Best Electronics Kits For Adults?

An anonymous reader writes "I'm an adult looking to learn how electronics work and have some fun building projects. But all the kits I've found online are for kids 8-10 years old, and they don't really explain the principles — they just color-code where to place components on boards. Are there any kits aimed at adults? I know if anyone has got the answer, it's this community."

Comments

Lessons In Electric Circuits

[Skylinux]

Here you go, not a kit but plenty to read and learn. This is where I would start and once you understand it, pick a project and build it from scratch.
http://www.ibiblio.org/kuphaldt/electricCircuits/

Once you have the understanding, you can create printed circuit boards with Eagle (free for non-commercial use)
http://www.cadsoftusa.com/

and have Sparkfun order your PCBs via BatchPCB
http://www.batchpcb.com/

This is how I got into building my own robots, not the ones from kits but scratch build by ordering the parts and doing my own designs.

Count Radio shack stores out

[RaigetheFury]

Just an FYI, Radioshack Stores are moving away from being the parts store we all loved. They are now trying to be more competitive in Cell Phones and Satellite dishes. You can thank their CEO for this. It's not very easy to find a Radioshack that still has a lot of parts in stock, let alone kits.

It's best to order it online as most stores won't have what you're looking for. Also another idea is to call up your local colleges who offer courses. They often sell kits or can tell you where their students buy kits. Those places ALWAYS have additional info.

The project lists can range from simple circuits to digital electronics. Learning how to build your own Amplifier for your stereo you quickly realize what massive profit margins these companies have, and you start to wonder why medical equipment that performs simple functions costs tens of thousands of dollars.

The Era of Electronic Kits is Gone

[Junior Samples]

In the Good Old Days, we had Heathkit, Eico Kits, and Knight Kits (Allied Radio). The last kit that I built was a Heath AR1500 AM/FM Stereo receiver that I purchased in 1972. It's still running today.

Today, there's not much out there. The local hobby store sells simple kits from Velleman http://www.vellemanusa.com/us/enu/product/list/?id=523008 but these don't compare to the kits of the 60s & 70s.

I guess that's it's a lot cheaper to buy the product assembled and tested from China than it is to build your own.

The ARRL handbook is a good source of do it yourself electronic projects geared toward Amateur Radio.

Ham Radio, Transistor Clock

[MBCook]

I totally sympathize with you. I'm always looking for stuff to build but there really isn't much complex out there. I would love a little 16 bit computer or something. Something like the replica 1 only more complicated.

Of what I've built, there is one and only one answer. The ultimate kit, the best out there, the Elecraft K2. I've built that, the KPA100 power amplifier, the KAT100 tuner, and a few little modules for it. It took me weeks to build it all. It was amazing.

Kit building is why I got into Ham Radio. The only problem is... I don't seem to care about the rest of ham radio. I haven't operated much. I keep meaning to do more to see if I like it better, but I don't seem to care enough to get around to it. I'm thinking of selling my K2 since it's just sitting around.

Other than that there are a few kits out there. A Nixie tube clock, while not too complicated, looks interesting. I ran across an all transistor clock kit the other day. It looks quite neat.

Re:You're an adult now, you don't need a kit.

[dkf]

Please, slashdotters weigh in, because I've missed something here. You've got most of the key things (I'd go for more of the intermediate resistors and capacitors too, but that' personal taste). Add a multimeter to that selection, and you've got a reasonable mix. Better would be an oscilloscope, but that's a much bigger outlay. Also, it's probably a good idea to get some cheap switches (both toggle and push-to-make) and a few variable resistors. And if you're going to experiment with building a radio, definitely get a variable capacitor and a diode. (If not, don't bother.)

Re:Overload

[oldspewey]

Moving into the early 80's, the Timex Sinclair made a 4 chip z80 set.

I actually bought and built one of those Sinclair ZX-81 kits back in the day! I was just a young pup at the time and I was hella enthusiastic about starting right away when the package (assembly instructions, PCB, chips, various little baggies of resistors and caps, etc. etc.) arrived one bright and sunny day.

My Dad told me "wait until the weekend when your brother can help you ... this is a complicated kit," but I wasn't having any of that and I got started soldering right away. All in all and considering my tender age, I think I did a pretty good job except for one fatal flaw: I soldered a 9-pin resistor pack onto the board backwards. Then, in attempting to fix the problem (using nothing but my unbridled enthusiasm and a roll of desoldering braid purchased from Radio Shack) I managed to pull the traces up off a portion of the PCB. At that point, the mess was officially beyond my (or my brother's) skill to fix.

The solution involved mailing the entire kit away to a repair depot and waiting for many, many, many weeks until they returned the machine (in working condition) along with a substantial bill for the repair work.

The fact I can remember so many details about this episode - right down to the number of pins on the ill-fated resistor pack or the exact spot on the living room carpet where I laid down newspapers in order to do my work - is testament to just how valuable these little experiences are for a young mind.

Re:heathkit

[bfwebster]

If I have less than warm feelings towards Heathkit, it's because almost 30 years ago, while working at the Lunar and Planetary Institute, my boss (a great guy, BTW) decided to save LPI some funds. Rather than buying assembled terminals to use with our new VAX, he instead bought quite a few Heathkit dumb CRT terminal kits and then paid me (per terminal) to assemble them after work hours.

It did save LPI money, and it put some extra money in my pockets -- but as I type this, I can feel again the burns and cuts on my fingertips from hours upon hours of assembling and soldering, not to mention the general frustration at trying to make each terminal work (which I did, eventually). I can't remember how many terminals I built, but I know the VAX was intended to support 30 LPI personnel, so it was a lot.

Mostly, it reinforced my earlier decision back in college to be a CS major, rather than a EE major. :-) ..bruce..