Minimum SMD-capable soldering gear - Page 1
Forum section: electronics / beginners

author: uoowuo
author_rank: Newbie
timestamp: June 17, 2015, 12:17:42 pm
content: Hello there!I'm a complete newbie and haven't even done any soldering yet, but I figure I'll have to soon. Thus the question:- What minimum soldering instruments will I absolutely require to do rare through-hole and common-size SMD work?Say, I want to add a speaker and an SMD LED with whatever helper components needed to an STM32 Cortex-M4 in LQFP64 package, 0.22 mm typical pin width, 0.5 mm between pin centers (http://www.st.com/st-web-ui/static/active/en/resource/technical/document/datasheet/DM00108832.pdf) for example's sake. I'm willing to struggle a bit and learn techniques to compensate for crappy instruments, since I don't want to do it too often for now.Can I do it with a regular soldering iron fitted with special tips? Is it possible to do it at all without bulky and expensive professional rework equipment?Thank you very much!

author: KJDS
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: June 17, 2015, 12:40:31 pm
content: One of this issues with soldering is that with a great deal of skill then you can do almost anything with a selection of nails, a pair of pliers to hold the right one and a gas cooker to heat the nail. Add some flux and solder and it would be possible to do what you need like that. Slow, tedious, hard work but still possible.The other big thing with soldering stations is that in the US then Hakko are cheap and plentiful, whereas in Europe Weller are more common. Both will do a straightforward job, however if you want the easiest ride then offerings from Pace, Ersa, JBC and Metcal are all worth considering.Inevitably, the easier they are to use, the more expensive they tend to be.

author: nanofrog
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: June 17, 2015, 12:53:22 pm
content: Where are you located, and what's your budget?BTW, if you go into your user profile and set your country, the flag will display beneath your userID. Makes things faster and easier for everyone, particularly regarding buying stuff (what, where, & how much).-------------------------It's actually possible to do all of that with an iron with the correct tips (or even a nail and cigarette lighter with enough skill). For example, you can use a fine point conical (or bent fine point conical) to tack the corners of the LQFP, then drag solder it. Specialty drag solder tips work best (has a spoon/hollow in the end of a hoof that holds a ball of solder), but a regular hoof, knife tip, or even chisel can work. Just not as easy to use IME, and 0.5mm pitch will take some practice.Appropriately sized chisels will usually handle most anything else. Bent fine point conical is good for pulling out bridges, and I'd highly recommend it for that fine a pitch.Two things I can't stress enough;use plenty of fluxfor drag solderinguse quality supplies(flux, solder, desolder braid/wick).Hot air would be nice though given the pitch size, especially for removal without having to sacrifice the chip (cut legs off, then desolder them method). But it's not an absolute necessity, so if it's between an iron and a hot air rework station, get a decent iron first (you'll use it a lot more often).

author: savril
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: June 17, 2015, 02:23:16 pm
content: I'll advise you to get by order of importance :Flux (mandatory in my opinion)Around 0.5mm solder wire, quality solder with a good amount of flux if possible. Eutectic solder is interresting because it 'freeze' quickly parts in place.TweezersI'd prefer a temperature controlled iron. SMD are small and more sensistive to overheating. You can use however your iron if you know how it behave and you don't solder sensible and pricy parts. Leaded solder would be prefered in this case.You can do all with something like a 2.2mm chisel. However, it could be nice to have also :a fine conical tipa finer chisela drag soldering tip (spoon type). You could solder a LQFP64 in seconds with this.A lot of things could be added to that list. It all depend on your budget and your location in the world.

author: uoowuo
author_rank: Newbie
timestamp: June 17, 2015, 03:45:35 pm
content: Sorry I didn't set location. The country is Russia, and we may have a slightly different market here, because there are cheaper local manufacturers that only trade locally and there's plenty of Chinese import of course. So knowing tech specs would help more than brands. As for budget, I'd like to keep it under $150 overall, but again it wouldn't tell you much, there are $2 soldering irons available here, go figure.Thank you for the tips, what I wanted to know is whether there are some things without which I simply can't solder SMDs, apart from solder wire and flux of course.I understand there aren't, and having a temperature controlled soldering iron with a good selection of tips covers most use cases with some patience and quality supplies, correct?

author: lapm
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: June 17, 2015, 04:58:48 pm
content: Magnification. Trust me if its that's small pitch you want to see whats going on there. I just got myself one of those magnifier head bands (upto 5X)..Second thing is light, lots of it...

