Homebrew PCBs

LOL- Sorry about that Stephan.  I agree, anything more than one or 2
by hand is not practical this way. If it gets to that, I have the
luxery of sending boards down to or rework group to be done. Only
problem is a lot of times they come back and I still have to touch
them up by hand - Arrrrrgh!

>
> Shhhh, shhhh, don't say that!
> I've been preparing them the last few weeks that we _need_ more SMD
> tools, you can't go around saying things like "not necessary" ;-)
> 
> I know it can be done with the tools you mentioned (i have pretty much
> the same list just other brands), but regularly we need like 5 to 10
> prototypes at once and it's more and more SMD parts every time, and
> they get smaller too. That can easily be a day or more of soldering.
> At least a pneumatic paste dispenser is a must, applying it by hand
> with the syringe is hard work if you try doing it for a long time. And
> the hot air gun is really not ideal for reflow either.
> 
> 
> ST
> 
> On 8/21/07, pgdion1 <pgdion1@...> wrote:
> > I've been doing rework for years and although hot air is nice, it's
> > not necessary for small builds and proto-types. I use a temp
> > controlled Weller iron and I have an older Pace rework (de-soldering)
> > station that still comes in handy for SMD (sucks pretty much all the
> > solder off the pads). Some solder wick is also handy to clean things
> > up. A soldering tweezer tip (Like Talon) is also very useful. Brand of
> > iron is pure personal preference. We have Met-Cals and Wellers at my
> > work. Some guys swear by Met-Cal, I prefer Weller (as do some others)
> > and hence it's what I have at home.A decent heat gun (Ungar, with the
> > small nozzles) & flux is the only other items in my arsenal. For
> > inspection I have a good magnifying glass and several Jewelers Loupes
> > (5x, 10x, 20x). That with good lighting is all I need. A Micro-scope
> > would be a nice plus though.
> >
>