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…..................--- Hot Air Solder & Rework Station ---
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I had seen a couple videos on using a Hot Air solder & rework station and was impressed but felt it was probably something I wouldn't use. Then saw the video ( HERE ) and that really got my interest up as it looked like using one wasn' that big of a deal and also found out that they weren't that expensive.
I ordered the one above on Amazon (google YIHUA 959D-Digital Hot Air Rework Station). It was $63.00 and I'm really impressed with it.
I haven't used it enough to comment about longevity but I'm really impressed with this unit. Any time you put the gun back in the side holster it automatically starts cooling down. Not to worry about as it will come up to any temp in less than 15 seconds.
One reason I bought the unit is the 3 presets. I'm starting with 138C and 183C solder paste. I have one of the presets set for the suggested temperature to use for the 138C solder paste and another for the 183C paste. The third is used for a lower temp that works well to shrink wire shrink wrap tubes. You can also use the up/down buttons on the side to go to any temp and to set the presets.
The 138C paste should be good for most of my projects. I the 183C is suppose to be stronger for projects that might have more shock loads. I'd probably use this paste if I build another throttle.
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The syringes are used to apply very small dots of the solder paste to the PCB (which I had already pre tinned with an iron).You use very little of the solder paste so I expect the syringes I bought to maybe outlast me.
I had already tried the solder paste/gun on the resistor to the left and then decided to take pictures when I did the other two. When finished I checked the resistance and for any shorts between the pads. I found that the left resistor was barely touching the pad with the motor wire on it just above it in the picture. I reheated that resistor and solder joint and moved the resistor just a touch with the end of an X-Acto knife blade. What would of been a difficult fix with an iron took about 30 seconds.
If I end up wanting to change the resistor values for the LED lights in the rotary snowplow I can heat the PCB .... pluck one off....and solder another on in less than a minute.
I can see using this on any future electronics projects I do.
This project will go into the rotary snowplow to control the motor and lighting.
Also tried....
.... soldering code 55 rails to PCB ties. Went really nice but need to see if it works in my Fast Tracks fixture also.
I've looked for smaller connectors to use in decoder installs and other projects and have found some. One is really small and I'm using it in my rotary snow plow build. It is almost too small to easily pull apart if needed, similar problem with the smaller JST connectors. I'd like a small connector to disconnect the speaker in the rotary plow and .....
.... came across the pin machined connectors above that came in one of my connector buys. They are really nice and...
.... smaller than using two Dupont connectors. I'd considered using them before but didn't as I didn't like the Male/Female pair as that combination gets longer. Now with the hot air soldering station I thought a female could be turned into a male by injecting solder paste into the hole on the female connector and then insert a bare wire and use the hot air gun to make the connection in the hole. Worked great ...
... and I'll probably see if this will work for the plow build but can also see other uses down the road.
Here are a couple links to where you can find these....
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01GY36RJY?ref_=ppx_hzsearch_conn_dt_b_fed_asin_title_56
https://www.adafruit.com/product/3646?srsltid=AfmBOorlJs4llnsAeUZvKsSd7xXgyhMJOoOAXatcADn7grvRp4Xm_J7a
https://www.adafruit.com/product/3647
I'm liking the hot air solder/rework station a lot.
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