DIYMIKE

well this is my first How-to i promised awhile back... but the purpose of this DIY is to help some of the tuners out there save some money. i have never ever took my car to a mechanic. i have been working on cars since i was 15 years old and learned from a Haynes manual.

some of you have seen my old civic ef9 hatch that i built from the ground up. i want to encourage you that anybody can work on a car. Just take your time.

anyway here is the write up....

first thing i must explain....

you can only chip these honda/integra ECU's:

OBD-0 (88-91)
OBD-1 (92-95)

(you can not chip obd-2 ECU (96-00)

anyway here we go....

first step: get your ecu and remove the (5) screws on BOTH sides





it should look like this...



PLEASE do not be scared... this is the only section we are going to focus on..



Then get your chipping kit from an online source......(xenocron.com, moates.com just to name a few)



OKAY now comes the desoldering.

Tools needed:
soldering iron (buy a new tip)
desoldering wick from radioshack
electronic solder





YOU WILL ONLY BE DESOLDERING THE FOLLOWING.
-27256
-74HC373
-J1
-r54
-c52
-c51
-and optional if you want to datalog... which is the whole purpose of tuning. ( CN2 )
-also remove j12 if you are going to be tuning.


Tips on desoldering......

when you use the wick. place it over the joint and put the tip over it in a slant.

this is NOT what you want to do, it won't get hot enough.



This is exactly how you want to do it. the more area, the more heat. using this technique, the solder will be sucked up by the wick in a few seconds.




ALSO when you desolder... do it from the REVERSE side...



here is the 74HC343 soldering points desoldered



here is the 74HC343 chip being mounted.



flip it over and then solder the pins



here is the image of it all done.




THINGS TO WORRY ABOUT>>>

ALSO ... Place the 74HC343 chip and the 27256 chip in the right way.... there is a half moon shape on the chip... place the half moon facing the ECU PLUGS!

DO NOT leave the soldering iron on a joint for too long...... the copper tracks will lift and your ECU is unchippable.

if you experience a half sucked up soldering point. then you can us the point of the soldering iron to lift up the rest of the solder. OR you can refill the whole with solder and suck it back up all agian.

GhostAccord

Nice write up

I would just like to add. For those of you that are going to try this. I myself find that it is much easier to work on the board if you completely remove it from the aluminum case. This can be done very easily by first removing the one screw in the front of the ECU (beside the connectors) That screw holds a soldered switch to the inside of the case. Remove that screw and the retaining bar that is pressing against the switch. Then you can remove the 6 screws from the bottom of the board.

Too each his own, I prefer jsut a board to work on

Once you have completely removed it. Spray some carb or throttle body cleaner on the areas to be de-soldered. Make sure to spray both the top and bottom of the board. Let it soak in then use an old tooth brush to scrub off the clear coat that covers the board. This will make it much easier to remove the solder and keep any contaminants out when you go to add the components.

You can see the melted coating here in this image.
<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by DIYMIKE &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">

</TD></TR></TABLE>

Getting rid of this is not an absolute necessity but it helps.

After you are done soldering everything, and the ECU has been tested and found to be working properly. You can spray a few coats of automotive clear coat over your solder job to keep it from the elements. Make sure you remove the EPROM chip and cover the zif socket with tape if you decide to spray the top of the board. Spraying the top is not 100% necessary. All of your nice clean solders on the bottom of the board are the ones you should make sure you cover.

zccr-xsi

nice write-up!!!

but u should have used flux to resolder it!i see the solder didnt flow to good.and ghost is right it should be resealed in any area u touch with the iron.and they make some stuff called board wash it works like carb cleaner but safer for the ecu board.on one more thing solder suckers make life easier!

d112crzy

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by zccr-xsi &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">nice write-up!!!

but u should have used flux to resolder it!i see the solder didnt flow to good.and ghost is right it should be resealed in any area u touch with the iron.and they make some stuff called board wash it works like carb cleaner but safer for the ecu board.on one more thing solder suckers make life easier! </TD></TR></TABLE>

I've personally have never had good luck with solder suckers. Nothing has worked as well as solder braid.

on the DIY with pics.

I agree with Ghost, I like taking the entire board out from it's casing. Makes life much simpler.

zccr-xsi

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by d112crzy &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">

I've personally have never had good luck with solder suckers. Nothing has worked as well as solder braid.

on the DIY with pics.

