i was following your site since the days of the portable ps1, on and off. didn't think to look on youtube for your work. it is amazing seeing your technique on video! thank you for these informative videos.
Do you manufacture your own PCBs? If so, what method do you use and what would you recommend for us hobbyists? There are so many options out there I have no idea what method would be the cheapest and quickest... All your vids are great - thanks for sharing!
A slight correction to your explanation on identifying pin 1 on an SO package. You tell the left hand side of the chip by the chamfered edge on the package, you cannot rely on the text printed on the chip as a guide. Look at the end profile of the chip and you will see the left side (i.e. the side with pin one on it) has a 45 degree chamfer.
True!! I once umount a chip from a socket and when I mount it again I put it backwards because the text was "ISSI". Since then I do not trust texts anymore... P.S. of course, the chip die.
Not all surface mount parts have a chamfered edge. If the text isn't worn off the part, you CAN rely on it because it is always written starting with the pin 1 side. Some parts have dots, especially QFP's, etc. You use whatever is visible to determine pin 1.
You can remove the bridges much faster and with less effort using liquid flux. Just apply a liberal amount in the area that has the bridges and apply the tip of the iron. It will cause the solder to migrate to the pin, either left or right of the bridge.
Hey Ben, love your projects and have been following you since your Wii portable. I am wondering why you show us how to do builds but you dont have your code and BOM opensource. I would love to build a reflow oven but I am not good at coding I2C. If you could start having code and BOM listed that would be amazing!
@@robertw31968 ultrasonic cleaner used to clean boards after they r fixed with special cleaning solution. IPA 99.9% is great to remove flux. Thick flux some times needs something stronger like acetone
Great video Ben, Thank you. One question: Please show info of the Solder you were using including item number,etc...Not sure if it is C254.Element 14 has many types. Best regards.
I am in a high school vocational class called Electronics and Computer Technologies and when I'm doing soldering I use that same solder one lead then pull method you were demonstrating with the LEDs
How do you set the temperature profile in the oven while "cooking" a board like the one in the video? Various components require different temperature characteristics.
England isn't having an icy winter this year. Instead we're all trying to evolve gills to cope with the flooding and constant rain. And in the summer we'll have over-reported "droughts" that last for weeks.
Hey you have great videos!! I just bought a brand new Soldering Station.... i see people making solder stick to the tip so all you need to do is just touch a smd led to tin it. How do i get the solder to stick to the tip??
For LED's and other devices that art through-hole, I like to tack the device on 1 pin first, then press on the device from the top while hitting the joint on the bottom at the same time, so you can be sure that the part lays flat. I think pulling on the lead, isn't always going to be a way that will insure the part is, indeed, laying flat!
Where do you guys print those boards? Is there any place that accept printing boards for just few numbers? What software do you use to order for pints?
Jon Saw There are multiple companies offering such "prototype" PCB manufacture via online orders. They exist on every continent, but sometimes postage from China is so cheap that using Hong Kong / Shenzen services may be cheaper than buying from someone local, though local services are often faster due to shipping time.
Cool stuff. I wonder if you should build yourself an automatic mounting machine like they have at factories, or maybe its too complicated and its better to rent one if needed..
Well, the precision required (sub-millimeter accuracy over an area the size of the whole board) is very, very, very hard to DIY. I have heard of there being a home pick and place machine kit out there, but my understanding is that it's so slow that it's actually faster to do it by hand. The consensus is that right now, it's not feasible for the DIYer.
Hello, sorry for my noob question. How do elements stick to the plate with out applying soldering iron ? Does plate comes with soldering iron on it enough to "catch" elements ?
can you reflow chips on a existing board IE could I use the surface mount chips with the solder paste on a Game Gear to recap it. I know the oven might mess up the plastic parts, but I mean with a heat gun.
Is it possible to unsolder surface-soldered components and repurpose them for other projects or are the surface-soldered components permanently "cooked" to the board and only usable once? If the parts can be unsoldered and reused, what is the damage/fail-rate for removed components, are they still fairly reliable or does the act of unsoldering and re-soldering with surface-soldering make them more susceptible to malfunction and failure?
PGIFilms Using a solder-wick for suface soldered components, can help to remove such components. They aren't 'cooked' or 'fried' in the sense that you mean when these components are removed from the board. They can certainly be re-applied, and relatively easily too. As for a fail-rate, i'm not entirely sure, but I think as long as you have enough practice with soldering surface and through-hole components, as well as un-soldering them, you should be just fine and your components shouldn't have a fail-rate. Hope this helps.
