Today we piled into a taxi with visiting hackers to check out two electronics markets. Both are about an hour north of Shenzhen in Shajin, a very industrial area. We have high hopes of finding more equipment and tools than are available in huaqiangbei.
Top on our list was a USB controlled wire cutter Zach Hoeken saw a few weeks ago, a laser cutter, and a resistor forming machine.
First up is Yihua. A single single building with one floor of tools and supplies.
Its a lot quieter than huaqiangbei, and the range of stuff caters more to building a production line (equipment and sensors) than feeding one (components).
A tools section with crimping machines and a few component formers.
Pistons, valves, and accessories.
A lot of stands wholesale chemicals and supplies for running PCB production lines.
An impressive assortment of ball screws…
…as well as linear rails.
High-speed, high pressure air compressor.
A different type of head magnifier. Bought one to test in the office for 10usd.
Overview of Yihua market. There were a lot more industrial supplies and equipment than huaqiangbei, but we didn’t find that much stuff.
A couple guys in the parking lot told us about another market called Depu. There’s no taxis up here so we flagged down a tuktuk uncle. Word to the wise, tuktuks with a couple big foreigners don’t belong on the freeway. Uncle said he was scared of us because all foreigners are so big, and feared us in war.
We arrive at Depu in one piece, it looks promising.
Right off the bat we find a resistor forming machine and…
…lots of wire crimping machines.
The typical assortment of t962 rework ovens and solder pots.
Breadboards and various styles of prototyping perf board.
Two stands are printing heat shrink tubing. We will try them for the next batch of Bus Pirate probe cables.
Machine active warning lights, or don’t mess with me indicators. I got one for my desk to indicate mood.
This place is absolutely massive and covers two floors.
Depu was closer to the tool and equipment Utopia we were looking for, but its still mostly components and parts. Prices are 10 to 40% cheaper than huaqiangbei and machines were even cheaper than Taobao. If you’re in Shenzhen for a while, Depu might be worth a visit.
Unfortunately we don’t get to cram a new laser cutter or wire cutter into the trunk of the taxi, but it was definitely worth a look.
