Soldering stations

[Dave_D]

So, i'm doing a lot more construction than i thought and my ickle biddy soldering iron is struggling...

Anyone had any experience of these?

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/2-in-1-LED-Soldering-Iron-Station-Genuine-WEP-Desoldering-Hot-Air-Gun-Rework-/381318396997?hash=item58c858fc45:g:6GoAAOSw9mFWJbiA

[faulksy]

i use a hako 926 bit ol but a great bit of kit

[Dave_D]

7 minutes ago, faulksy said:

i use a hako 926 bit ol but a great bit of kit

Good reviews... i seem to be going down the smd path, so the hot air side is definitely catching my attention.

[ringz]

I generally go on youtube if I want to find a review. There seems to be quite a few variations though they all seem to have the same model number though the make varies.

[ringz]

I have to do some SMD stuff soon, taking of the screens of ESP8266 devices and upgrading the memory to 4Gb so I took the plunge and ordered one of these and try to fix a 60 neopixel ring that has broken neopixel(s) in one of the segments :

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Soldering-Iron-Station-Rework-Welder/dp/B015RQHRT8/ref=sr_1_2?rps=1&ie=UTF8&qid=1473616916&sr=8-2&keywords=hot+air+rework+station

It has 5 stars but only from 5 people so I hope it's okay

 

I also forgot a software defined radio kit that has SMD devices. I've been putting that off for ages because I didn't feel I could do a good job with a soldering iron. I made the Gertboard for the original Raspberry pi and it was a bit iffy 

[ringz]

I have really enjoyed using the kit I bought. I've done quite a bit of experimenting with SMD soldering and I'm getting better at it  I've also managed to replace 2 duff neopixels in my 60 neopixel ring and got it working nicely.

I wish I bought it rather than the Hako 888FX now, I've been disappointed with that.

 

[101nut]

stupid question, but where can you get spare bits from?

AndyG

[Stub Mandrel]

I've got an Antex rework station and it's the dog's :-)

[Gina]

Ah yes, I've got and Antex 25W soldering iron - always Antex the best.  Spare tips are easy to get

[101nut]

I've always found 25W too small except for the odd joint. I run at least 50W temperature controlled.

I loved my old, long dead Adcola 101 ... the tips got severe abuse but lasted forever. 

Ergonomically I find Antex preferable to Weller which always feel too big to me (although I have big hands) but tips don't last like they used to ...

AndyG

[Alien 13]

I am pretty much a Weller man having worked with them in industry all my life but a pro station is not cheap although I did get hold of the older models when they got upgraded.

Alan

[Stub Mandrel]

After decades using small irons, it was a revelation to get a TCS which is 50W but temperature controlled, great to get atht rapid heat up but still not scorch small components.

A hot air reflow gun is brilliant if you want to do things like swap SMT resistors! (combined with short sight and tweezers).

Neil

[Dave_D]

after finding out how much a 60mm x 50mm double sided pcb will cost to have made, i may just give the whole damn thing up and take up something comparatively cheap... like collecting super cars. £70 goddamn quid for a 60mm x 50mm pcb?

i'm finding it VERY difficult not to swear profusely...

[John78]

16 minutes ago, Dave_D said:

after finding out how much a 60mm x 50mm double sided pcb will cost to have made, i may just give the whole damn thing up and take up something comparatively cheap... like collecting super cars. £70 goddamn quid for a 60mm x 50mm pcb?

i'm finding it VERY difficult not to swear profusely...

What just the board?  Or assembled and tested?  

OSHpark is well respected, good quality, made in US with free shipping 3pcs 60x50mm for $70, I know a couple of places in China which will make boards much cheaper than that, PCBway will do 10pcs for like $10 each DHL'd for free - but you do get what you pay for.

[Dave_D]

8 minutes ago, John78 said:

What just the board?  Or assembled and tested?  

OSHpark is well respected, good quality, made in US with free shipping, I know a couple of places in China which will make boards much cheaper than that, PCBway will do 10pcs for like $10 each DHL'd for free - but you do get what you pay for.

yeah, just the board...

i'll look into that... was preferring to keep things 'home grown' but after seeing roughly the same price asked by 3 UK places, it's no wonder this place is called rip-off britain 

just noticed they're ex VAT too

[John78]

I've never paid VAT on boards from OSH park before - they just arrive by the postman ... 

Once I get a 3D printer sorted out again though I'm making one of these :-

https://github.com/CarlosGS/Cyclone-PCB-Factory

 

[Stub Mandrel]

I make my own PCBs, I find it as rewarding as the other aspects of the project.

 

[Dave_D]

16 minutes ago, Stub Mandrel said:

I make my own PCBs, I find it as rewarding as the other aspects of the project.

 

yeah i used to make my own years ago when i was (briefly) into amateur radio. the stuff i'm working on now is double sided which is why i was looking at having the pcb made, but after just finding this little gem on youtube, i may not need to bother taking the expensive route

his method is so simple i actually facepalmed myself.

[Stub Mandrel]

55 minutes long...

Let me guess, two sheets of acetate registered back to back then slip the board between?

That's how I do it ;-)

[John78]

I've never managed to make the toner transfer method work properly and I design photocopiers for a living... lol.

Photoresist boards works fine using exactly his process though - but China is cheaper delivered fabricated boards than buying photosensitive boards from the UK