jerk, but I similarly think it is possibly that the MicroUSB connector that is too tight. My boards were purchased around june. I have a sparkfun Teensy 3.1 here purchased less than a week ago, and quite subjectively think the same male MicroUSb connector might be less tight on the sparkfun one (which I believe is a green PJRC produced board.)


So even though the one I killed was because I jerked the cable hard (knocked my project off the desk), I am extra careful with OSH ones because the disconnect connect feels too tight. I can chime in a week again if the newer OSH park ones are looser (i have another teensy coming in along with a custom board for it.)
 
I just wanted to weigh in and say that I've got 8 of the OSH Teensy 3.1's and have had no problems whatsoever with the USB ports... the tightness and robustness of the USB ports don't seem to be any different than the Teensy 3.0's I purchased directly from PJRC, but the OSH price is unbeatable and the boards are purple! :D
 
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