author: nanofrog
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: June 17, 2015, 05:19:05 pm
content: Quote from: uoowuo on June 17, 2015, 03:45:35 pmYou'd think the tech specs would be enough to go on, but that may not give you the full picture. For example, you can have say a 55W JBC station outperform a 100W temp controlled station primarily due to the heating technology used (cartridge tip vs. traditional separate tip & heating element).There's also other considerations, such as quality, cost, and availability of spares and consumables such as tips (don't underestimate the importance of this).As per what will fit your budget, that's going to be a bit tough in Europe, but not impossible. Batterfly sells theHakko FX-888Dfor less than that (98EUR before VAT & delivery), so you'd have money left over to put towards tips if you haven't put aside a separate budget for this.Recommended Tips to Start:Chisels (T18-D16,T18-D24,T18-D32; Hakko makes 0.8mm, 1.2mm, and 5.6mm should you need it)Drag Solder Tip (900M-T-3CM)Bent Conical (T18-BR02)You can do an amazing amount of things with just these few tips actually. A bent chisel or two is nice for example, but not absolutely critical to have (more comfortable for some tasks, such as soldering connectors). And there's also personal preference. Some might prefer a hoof for a task that a chisel would also work.To get an idea of what I mean, take a look atHakko's Tip Selection Page(by operation, how to select tip size for the job, ... options).If you have to go with a Chinese brand, you should take a look atQuickbrand (lots of stations on this page if you move the cursor over the different tabs above the photo). Others have saidXytronics(very crappy website) andSolomonare decent (both are in Taiwan). Not sure if pricing on these will be much, if any cheaper than the FX-888D though.Quality supplies are also on the pricey side, but well worth it (they also tend to last a long time).Quote from: uoowuo on June 17, 2015, 03:45:35 pmMost cases, Yes.There are exceptions, namely BGA packages.

author: uoowuo
author_rank: Newbie
timestamp: June 17, 2015, 05:51:18 pm
content: Quote from: nanofrog on June 17, 2015, 05:19:05 pmI'm willing to find out the technologies used as well.Quote from: nanofrog on June 17, 2015, 05:19:05 pmWhich is why I'm more inclined to buy local brands, as much as I don't expect top quality from them.Quote from: nanofrog on June 17, 2015, 05:19:05 pmAre there any particular types of supplies that you can recommend?Quote from: nanofrog on June 17, 2015, 05:19:05 pmI don't even dream of touching them :DThank you for your elaborate answer!Quote from: lapm on June 17, 2015, 04:58:48 pmDo you think a tabletop magnifying glass would do?

author: rx8pilot
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: June 17, 2015, 06:11:48 pm
content: I tried bench magnifying glasses and hated it. They make me sea sick and just not sharp. I got a cheap stereo microscope and cannot imagine how I did any thing without it. My eyesight is very good and I will always want a microscope. I added an LED ring light and a .5x Barlow lens to get a wider angle of view and more distance from the lens to the object - makes room for hands and soldering irons.For soldering, lot of choices on brands and tips that have been covered well in previous posts. I would add some hot air as a pre-heater that makes things much easier. I use a Aoyue 852A for removing components of any pin count as well as preheating a PCB just before soldering a fine pitch part. Dont forget to pre-heat the part itself too so you don't temp shock it. You could, use a regular heat gun but they tend to heat up your entire bench.How much money do you plan to spend?

author: uoowuo
author_rank: Newbie
timestamp: June 17, 2015, 07:11:26 pm
content: Quote from: rx8pilot on June 17, 2015, 06:11:48 pm:D But were they useful?Quote from: rx8pilot on June 17, 2015, 06:11:48 pmI'd rather go with less gear both because of money and because it would take up space, and I'm not planning to do a lot of soldering for now at all. Nor do I have a dedicated workbench to keep all of this stuff on yet.Quote from: rx8pilot on June 17, 2015, 06:11:48 pmI'd say up to $150 for now, but there are cheap local knockoffs that I'll probably go with. There's a different market here, there are even $0.92 soldering irons, good godhttp://rostov.220-volt.ru/catalog-143656/. I'm not going for these of course, I sort of care about safety. But the point is, prices are different, and my goal is not so much to fit within a budget as to get the minimum necessary equipment.P.S. Lol, the delivery service costs 5 times this soldering iron, and from the reviews it simply melts in hand.

