salvaging IDE/floppy connectors from a motherboard? - Page 1
Forum section: electronics / beginners

author: dentaku
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: July 14, 2013, 05:09:03 pm
content: I now you can buy 0.1 inch header strips but is it possible to unsolder IDE or floppy drive connectors from an old dead motherboard without using hot air?Unsoldering them with an iron and a pump or braid just doesn't seem to work. They're stuck in there quite well.I'm not trying to fix anything, I'm just curious.

author: SeanB
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: July 14, 2013, 05:30:30 pm
content: Heat gun does a pretty good job of unsoldering them all at once. Motherboard generally does not survive though.

author: hlavac
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: July 14, 2013, 05:33:35 pm
content: About only practical way would be using a solder pot. Groundplanes in motherboards suck (the heat).Certainly not worth the effort unless you already have one.

author: dentaku
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: July 14, 2013, 11:53:13 pm
content: Oh I see. That's make sense.Quote from: hlavac on July 14, 2013, 05:33:35 pm

author: Rasz
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: July 15, 2013, 12:37:12 am
content: I also vote for solder pot - they are originally soldered using live solder flow, something like solder fountainbut I used heat gun to great success myself

author: Mechatrommer
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: July 15, 2013, 12:03:28 pm
content: solder pot the size of motherboard and hell of solder liquid in there, yeah! and many watt for latent heat conversion and to keep it that way. even if you have heat gun (and patient), if you do this frequently (other than for fun), your experience will tell.... buy new connector!

author: hlavac
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: July 15, 2013, 04:28:51 pm
content: Actually, you need solder pot just the size of the connector...

author: Mechatrommer
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: July 15, 2013, 10:34:38 pm
content: right! now its just look too easy.

author: dentaku
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: July 16, 2013, 01:43:37 am
content: It does look easy.

author: WarSim
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: July 16, 2013, 02:06:05 am
content: Solder enchant and a solder pot is not something I personal want in my home for DIY. At work parts are not reclaimed.I use a PCB mill instead of enchant and a Desolder tool to recover parts.Before anyone asks yes I can use the Desolder tool to recover SMDs and BGAs.

author: mariush
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: July 16, 2013, 02:08:16 am
content: By the time you heat up the pcb with the solder pot, the nylon holding the pins together starts to melt, so when you pull the pins they come out of the nylon spacer thing.It's kinda hopeless and pointless to try to recover those pins from motherboards ... get capacitors, some linear regulators, some diodes, the battery, the bios chip (it's basically an eeprom of some sort so it could be useful for microcontroller projects), the oscillators, some small uF ceramic capacitors etc ..

author: dentaku
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: July 16, 2013, 03:04:52 am
content: That's something I noticed too when trying it with an iron. The hot pins melt the plastic bits.Quote from: mariush on July 16, 2013, 02:08:16 am

author: digsys
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: July 16, 2013, 03:38:31 am
content: A trick I've used from long ago, when you could buy custom made IC "tips" (pic) is to bend a U shape (or V shape) from reasonably thickcopper foil to line up with the pins to de-solder (not desodder :-)). Tin or Silver plate the Copper (lasts longer) and apply flux to the pins.With an IC extractor (or similar tool), you can pull the suckers out fast as you like, well before the plastic body knows about it.

author: WarSim
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: July 16, 2013, 03:40:03 am
content: Yes those nylon connectors require allot of thermal discipline soldering practices.A lot more than an ISA or PCI edge connector.I just don't see how you can get that kind of thermal discipline with a solder pot.But I have very little experience with them.

author: WarSim
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: July 16, 2013, 03:46:39 am
content: Digisys, definitely it is the preferred method.I don't have any at home but work has them.But at work they are more for saving the multi layer board than recovering parts.At move I use the slower methods, because I haven't invested in the fixtures.At work most of use a board heater with the fixtures.Do you use them or tried them?A few chips need them due to very low thermal shock allowances.

author: BravoV
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: July 16, 2013, 03:48:07 am
content: If you're really desperate, and also the mobo is dead anyway, try cut out the pcb area around the connector to separate it from the main mobo, it will have lower copper mass at that smaller piece of pcb that it attached to, hence it will be a lot faster to melt the solder at the pins without damaging the nylon, done that in the past.

author: digsys
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: July 16, 2013, 04:51:20 am
content: Quote from: WarSimI used to use them for years, in the days of DIP. I have them in all P/T packages, PLCC socket as well. We used to even machine upcustom shapes. I wasn't suggesting you use these (if not easily available) - What I meant was that having used them, and not havingmy CNC lathes etc, I made the shapes from thick copper foil, then bolted them on to a sacrificial tip, larger the better. Sometimes I'dliterally weld the copper to the tip. The copper then became part of the tip.Edit: A few tips, if you try this method. Make sure all joints have plenty of solder, then apply flux as well. You have to guarantee the2 copper bars are parallel ! While cold, check for gaps on a flat surface, then bend either to get the result. They MUST come down flat.I'm always bending my HD tweezer tips on a JBC to get them dead flat. The solder + flux helps a lot as well.

author: WarSim
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: July 16, 2013, 05:09:50 am
content: I think my question wasn't clear.I was specifically referring to the board heaters for reducing thermal shock.It is a subject for debate at work when they are required.They are required less often because of higher shock allowances on newer devices.At work we still have them because we are tasked to fix things other labs can't or won't fix.

