Types of breadboards

Today there are many types of breadboards. Breadboards get their name because years ago people used wooden boards as a base to construct basic and prototype circuits. I remember as a child discovering the Ladybird book “Leanabout… simple electronics”. In this book, the circuits were built on a piece of wood with screws and screw cups to hold them together.

To be honest it was a very good solid and reliable way to experiment.  It certainly got me into building projects at pocket money prices. The boards and components were also reusable which was great. I remember they also had a book which had instructions to build a radio using the same methods. This was “Learnabout… making a transistor radio”. They are worth a look if you see them anywhere.

Also don’t forget to check out my post, Breadboards – the complete guide if you are interested in anything breadboard-related.

Types of breadboards – Solderless breadboards

Solderless breadboards have circuits built on them by having components and connections plugged into them. They have rows of holes that are connected by metal strips. They are used by beginners in electronics because you can build circuits without having to solder so a whole market has built up for breadboard kits and projects for beginners.

You can read here about breadboard kits for beginners.

Also because you don’t solder you just plug components and connections into them. They are quick to build and experiment on as components can be changed as easily as unplugging and plugging the other one in.

For this reason alone they are fantastic for testing out ideas and projects for experienced electronics experts. I wonder how many designs by experts started off on breadboards. Because of this, I’ve seen some huge breadboards made of the normal ones all liked together. You probably wont outgrow a breadboard. So even if you spend a lot you’ll still use it in years.

I’ve built a complete synthesiser on breadboards liking a few together.

Circuits built on solderless breadboards are only temporary. At some point, you’ll have to transfer them to PCB to keep them and make them permanent. I have an article here on How to transfer a breadboard circuit to a PCB for more information.

Solderless breadboard problems

One of the problems with a solderless breadboard is the components can become loose over time. Even before you finish a circuit you can accidentally knock a component or a wire out. It can also be difficult to find where it has come from.

There are also issues that because of the wires all over the place stray capacitance can be a problem. You won’t be able to build circuits that run at a very high frequency in the megahertz region either. I can’t say that any of these restrictions have ever been a problem to me.

MB 102

This is the title given to probably the most popular types of breadboards you will find to buy. It has 830 holes in it for connections and power lines down each side. This is also known as the full-size solderless breadboard. They have numbers and letters so you can refer to a particular location to plug a component in but Ive never really seen them used.

You can also get solderless breadboards that are referred to as “half size”. These are unsurprisingly half the size of the MB 102.

Mini solderless breadboards are also available however these don’t have the power buses down the sides.

If you use solderless breadboards you will need wires to make connections. I have an article about Wires for breadboards if you need more information about what to use.

Solderable breadboards

Solderable breadboards can refer to a few different kinds of things. What some people call a solderable breadboard, I call stripboard or veroboard. Perfboard is also known as a solderable breadboard. Some of the solderable breadboards of the past were difficult to tell apart from production techniques before circuit boars were available. I’ve opened up electronic equipment in the past to see components soldered to tag boards.

Solderable breadboard that looks like breadboard

This is what you use to transfer a solderless breadboard circuit onto a printed circuit board. You can read more about that in my article on making a solderless breadboard circuit permanent.

I’m not going to go too much into solderable breadboards as I have a few articles specific to solderable breadboards or stripboards.

They are more of a permanent solution. Wires won’t come out when they are soldered but that is also a disadvantage in that if you want to swap out a component you’ll have to de-solder it rather than unplug it.

It is also useful if you want a one-off finished circuit. Once it’s done it’s done and it can stay like it is. Once a solderable breadboard is used it’s pretty much finished with. You can’t really use it again for anything else.

Use both

If you’re like most electronic enthusiasts your hobby will mean that you end up using both types of breadboards. As they both have their strengths and weaknesses you’ll use each one and sometimes both to suit the way you do things depending on the application.

I tend to use the solderless breadboard for a single stage of a project and when I know that it works as I want I’ll build it on stripboard and then free up the solderless breadboard for the next stage.

Types of breadboards – Which type is better?

If you are a complete beginner to electronics I would say to start with a solderless breadboard kit. You will be able to build complete projects without learning to solder and having to buy the stuff that entails.

If you then decide you don’t find electronics fun you won’t have wasted much money at buying just a beginner’s breadboard kit.

By the way, I don’t know anyone who started as an electronics hobbyist and didn’t find it fun or intriguing. Anyone I’ve ever known who has dabbled in electronics has been hooked and not only gone on to have a lifelong hobby but several have had careers out of it including me.

Anyway back to the story, if you do buy a solderless breadboard and then get into electronics and soldering, you’ll still be using the solderless breadboard for years to come. they are great for trying out stuff. I got into electronics forty years, ago learned to solder and have built so many things I’ve lost count and I still use my solderless breadboard.

If you want to buy a solderless breadboard read my article for more information.

Types of breadboards – Final thoughts

If you are a beginner and are considering what types of breadboards to get I would start with the MB 102. This is the most common type of breadboard and you won’t need to know how to solder. If you progress to building more complex stuff you’ll still use the humble solderless breadboard to test out circuits and ideas.

If you move onto solderable breadboards and need to know how to solder read my Learn how to solder – A beginners guide.

This is one of those decisions that’s pretty easy really as most likely you’ll just end up using both types depending on the project.