author: nanofrog
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: June 17, 2015, 11:40:29 pm
content: Quote from: uoowuo on June 17, 2015, 05:51:18 pmAre they just sold locally, or manufactured locally?Easiest thing would probably be to post links to anything you're interested in.But as mentioned, the units discussed in previous threads I suspect will still apply (same products sold locally). Then drill down to what's being sold locally for spares, assuming the availability will be stable (will carry the tips years later). FWIW, the quality of Chinese made tips are generally poor, which is why people try to use genuine Hakko tips on cloned stations.Odds are good that name brands such as Hakko, Weller, JBC, Ersa, Pace, and OKi/Metcal will still exist in the next 10+ years to manufacture spares. There are even some 3rd party companies that offer tips for some of their products (simple plated copper tips, not cartridges).Quote from: uoowuo on June 17, 2015, 05:51:18 pmFlux Type:RA (Rosin Activated) from brands such as Multicore/Loctite (Henkel), Stannol, or MG-Chemicals (Rosin 835). Not sure what else is good in the EU market.Solder:Sn63/Pb37 and Sn62/Pb36/Ag2 are eutectic (melts/solidifies at a single temp), or Sn60/Pb40 which has a plastic range before it's fully solidified. Diameter .5mm/.020", RA Flux @ 3% by weight (might be stated as P3 or Core 66). Brands would be Multicore/Loctite (Henkel), Stannol, Felder (RA series), Kester, AIM (American Iron & Metals), Indium, and Alpha (Cookson).Desolder Braid:Chemtronics, Multicore/Loctite, Techspray, MG Chemicals with rosin flux preferably, or no-clean if that's what's available to you. It's sized to the pad like a soldering iron tip, so you'll have to decide which size/s is best suited to your purpose.

author: JoeN
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: June 18, 2015, 03:16:57 am
content: For SMDs with leads, I'd say the minimum is a temperature controlled iron, a chisel tip, a flux pen, and occasionally some solder wick (though flux and a clean tip is usually all you need to clean up an inadvertent solder bridge). That's all it takes for me. Without leads, small ICs (e.g. < 64 or so pin QFNs and BGAs) can be done with a hot air gun. Larger ones need an oven.This guy shows you how to do it without even using words. It's simple. You need steady hands and decent eyes, though.

author: Johnny B Good
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: July 17, 2025, 03:49:55 pm
content: Quote from: nanofrog on June 17, 2015, 11:40:29 pmApologies for this necropost but I've been trying to get more complete information about Loctites' SN62 solder alloy mix without any luck whatsoever and in my search for alloy mixes which match the "low melting point of 179 deg C" description for the the 500 gm spool I'd just purchased, I download a Technic Inc table which quotes a tin/lead/silver mix of 62.5/36.1/1.4 for the eutectic flavour of tin/lead/silver solders, obliging me to post this as a "Heads up".The slightly higher materials cost 62/36/2 is 3 deg less eutectic than the classic 60/40 solder (a 10 deg range versus the 7 deg of the classic 60/40 Sn/Pb solder).With the alloy being simply described as SN62 with no reference to the lead and silver content, I suspect that the answer to my query with Henkel will confirm the alloy mix quoted above whichisn'ta eutectic alloy. That's not to say those recommendations are a bad choice; compared to the Chinese garbage they're an overwhelmingly superior choice.BTW, I've been using the (in)famous KSGR T12 soldering station for the past five years (after ensuring the metal case was properly grounded and the solder joints in the handle had been reworked). Twice in the case of the originally supplied handle on account of my purchasing a 3 meter length of silicone insulated cordage to split between the original and a kit version of the original plastic handle (supplied without cordage on account that had been my only option to purchase a spare handle).The extra half meter over the one meter of the original handle and my spare has proved to be a real boon. I'd considered upgrading to two meter long cords but decided against this on account of the extra voltage drop and the increased entanglement risk with other items on the workbench. A 1500mm cord length seems to be close to optimal between the soldering station and the handle.

