Build Your Own Clone Message Board

I can move the trim and get some volume out of it but not a whole lot

also both the pots crackle as i turn them

where should i start looking

and there is huge pop when i turn the swithc on and off

We are going to need pictures of your build to help you. They need to be focused. Detailed shots of wiring and both sides of the circuit board.

http://i67.photobucket.com/albums/h316/ ... CF8360.jpg

http://i67.photobucket.com/albums/h316/ ... CF8359.jpg

http://i67.photobucket.com/albums/h316/ ... CF8361.jpg

http://i67.photobucket.com/albums/h316/ ... CF8355.jpg

so these are the best i could do on the picture end of things, so the Led doesnt work and the bypass signal works and then when u engage there is a mega drop in volume and the trimp pot does nothing. When i got the trim pot it didnt fit and i have to bend one of the legs so im thinking maybe a bad trim pot

and i also cleaned up some of the bad soldering i did so its a little cleaner than in the photoes

All of your soldering needs to be re-done. You're using way too much solder and from the looks of things you are getting poor heat transfer resulting in cold solder joints. A good solder joint should not look like a blob of solder. This is what you want your soldering to look like when you're done.

Stephen is absolutely right. Also, you should tin your wire before soldering it to the board and outboard connections. There are several places where it is frayed and probably shorting something.

ya i had a feeling. My soldering iron was going out and i was trying to be cheap and and get away with not buying a new one. So what is the best way to get all the solder off with out damaging the pcb, i have a desoldering iron from radio shack that sucks up the solder but i dont wanna over heat the board or anything. and when i was doing the solering i was having trouble getting it to stick is that from the gun being too hot or too cold

and pencil tip for a flat head on my new gun

also should i de solder everything and remove it or should i just do one at a time

I would strongly recommend *not* using a gun for soldering these boards. A new pencil iron of 25 to 40 watts is the way to go. The solder sucker from Radio Shack (the one with the bulb) works well. Take your time, don't try to get it all off, since it will flow when you use a good iron. Let us know how it goes...

ya i didnt use a gun i used a pencil tip but thanks so much for the advise!

so i spent 6 hours re doing the whole damn thing and the same promlem.... but now when the effect is engaged there is a tick that is independant of the trim pot and the knobs.... so it ticks about 3 times a second

o boy i would have had more fun lighting my money on fire

I've been building a few of these and it is hard isn't it!

Whenever I've had trouble I've gone back through the instructions just to make sure everything is in the right place.

I looked at the photos and you may have comprimised the PCB whilst desoldering, so give it a clean up and make sure everything looks intact.

yeah, pencil style is the way to go.....DONT use too much solder!! u want good looking joints just like the guy who posted the photo of his board with "good" joints...not sure if its just luck, but this was MY FIRST BYOC build, ive been building and modding pedals for a couple years, just never took the BYOC plunge until i had someone ask me "hey man, ive heard you build anything, can u clone a slow gear?" "of course!" i said, telling them about the BYOC site and how i could probably have it done fairly quickly....then i started reading around the forums before i finished my build, and got really discouraged!! but oh well, i soldiered on (lol) and what do you know? everything worked great on the first try!! i would like to try that 100k linear taper pot with the resistor on it mod, but i actually like the interaction of the stock knobs.....ALL HAIL BYOC!!! THANKS FOR THE AMAZING PEDAL AND THE 3 or 4 HOURS OF GOOD FUN I HAD PUTTING IT TOGETHER!!!

Great to hear, this is a fantastic pedal that doesn't get the attention it deserves, IMO. And BYOC have come up with a great kit. The 100K pot mod with resistor is an easy one and versatile to boot. You can get the interaction you have with the stock knob plus a little more.

Mike

Keep in mind that when you look through these support forums, you're going to see almost nothing but people having problems, 'cuz that's why they're here. The folks whose builds go smoothly usually don't post, unless it's the "Show Off Your Completed Build" forum.

Other than the ability to comprehend and follow directions, the main thing that's needed to be successful with these kits is good soldering technique. If you've never soldered before, a $70 - $100 BYOC kit isn't the place to learn. Go to your local Radio Shack, buy some perfboard, some cheap components (a $2.59 bag of 50 1N914 diodes is a good choice), some rosin-core 0.032" 60/40 tin-lead solder (silver solder is a b*tch to use, especially for beginners), and a 20 - 25W soldering iron (like THIS ONE). Then go home, open up Stephen's Tips for a Successful Build for guidance, and PRACTICE, PRACTICE, PRACTICE! Once you're comfortable that you've got at least the basics down pretty well, go ahead and dive into a BYOC kit. I'd recommend starting with one of the easier kits (an ESV Fuzz or a 250+ Distortion are good choices....or the Confidence Booster, of course), and work up to the harder stuff. And of course, we're here to help if you run into problems. But you'll run into a lot less of them if you do your "homework" as described above....