I agree with Ghost, I like taking the entire board out from it's casing. Makes life much simpler.</TD></TR></TABLE>


thats why i like to use flux.put little bit of that on the solder and as soon as u touch it with the iron it flows like water.

just some food for thought

i did a ecu for a guy few days ago and it was already chiped but they didnt install c51 or c52 and i was baffled that it even work to began with.

d112crzy

I've seen a lot of ecu's without those caps. Most have been from Hondata.

zccr-xsi

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by d112crzy &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">I've seen a lot of ecu's without those caps. Most have been from Hondata. </TD></TR></TABLE>

why do they sell them with the kits if there not even needed?

GhostAccord

I prefer using the pen type solder sucker. I found they work the best if you put the board in a vice standing vertically. Touch the iron to the back side of the board and suck from the opposite side.

I de-soldered a complete ECU with a solder sucker. All of the components are completely reusable, including the board.



Another tip for ya. If you tin your soldering tip and keep it contaminant free it will work the same as using flux.

0mtber

iTrader: (2)

For those that like video presentations :-p

How to remove/install a 28 pin eprom chip in a socketed ecu

How to socket/chip an obd1 ecu

These are just run throughs, they are not actual step by step videos.

zccr-xsi

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by GhostAccord &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">Another tip for ya. If you tin your soldering tip and keep it contaminant free it will work the same as using flux.</TD></TR></TABLE>




u think u can rebuild it again?

GhostAccord

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by zccr-xsi &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">u think u can rebuild it again?</TD></TR></TABLE>

I'm sure I can. I may give it a go over the winter if I get bored of working on Project Ghost. I have scavenged a few of the essential parts to fix other ECU's though.

I learned how to solder by removing and re-installing a bunch of parts on an old PC mother board I had laying around. It still worked after I was finished practicing on it. The more practice the better you will get at judging iron temps and how much is too much for a given board and/or component.

I got all my board burning and trace lifting out of my system with an old toasted MAC motherboard I had. I cranked my iron up to 60 watts and made a golden brown smiley face on the green board in a matter of minutes. After that I started timing how long it would take to start to turn colours at the different wattages. Also how little it takes to lift a trace of a heated board.

GhostAccord

Another thing I like to try to do is not work on the same area of the board for extended periods of time. It will increase the chances of burning or lifting a trace as the board continues to heat up.

For example when I de-solder an ECU I will start with the 27256 EPROM holes. I de-solder them in a criss cross pattern. I start where the IC3 label is, aka pin 28. Then move to the right and down to pin 14, left to pin 1 then up and to the right to end on pin 15. Wait a minute and continue this process. Keep touching the board to ensure that it's not getting to overly hot. If it does start to get warm, have a beer and let it cool down for a bit. It's a bit much but it does keep the heat from building up on the board. Patience is everything in this game!

zccr-xsi

[QUOTE=GhostAccord]Another thing I like to try to do is not work on the same area of the board for extended periods of time. It will increase the chances of burning or lifting a trace as the board continues to heat up.QUOTE]


yup that one resaon why i dont use the wick cause its makes it easier to lift a pad/tracer.i mean i do use it but only when i have to.what kinda soldering station u got??

98vtec

sweet writeup, going into the faq

ef92b

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by GhostAccord &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">Another thing I like to try to do is not work on the same area of the board for extended periods of time. It will increase the chances of burning or lifting a trace as the board continues to heat up.

For example when I de-solder an ECU I will start with the 27256 EPROM holes. I de-solder them in a criss cross pattern. I start where the IC3 label is, aka pin 28. Then move to the right and down to pin 14, left to pin 1 then up and to the right to end on pin 15. Wait a minute and continue this process. Keep touching the board to ensure that it's not getting to overly hot. If it does start to get warm, have a beer and let it cool down for a bit. It's a bit much but it does keep the heat from building up on the board. <U>Patience is everything in this game!</U></TD></TR></TABLE>



...and don't work on it when you're sleepy. i had my share, LOL

dx2sicrx

i dont know where the pink thing goes and the blue resistor

downest

That's not a resistor it's a capacitor, it goes on the opposite side of the board and the one it replaces is skinnier. It's not part of the chipping process it's just a replacement for worn-out decade old honda electronics. What pink thing, the jumper?