author: digsys
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: July 16, 2013, 09:14:34 am
content: Quote from: WarSimoops sorry. Going only by experience, I can honestly say I've never had a problem with thermal shock when removing components.Except in the few cases where I knowingly cooked the parts. Not even xtals etc

author: brabus
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: July 16, 2013, 01:14:33 pm
content: I take them apart very easily, and with just a soldering iron. Negligible thermal shock.1) Gently take off the nylon connector seat (help yourself with a small flat screwrdiver), leaving the metal pins naked2) Desolder the metal pins, one by one, holding them with pliers (hint: keep the board vertical, solder in the right hand, pliers in the other).3) Plug them back in the nylon seat, one by one.It's easier and faster than it seems.

author: WarSim
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: July 16, 2013, 01:46:57 pm
content: That's good.We have to work on things like naked germanium junctions etc.Old school IF loved using such things, and they are thermally sensitive.Other packaged stuff I personally don't have such a concern, but others in the lab do.Maybe just overly paranoid because some of the stuff we work on is not replaceable.

author: digsys
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: July 16, 2013, 02:10:19 pm
content: Quote from: WarSimWell, that's a WHOLE other story. You'll definitely need all the tools - low melt solders, fluxes, IR heaters, proper vacuum pumps etcWhen it comes to "must save" items, I spend the time analysing what I'm up against and get whatever tool is needed (within reason).

author: dentaku
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: July 16, 2013, 02:50:06 pm
content: Interesting...Quote from: brabus on July 16, 2013, 01:14:33 pm

author: Psi
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: July 17, 2013, 01:45:56 am
content: Yeah, a soldering pot works best .A hot-air gun, or just a blowtorch and some patients, will work but the pcb will be toast afterwards.If you're really careful with a proper hotair rework gun and use a hot temp from far away to evenly heat up the pcb you should be able to remove it without damage but it will take a friggen long time to heat up that large an area without burning anything.We're talking like 10 whole minutes of hot air vs 60 seconds if you dont care about burning the pcb.Occasionally you will find a pcb with large holes and small pins and be able to remove most of the solder using a typical spring vacuum desoldering tool on each pin. Its a good idea to do this anyway, even if your using hotair as it reduces the time needed due to less solder to heat up.The main issue with trying to desolder each pin while applying pull pressure to the socket is pulling pins right through the plastic. Its much less of a problem with hotair as every pin lets go at about the same time.

author: Paul Moir
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: July 17, 2013, 10:22:19 pm
content: I've done it on scrap boards with hot air, using an old IDE cable to haul on the connector somewhat evenly. Only rarely did I get a melt down.The one pin-at-a-time method works great too, and I used to do it too. I'm just old and lazy now. The board's lucky if I don't use a blowtorch.

author: dentaku
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: July 19, 2013, 01:11:07 am
content: I tried the one pin at a time method again on some USB headers but this time I removed the plastic bit first and it worked quite well.If I was to order some I would probably look for pins that are twice as long as normal so I could use it in a breadboard. It would basically give me a way to plug an IDE or floppy cable into a breadboard since they're the most easily available ribbon cables and are .1 inch.

author: TerraHertz
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: July 19, 2013, 11:09:39 am
content: Another method, is to make an old fashioned 'big lump of copper' soldering iron for each type of component you want to desolder a lot of.It's pretty easy, if you have some old copper busbar scrap, a hacksaw and coarse file. Even nicer with a milling machine, but really not needed. Copper is so soft, a rasp file works much like woodworking.Make the copper shape, add some kind of heat-proof handle (I used stainless steel rods and scraps of wood), then heat it up with a blowtorch and tin with solder. You judge the heat by how fast the solder is oxidizing. You want it hotter than a normal iron, since the aim is to dump a LOT of heat into the joints fast, so you can get the connector out before the heat gets to the plastic. As soon as you pull the connector out, drop it into cold water.Here's a pic of one I made for removing in-line connectors from multi-layer PCBs.

author: WarSim
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: July 19, 2013, 01:34:50 pm
content: DIY shoe. Cool.

author: dentaku
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: July 19, 2013, 09:02:55 pm
content: I asked the question out of curiosity but now I think I want to get me some of thesehttp://www.adafruit.com/products/400#Distributorsbecause salvaged motherboard headers are too short to be used on breadboards (but fine if you're soldering them onto perfboard).They would be perfect for making a 20 pin connector that would let me use a regular old 40 pin IDE ribbon cable on a breadboard.

author: WarSim
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: July 19, 2013, 11:41:51 pm
content: Quote from: dentaku on July 19, 2013, 09:02:55 pmYes they would and a 2 row header would be even more convenient.You still can't connect a IDE cable to a breadboard with them as mentioned before. The channel is .3" spacing and any other place will short the rows.Lastly their price seem quite high, check other sources.

author: dentaku
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: July 20, 2013, 02:54:15 am
content: Quote from: WarSim on July 19, 2013, 11:41:51 pmWouldn't it work as a 20 pin connector? An IDE cable is 20X2.

author: WarSim
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: July 20, 2013, 05:32:09 am
content: Quote from: dentaku on July 20, 2013, 02:54:15 amYes my second last sentence says rows will be shorted. Therefor it would conduct in pairs. Using pairs will not be an issue in most cases.