How To Get FREE Electronic parts!

The cost of buying electronic parts for our projects from Radio Shack or Maplin are quite expensive now days...
And most of us have a limited budget in buying stuff.

But...

If you know the secrets of how to get electronic parts for free, you could be saving your self hundreds of bucks!

Heres how...

Step 1: Free samples

You probably have never notices this, but most manufactures and suppliers will give away free samples of their high quality electronic parts.

However, control your self! Don't ask for hundreds of components! No company will give you that much, just ask for a few.

Here is a list of some companies and manufactures that will give you some of their free samples...
Fairchild Semiconductor
Texas Instruments
STMicroelectronics
MARL
WIMA

For more information, check out this instructable! List Of **FREE STUFF** For your projects

Comments

[VyreRain]

....its not Illegal in Oklahoma =P

[ulises soriano]

I'm not really doing a project, but i like putting electronics together and building stuff. Thanks!!!!!

[~CableGuy]

Try this too if you have an ordinary transformer:

Connect the Xenon tube to a transformer(HV), and other two wires of the transformer(LV Out) to a battery. start jerking the wire on the + head of the battery and watch the Beautiful Spark Show in the Xenon Tube! have fun!

[~CableGuy]

man I did the same thing for whatever I have (but my 555 timers!). I spent most of my time un-soldering the components of the boards!
I got CD players, VCRs, Car Cassette players, PCs, and so on by simply "Talking"!!

[smiley G.I JOE]

try dumpster diving the radio shack dumpster.

[smiley G.I JOE]

you could break into the local dump. im only 13 so this is not a very possible solution.

[smiley G.I JOE]

didn't know that. wada you know learn new things every day

[Schmidty16]

where can i get computer fans

[frodobot]

Be careful taking apart TVs. They can keep charge for weeks and could kill you if you don't discharge the load capacitors (and don't use the screwdriver method cos you'll probably be electrocuted and fried. The screens also need discharging

[Tkdwn]

Ah, that flyback discharge <3 <3 <3 It shook me good lol!

[syfire]

Hehe, yeah, I remember the first crt monitor I dismantled. My little brother put his finger right on the driver capacitor. Nasty shock and he got a flesh burn. That is how I learn that disconected electrical appliance couls still have power in them.

[grampafish]

the other day I tore apart a crt monitor without discharging the screen. i just dropped a BIG rock on the deflection coils and broke off the neck of the tube then salvaged parts.

[Resident Expolsives Expert]

(removed by author or community request)

[frodobot]

no, just try turning it on without a power source, it should discharge

[monty324]

i dont think laser diodes from dvd burners cost 200 dollars

[-max-]

i have seen the whole drive as high as 70 but not 200, either.

[rantipole]

I think what they mean is that to buy the Lazer Diode alone would cost $200. Which makes sense, because companies that sell the seperate device would put it in a housing and have a power source connection.

[marshall_lee]

I have had a great experience with Samtec. I was able to get some really nice USB ports from them for free, no questions asked. And the best part --free next day air shipping! But only get what you need so we can all use their wonderful service.

http://www.samtec.com/SuddenService/samples/samples.aspx

[powerman666]

Schmartboard is giving away samples too. http://www.schmartboard.com/index.asp?page=schmartland_samples

[nurdee1]

I am interested in getting free parts but I don't have a company email adress. All I have is a gmail adress. Are there any places where I can get free parts without a company email adress?

Thanks.

[ookid]

My walmart said that i couldn't have a camera because of liability but your might be different.. Just something to note :-)

[pyro man]

i went into walgreens one time and asked and the dude was like"no you cant have any because we send them into the factory and they recycle them"wat kind of crap is that?!?!!?!?!?!!?

[Wesley666]

Because the way they open them they can send to the factory and they good condition ones get new film and re-packaged. They also do this with disposable digital cameras.

[diy_bloke]

As a matter of fact they do. I have gotten disposed disposable camera's that were all taped together again. No doubt a more than once use. The paper cover is supposed to hide that all :-)

[Sandisk1duo]

DIGITAL? do you mean the camcorders?

[Wesley666]

No they actually make disposable DIGITAL cameras!

[Sandisk1duo]

i have already learned the error of my ways...

[Plasmana]

Some companies make one-time use digital cameras... They are like ordinary film disposable cameras, but it is in digital - with a LCD screen.

[geeklord]

So they have a little chip or whatever that stores the pictures inside the camera? If so,1)Theres probably a way to get them off the camera yourself and 2) Isn't that expensive?

[Plasmana]

Kipkay had found a way to reuse it over and over again, and it is not that expensive, although, you need a little bit of programming knowledge... I can find the video or instructable right now... it is just somewhere on youtube...

[Sandisk1duo]

he didn't develop it

some guy has a blog about hacking digital camcorders, kipkay read it and made bank off of it....

here is the hack

here is the video

[Plasmana]

he also made a one-time-use digital camera hack, but he use the same wires he use for the video camera hack.

[geeklord]

thats awesome

[Zachintosh]

do you know if any of these companies give free conductive foam? :)

[ratgod]

You usually get semiconductor samples in conductive foam, I know microchip and maxim do.

www.microchip.com
www.maxim-ic.com

[wii552]

Don't forget Maxim for free stuff!

[teche]

http://www.societyofrobots.com/robot_parts_list.shtml this website gives you places to buy parts for stuff an this for free stuff http://www.dutchforce.com/~eforum/index.php?showtopic=13348 and more here http://www.societyofrobots.com/robotforum/index.php?topic=2197.0

[Nman120]

did you get any thing completely free?(product & shipping) cause my first try WIMA capacitors does like discounted samples-not free.

[doomday341]

where did you get the electric motors?

[dan11357]

I like that you included links for instructables made with the recovered parts. Add more if you can!