author: tooki
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: July 18, 2025, 09:06:40 am
content: Quote from: Johnny B Good on July 17, 2025, 03:49:55 pmThe reason you can’t find any info on Henkel’s website is that Henkel sold the solder division (Multicore) to Harima three years ago.Their “home” for the Multicore products is now:https://www.harima.co.jp/en/products/electronics/multicore/The catalog has a table of alloys:https://www.harima.co.jp/en/products/electronics/multicore/assets/brochure/MULTiCORE_brochure-solder-material-solutions.pdfWith that said, I think you’re kinda overthinking this. Sn62 normally means 62% tin, 36% lead, 2% silver. It took me thirty seconds to find the following Henkel datasheet which describes their Sn62 formulation, with the three different standards they can make it to (which only differ in allowable contaminant levels). It’s 62±0.5% tin, 2±0.2% silver, and the balance lead, so a normal Sn62 formula.https://www.farnell.com/datasheets/312832.pdfThere isn’t complete agreement on the exact eutectic points of various alloy systems. For example, 63/37 is normally considered eutectic, but some sources say that the true eutectic point is 62/38. Similarly, Sn62 is generally referred to as eutectic, but some sources (like the Technic Inc table you referred to but didn’t bother linking to:https://www.technic.com/sites/default/files/resources/Solder%20Alloy%20Melting%20Temperature.pdf) list slightly different percentages.Devil’s advocate: if the 1.4% silver in 62.5/36.1/1.4 produced true eutectic, with superior performance to 62/36/2, wouldn’t the solder manufacturers have jumped on this, since it would both improve performanceandsave cost, since silver is significantly more expensive than tin and lead? Reducing the silver by 30% is not an insignificant savings.In any case, whether it’s true eutectic or merely super close to eutectic, it’s not something one will notice in practice.

author: Johnny B Good
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: July 18, 2025, 11:40:27 pm
content: Thanks for taking the trouble to update me on this development and the later Farnel data sheet (the first one I found only had the first two pages). I've also downloaded the MULTiCORE_brochure-solder-material-solutions pdf you'd linked to. Both make interesting reading, confirming my expectation of the solder I'd ordered being eutectic (or virtually so).I've tried a short 6" length out and it seems to be a more than suitable replacement for an almost full 250gm spool of Ersin multicore I'd acquired before taking BT's golden handshake offer way back in 1992.That finally ran out a year or two back reducing me to salvage the short odds and ends I had lying around. When that source was finally exhausted, I resorted to try using an almost full 250gm spool of 26SWG Ersin multicore 60/40 Sn/Pb solder which had proved far too fine a wire for me to handle, hence it sitting on the shelf these past three decades or so until I finally became so desperate as to unwind 5 or 6 meters off the spool to double and double it again into a 1.5 ish meter length that I twisted together to bodge into something more manageable until the 1.22mm solder I'd ordered had arrived.So once more, I thank you very much for your help in getting to the bottom of this mysterious lack of technical information

author: tooki
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: July 19, 2025, 11:21:44 am
content: Quote from: Johnny B Good on July 18, 2025, 11:40:27 pm26SWG appears to be 0.46mm diameter. Definitely too fine as “everyday” solder, but useful for certain small SMD stuff.Though I’d definitely find 1.2mm to be too thick for my taste: my favorite size range for “everyday” solder is 0.6-0.8mm diameter.Have you tried Kester? Readily available from Digikey and Mouser, and absolutely top quality. I prefer it to Multicore. (My “daily driver” solder is Kester 44 with 3.3% flux core, 63/37, in 0.6mm. At home I have it in 0.8mm, but I think I like the 0.6mm better for most things.)If you want to read more about alloys, take a look at chapter 4 (p.135ff) of this book:https://archive.org/details/solderinginelect0000wass/page/134/mode/2up(You need a free login to “borrow” certain books, including that one.)

author: Johnny B Good
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: July 19, 2025, 01:22:08 pm
content: Thanks for those comments and advice.Testing that SN62 at a setting of 180 deg to verify that it was as described (re the 179 deg melting point) suggests that I've been using a far from ideal hotter temperature setting of 330 deg C these past 5 years or so since my upgrade to the luxury of a soldering station with effective temperature control.I guess old habits die hard after many years of using the 18 and 25 watt Antex soldering irons that had led me to develop a working technique to cope with the much higher temperatures typical of these unregulated soldering irons.I'm now taking better advantage of that KSGR T12 soldering station's temperature control by using a 230 deg setting now that I have a decent quality of solder to work with.I mostly deal with 0.1 inch pitch stuff for which the 1 and 1.2mm multicore solder wire seems an ideal size, hence my choice of the 1.22mm wire gauge (stick with what you know).I did go to that archive.org page you'd linked to thinking there might be a synopsis showing a few pages to give me some measure of the quality of this over three decades old publication. Needless to say, I didn't bother with yet another registration to a web site I'd be unlikely to log into ever again. I have enough such registrations to know when enough is enough, thank you very much!I think I've now got enough information on solder alloy compositions to satisfy my curiosity for now without 'borrowing' a 30+ yo publication that probably wouldn't offer me any novel soldering techniques I'm not already well acquainted with after over half a century's worth of soldering experience (both professionally and as a hobbyist).I'm at an age where I'm unlikely to attempt any finer hand soldering work than that needed to deal with 0.1 inch pitch solder joints so that 500 gm spool of solder is likely to outlast my foreseeable needs.

