Assembling the RC2014 Orton 3C is pretty straight forward, particularly if you have assembled other RC2014 kits. There are, however, a few points which are worth noting beforehand.
Everything except for the LEDs and switches should be soldered on to the side with the RC2014 and Orton 3C logo, as designated by the silkscreen.
This kit has the largest variety of component values, so check carefully before fitting a component. All values are marked on the PCB, either individually, or by entire rows. eg every LED has a 22k resistor below it, so the resistors are labelled “All 22k –>” indicating that a 22k should be fitted along the entire row.
Note that the 10pf and 47pf capacitors have 100 and 470 stamped on them respectively. The first two numbers represent the capacitance in pf, with 0 multiples of 10 applied. [I am sure whoever designed that labeling system never ever thought that would confuse anybody!]
The polarity of the resistors and capacitors is not important, however you should pay attention to the diodes, transistors and IC to ensure they match the silkscreen.
Once everything is assembled on the logo side, flip the board over and fit the switches. The only switch which orientation is important is the momentary action Cycle switch. This should be fitted with the toggle pointing towards the top of the top of the board. [This switch will be either red or black to differentiate it from the other switches. Note that if a black switch is supplied that the thread is slightly different from all the other switches. Therefore put the nuts and washers to one side so you know which ones to refit on that switch]
Push the front panel over the switch levers and on to the threaded stem. This may take a little wiggle on some switches to get them to all line up. It is easier if all the toggles point in the same direction to start with.
Supporting the fascia by the edges will allow you to push the PCB firmly on to the switches to make everything flush and even when you solder them. To avoid subjecting the switch bodies to too much heat, just solder one pin of each switch before going back for the second or third pin.
Remove the switches from the front panel and fit the LED bezels. These push through from the front and tighten up with a nut on the back.
At this point you should fit the spring washer and the round washers to every switch.
Add the plastic LED shroud to the LEDs so that the solid part is furthest away from the bulb.
Fit the LEDs to the PCB, ensuring that the long positive lead goes through the round pad and the short negative lead goes through the square pad. This time support the PCB by the edges so that the LED leads can dangle down. Refit the front panel and fit the nuts to at least a few of the switches.
The LEDs should line up with the bezels. Some jiggling may be required! Not that the LEDs should be pushed through to the very front of the bezel before being soldered. It is recommended that you only solder the positive lead on each LED, then turn it over and check that all LEDs are at the same level. Adjust if necessary, then solder all the negative leads.
After the leads are all clipped, use a small screwdriver or similar to push the plastic shrouds in to the bezels.
if you haven’t done so already, go on to fit the Front Panel I/O Module in a similar fashion.
This can now be fitted in to the Blue Box enclosure.
