Today, while in production, I suddenly thought of an interesting topic that might spark controversy and complaints among many production engineers! However, I would still like to hear everyone’s opinions!
Do you “cut the pins”? This means, do you cut the long pins of the component?
Everyone will surely say, aren’t you stating the obvious? It is definitely necessary to cut them; with such long pins, they will touch each other and cause a short circuit, and they don’t look good. If we ship without cutting the pins, we will definitely receive complaints from customers!
The question of whether to cut the component pins is something I want to discuss from another perspective. I wonder if any engineers have actually taken the time to think about this issue.
As a technician, I have always hoped that we do not confine ourselves to certain frameworks and dogmas, doing things just for the sake of rules.
Although this issue may seem a bit boring, everyone can still discuss it and spark some new insights.
In general operations, everyone usually follows common sense, cutting off the excess pins without damaging the solder joints, or operating according to specific customer requirements, and if necessary, even referring to IPC standards.
If this product is your own and is installed inside a casing, cutting the pins may reduce production efficiency and even lead to other new problems. If you do not cut the pins, production efficiency can be improved and costs reduced. Would you still cut the pins?
First, let’s clarify why we need to cut the pins:
1.Long pins will definitely touch and cause a short circuit, so they must be cut.
2.Long pins, if not cut, may affect packaging and cause piercing during transportation.
3.If one of the long pins bends, it may touch adjacent components and cause a short circuit, which is risky.
4.Long pins, although not posing a significant risk, do not look good and give an impression of non-compliance.
Now let’s review the issues caused by cutting the pins:
1.Cutting the pins will affect production efficiency and increase labor costs.
2.If the cutting operation is not controlled well, it may damage adjacent components.
3.If the cutting process is not controlled well, it may theoretically damage the solder joints.
Considering the above situations, let’s think deeply about the purpose of cutting the pins and look at a product case below:
Last year, my first article with over 100,000 views was about the “Fire Rabbit” toy product. Does anyone remember it?
I also noticed that this product had similar operations, which made me think:
These two LED pins are indeed long, and according to standard operations, they should be cut. However, this product did not cut them.
Do you think this product does not consider quality? But looking at the comments, the product has consistently received good reviews for its durability.
Do you think they care about quality? But not cutting the pins seems to contradict the norm.
After analyzing, I still believe that the production engineers ultimately took a practical approach. Although the pins are long, they assessed that during production or use, there would be no impact or hidden dangers. If they cut the pins, it could affect production efficiency and even loosen the solder joints, and since it is installed inside a casing, there is no impact on appearance. After comprehensive consideration, they decided not to cut them.
Other circuit boards also have long pins that do not seem to pose any actual quality hazards, and the factory seems to have left them unprocessed.
It is quite interesting! Is it a decision made after careful consideration, or a lack of quality awareness?
What do you all think about the “cutting pins” issue? Feel free to leave a comment!
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