author: tooki
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: July 21, 2025, 07:30:30 am
content: Quote from: Johnny B Good on July 19, 2025, 01:22:08 pmarchive.org is a website that is absolutely deserving of a login; it’s an enormous collection of materials, including a vast library of actual books (the thing that requires a login).The book in question isn’t really a soldering training guide, it’s a scientific deep dive into the soldering process.Anyhow, optimal soldering iron temperature is dependent on various factors, including tip geometry and size, the size and geometry of the workpiece, soldering iron power, and the alloy. 230C is likely to be too low for most joints, insofar as heating the joint will take too long. Remember that the joint itself will have a temperature gradient, since everything around it is cold. So the exact spot in contact with the iron will be close to (but not precisely at) the same temperature as the tip, but every other part of it will be cooler. But you need for the entire joint to be hot enough, and for it to have enough extra energy to melt the cold solder you then feed into the joint. Bottom line, for leaded solder, 300-330C is a very common range to use. With large tips, you might get away with a bit less, perhaps as low as 280. With extremely fine tips, 370 or more may be needed.

author: Johnny B Good
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: July 23, 2025, 12:59:44 am
content: Regarding temperature settings, I went back to my previous 320 deg C setting soon after making that post. I agree with everything you said regarding optimum temperatures for the various cases you mentioned. Hand soldering is as much an art as it is a science.

author: u666sa
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: July 24, 2025, 01:23:38 am
content: You need a microscope. Look at Eakins or High cloud on aliexpress, they send them from Moscow in couple of day. Around 25,000 rubles. Then you'd need C210 solder iron and hot air. A silicone soldering matte.You can get everything on aliexpress, ozon, or wildberres.

author: JustMeHere
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: July 25, 2025, 01:33:57 am
content: I use a hot air rework station. A 75w bevel tipped soldering iron (mostly for touch up work). Solder paste in a syringe. Paste flux (this doubles as a glue and helps hold parts in place). And a hand loupe for inspection. You also need a good way to hold the PCB.Practice desoldering a old computer. One thing that is counter intuitive is more heat is better. If you keep the heat too low then you heat up too much stuff. A really hot concentrated heat will melt the solder without distributing much heat throughout the rest of the system.

author: paulca
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: July 26, 2025, 10:05:09 am
content: Honestly, like I'm sure most will tell you, its 80% skill and patience and 20% equipment. If the 20% equipment, including the solder and flux is poor it will make the other 80% more difficult.I have bought it all, stopping short of a full reflow oven. The last 2 chips I soldered I did with the plane old iron. Why? It's faster. It's more realiable and with all of the other methods you will need the iron to clean it up anyway.If you just want to get the job done, reliably and you don't intend to solder dozens of boards, then you only really need:Soldering iron.Good solder.Good flux.A magnifying device with as bright a light as you can find.What else can be handy for specific use cases?Hot airreworkstation. The emphasis is to show this is their primary skill. Reworking existing boards. This is where hot air shines.Hot plate? Great for taking care of passives enmass, but usually requires rework of ICs afterwards. Similar to using the hot air for assembly, just quicker and easier on you and the board. Peak temps with the hot air can exceed 330C on components in hot spots. With a plate it never exceeds 230.100% your starting point?A good iron with a 2-2.5mm bevel "horse hoof" tip.Good flux core solder and separate flux, either paste, liquid, pen, just spend $20 on it from an electronics distributor, not cheap ali snot.A desktop magnifying lense with a bright light.Order a bunch of SMD solder practice boards from Aliexpress and watch lots of YouTube videos for ideas.

author: JustMeHere
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: July 28, 2025, 06:50:31 am
content: Quote from: paulca on July 26, 2025, 10:05:09 amNot even sure why it's even called areworkstation other than that's the name I bought it under. I use it only for primary work. (And fixing my own screw ups) I prefer it over almost all soldering other than thick wires, which you should be crimping anyways. All of that stuff on the datasheet about the reflow is the same thing.