I have a project designed, wired, developed and tested on a breadboard. Now I'd like to put the components (MCU and sensors) to a platine. I'm planning to use plug-in sockets to keep MCU and sensors swappable.
Unfortunately there is one component (SparkFun GPS-17285 GNSS sensor) with an odd distance from one pin strip to another (see picture below). Within one pin strip the distance is 2.54 mm, but distance to the other pin strip is N x 2.54 + 1/2 x 2.54.
On the breadboard it was not a problem, hanging left one pin strip over the edge of the breadboard. But on a platin I'd like to fixate things.
One solution could be to cut the lower pins off from plug-in socket and to fix the plug-in socket with glue on the platine. Not that nice, but should work, since I only need to connect the pins of one pin strip.
Are there any better solutions? Or even parts that I have missed yet (eg. 2-to-1 plug-in sockets)?
Does anybody know (or can imagine) why SparkFun designed the breakout this way?
It will make very little difference to the stability or strength of the stripboard
The holes will be longer but not wider and when soldered will be very strong. You could keep the increase in hole length to a minimum by doing it to both sets of holes but this means more work
All of this depends, of course, on the tools that you have and your expertise in using them. I would have no hesitation in elongating the holes into slots
Drilling holes would be the easiest, but you could carefully bend the pins so that they will fit into the holes.
Custom made PC board would of course solve the problem, since spacing can be anything you desire at that point.