Why use a 0 ohm resistor?

[jacobyjd]

Yeah i dont get all the hoo haa with jumpers. if you hand wire a circuit point to point its just like using all jumpers isnt it? And they call that "Mojo". but stick a jumper in a circiut board and its some kind of sin.

I think the issue is mainly regarding pcb design, especially in the case of a commercially-produced electronic circuit--a jumper adds parts and labor cost that can really add up on a large-scale basis, but can be avoided by better PCB design.

So in essence, if a circuit has 2 jumpers and they cost $.05 in extra parts/labor, then you're talking $.10 extra in cost.

Now multiply that by 10,000 or 1,000,000 and you see a significant cost increase.

[stibu]

0 Ohm resistors are easier to manually insert and necessary for auto-insertion. This makes them cheaper in the long run than regular jumpers.

They are particularly useful when the board was laid-out for a resistor and you have changed the design such that the resistor is replaced by a short. Rather than spin another board just to fix this, you can populate it with a zero ohm resistor. A life saver if a thousand PCB's were fabricated.

[Solidhex]

 I use 0 ohm resistors all the time. Of course I try to do my layouts without jumpers but in certain circumstances they help a lot. Cutting wire then stripping the insulation to fit the jumper sucks. I just grab a 0 ohm, bend the leads an stick it in.

--Brad

[Paul Marossy]

I use 0 ohm resistors all the time. Of course I try to do my layouts without jumpers but in certain circumstances they help a lot. Cutting wire then stripping the insulation to fit the jumper sucks. I just grab a 0 ohm, bend the leads an stick it in.

--Brad

I don't use wires. I save the clippings from resistors and capacitors for things like using them as jumpers. Much easier.

[Taylor]

I don't use wires. I save the clippings from resistors and capacitors for things like using them as jumpers. Much easier.

Yep. Although "saving them" in my case amounts to rarely cleaning them off my desk.

I'm still not seeing a compelling reason to use 0 ohm resistors, for me, but everybody's got their preferences.

[Paul Marossy]

I don't use wires. I save the clippings from resistors and capacitors for things like using them as jumpers. Much easier.

Yep. Although "saving them" in my case amounts to rarely cleaning them off my desk.

I'm still not seeing a compelling reason to use 0 ohm resistors, for me, but everybody's got their preferences.

I have a little drawer that the clippings go into after I am done with a project. My workspace is multi-functional, so I have to keep it clean. 

[therecordingart]

Aside from automated building....I'm just throwing this out there....

If there is a problem in a circuit the 0hm resistor may burn up stopping any point after that from being affected? I imagine it'd take a hell of a lot of electricity to burn up a leg from a resistor being used as a jumper.

[JKowalski]

It would take a hell of alot to burn up a resistor package, too.

The things you are referring to are called "fuses" 

In low voltage electronics, you typically don't need those.

[Radamus]

I was thinking that the 0 ohm resistor might give you a decent anchor point for making a connection. Say you're perfboarding and you have to connect two legs of an IC together. A wire jumper takes up more space if you're imprecise at cutting them (like me), and using a leftover piece of wire has no anchor, so it can wind up sticking to your soldering iron, rather than staying where you leave it. Having never used a 0 ohm resistor myself, I don't know, but when I saw one in one of the cry baby's I've opened, it was a tempting option. Maybe my skills just lack.