For those who don't like to use the jumper, you can remove J12 and put that into J1. Personally I use it on almost every ECU I chip, but I know they need a little modification to fit the holes in the board. The TI chip for 74HC373 that's included in most of the kits also needs to be bent together slightly (make the pins more parallel with each other) in order to fit in the holes in the board.

I also use that same Weller 25, I find that if I work too fast it loses heat to desolder efficiently, I use the good old sponge quite a lot to keep it clean and hot. When I took a couple EE classes in school we learned that to thermally shock it and keep the iron hotter. I also never have problems with destroying traces on the PCB on countless ECUs I've done. I think the problem is that people pull them off with the braid, like it cools down just enough and sticks to the board/trace, pulling it off. Anyway, this can be repaired pretty easily, I've had a few in the last couple months like that.

dx2sicrx

its in the 4th pic it has 2 prongs that are bent to the sides (exactly like the one I got) and do you have a location as to where the capacitor goes?

downest

That's the jumper that goes in J1.

The cap goes in the middle of the board on the other side, adjacent to the plugs for the harness. IIRC it's 2200 uF, just match it to the value on the one that's already there.

dx2sicrx

well the one that is already there is 35v and the new one 25v also a different temp. will it still be alright?

THC07

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by dx2sicrx &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">well the one that is already there is 35v and the new one 25v also a different temp. will it still be alright?</TD></TR></TABLE>

yea.


Thats a kewl post however its not complete and its missing lots. From the looks of it, it's a 1720-1500 board non-vtec and still auto trans... ?
There is much more to do still, RM11, Q26, C60, IC14, J10, R67, D11. the following steps will work for a p28 manual ecu only. anyother ecu needs more done to it.

EDIT: there are many different obd1 ecus, all are different for chipping, example... 1720-1500, F0-1500, 1980-1500



Modified by THC07 at 8:19 AM 10/14/2008

THC07

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by downest &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">That's not a resistor it's a capacitor, it goes on the opposite side of the board and the one it replaces is skinnier. It's not part of the chipping process it's just a replacement for worn-out decade old honda electronics. What pink thing, the jumper?

For those who don't like to use the jumper, you can remove J12 and put that into J1. Personally I use it on almost every ECU I chip, but I know they need a little modification to fit the holes in the board. The TI chip for 74HC373 that's included in most of the kits also needs to be bent together slightly (make the pins more parallel with each other) in order to fit in the holes in the board.

I also use that same Weller 25, I find that if I work too fast it loses heat to desolder efficiently, I use the good old sponge quite a lot to keep it clean and hot. When I took a couple EE classes in school we learned that to thermally shock it and keep the iron hotter. I also never have problems with destroying traces on the PCB on countless ECUs I've done. I think the problem is that people pull them off with the braid, like it cools down just enough and sticks to the board/trace, pulling it off. Anyway, this can be repaired pretty easily, I've had a few in the last couple months like that.</TD></TR></TABLE>

Remember, by removing j12 for full duplex mode, will break the stock diagnostic connector under the dash. unless you know what and why you are removing j12, dont remove it.

GhostAccord

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by THC07 &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">Remember, by removing j12 for full duplex mode, will break the stock diagnostic connector under the dash. unless you know what and why you are removing j12, dont remove it.</TD></TR></TABLE>

If you don't remove J12 how do you data log?
I have always replaced J12 with a 2 pin jumper. With the header removed I can datalog. Push on the jumper header and it's back to stock. I use the same type of jumper on J1. What's an extra 4 min while your already in there with a hot soldering iron.

THC07

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by GhostAccord &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">

If you don't remove J12 how do you data log?
I have always replaced J12 with a 2 pin jumper. With the header removed I can datalog. Push on the jumper header and it's back to stock. I use the same type of jumper on J1. What's an extra 4 min while your already in there with a hot soldering iron.</TD></TR></TABLE>

Thats a good idea with the 2pin jumper on j12.
I didnt want people thinking they had to remove it and be shocked when the diagnostic plug gives no info.
you dont have to remove j12 to data log, however, sample rate is better with it out.

98vtec

ive removed j12 and my service connector still worked