Quote:
intrellix:
Ta! I got another question though ... I am wanting to remove some solder off a PCB ... is there some kind of "solder sucker" I could use? I.E If i were to heat up the solder and then suck it off?
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There are at least three or four different technologies to do this, depends on how much you want to spend. In rough order of cost...
1. Desoldering bulb - cheap, doesn't work very well, but can do the job. It is a squeeze bulb like you'd see on a turkey baster, with a little nozzle. You squeeze the bulb, heat the joint, stick the nozzle into the solder blob and release the bulb.
2. Solder wick - a sort of flux coated copper braid, comes in different sizes on rolls. You heat this stuff up along with the joint, and the solder flows into it. Low starting cost, but gets expensive over time since it is thrown away as you use it. I find it doesn't work well by itself, but is a good 'cleanup' item to use after removing most of the solder with another tool. It works better if you can add a few drops of extra liquid flux to the joint.
3. "Solder Sucker" and variants. - A spring loaded tube with a piston and a latching trigger. You heat the joint, stick the nozzle in the blob, and push the trigger. This releases the spring which shoots the piston up the tube generating a stronger and faster vaccum pulse than you can with the solder bulb in number one above. Probably the most common desoldering tool, no electronics bench would be complete without one. Note, not all models are suitable for use w/ ESD sensitive components, get one that is, because that will work on everything. Cost should be under $20.00
4. Desoldering Iron / station - The ultimate is a "Pace" desoldering station, or equivalent. This is a vaccum pump hooked to a soldering iron with a hollow tip (via a control box). Cost is several hundred dollars, but if you have alot of parts to desolder, and want to avoid damaging the parts or the board, it might be worth it. (Note that unless you are dealing with a VERY expensive component, it probably isn't worth trying to salvage parts for reuse...)
There is also a 'poor man's' version I've seen at Radio Shack (which automatically raises quality concerns...) that has the hollow tip iron with a squeeze bulb. Never used one, but I suspect it wouldn't work very well - that Rat Shack sells it, but I've never seen one at a 'serious' electronics store, or in use at the workplace makes me suspicious...
Gooserider