Yes,place the copper wick on the soldered spot to be absorbed,touch the wick with the hot iron. When the wick is hot enough it will melt the solder. Immediately the solder will stick to the wick. Always start with fresh wick part to prevent remelting of old stuff on it.
did you say those small capacitors have polarity, what about the small resistors? i used to solder smt about 18 years ago and i forgot if capacitors and resistors have polarities for smt. i will take soldering test tomorrow for a job but i have not solder in almost 20 years.
You really should put the element14/Newark/Farnell/AVNET catalog numbers of tools and parts in your video descriptions (because your sponsors use different numbering for differently branded outlets).
A well deserved like! You're very funny, and I like how you make everything look so easy while giving great useful tips! Thanks a lot for the video, keep the great content coming ^__^
Use adhesive to secure large components like ICs, otherwise, you simply place components on both sides. The tackiness of the solder paste, and then the surface tension of the molten solder, will keep small components in place upside down even without adhesive.
Why didn't you use a vacuum pickup pen. LOL Thanks for doing this video. I've been afraid of SMDs for a while. This takes the worry and fear out of doing. it. SMD is definitely here to stay. :D
I actually prefer a chisel-tip on my soldering iron for these small pin-pitches since I find it easier to pull bridges away. Also, if I had to manually solder smd components I'd first tin the contacts on the board and then reflow it with the smd parts in place. It's way less pain to do it so in my oppinion.
You're correct about using a chisel tip. But actually tinning the lands on the PCB is a bad idea. You're much better off using solder paste and then reflowing.
for the fine pitched L shaped leads. The best way to reflow is to use a clean half conical tip. Just drag th flat part of the tip across the leads from one end to the other on one side. clean the tip and repeat on the other. some of the excess solder will come off on the flat area of the half conical tip. A hoof tip would also work. Example: m.mscdirect.com/mobileweb/product_detail?id=88550579&hasRestrictedParts=false
annoys me when people say components self align...They rarely DO so care must allway be taken to make sure components are align by your hand and not the reflow
Except that small components DO self-align, there are tons of videos on here demonstrating it. As long as the component is actually in contact with the solder paste on both pads, then it will align when heated, due to surface tension.
You can tell its an "a salt" rifle because of that dangerous forward grip and the high capacity bucket. It would probably also accept a .30 cal magazine clip, just like the ghost guns do!
Watching reflow ovens is one of my favorite pastimes. Freaking black magic, man.
i was following your site since the days of the portable ps1, on and off. didn't think to look on youtube for your work. it is amazing seeing your technique on video! thank you for these informative videos.
Do you manufacture your own PCBs? If so, what method do you use and what would you recommend for us hobbyists? There are so many options out there I have no idea what method would be the cheapest and quickest... All your vids are great - thanks for sharing!
A slight correction to your explanation on identifying pin 1 on an SO package. You tell the left hand side of the chip by the chamfered edge on the package, you cannot rely on the text printed on the chip as a guide. Look at the end profile of the chip and you will see the left side (i.e. the side with pin one on it) has a 45 degree chamfer.
Thanks for the tip!
True!
True!!
I once umount a chip from a socket and when I mount it again I put it backwards because the text was "ISSI".
Since then I do not trust texts anymore...
P.S. of course, the chip die.
Not all surface mount parts have a chamfered edge. If the text isn't worn off the part, you CAN rely on it because it is always written starting with the pin 1 side. Some parts have dots, especially QFP's, etc. You use whatever is visible to determine pin 1.
I am happy found this channel I learned so much just by watching this video. Tank you for this.
Ben must be an expert at mounting things!
Your profile picture is so fitting :p
and manual insertion.
Frank Sandqvist believe me u dont wanna know what does he do on dark internet
You can remove the bridges much faster and with less effort using liquid flux. Just apply a liberal amount in the area that has the bridges and apply the tip of the iron. It will cause the solder to migrate to the pin, either left or right of the bridge.
Good ol rust belt weather and solution. Lovin' your show from Texas =)
Excited for the OUYA portable.
Thanks Ben, that was very helpful.
Do you have a tool list for beginners looking to eventually be able to do all this. And also for your other projects
Hey Ben, love your projects and have been following you since your Wii portable. I am wondering why you show us how to do builds but you dont have your code and BOM opensource. I would love to build a reflow oven but I am not good at coding I2C. If you could start having code and BOM listed that would be amazing!
What was temp of soldering oven? Also, did u sonic board after soldering or did you clean it with acetone?
I don’t understand what sonic board means I’m new to soldering. Also I didn’t know acetone would clean it. Everybody that I’ve seen uses 99% IPA.
@@robertw31968 ultrasonic cleaner used to clean boards after they r fixed with special cleaning solution.
IPA 99.9% is great to remove flux.
Thick flux some times needs something stronger like acetone
Melanie Branton D.V.M. Thank you so much for explaining I really appreciate it. Usually people just gives snide comments.
Pro tip (as you kinda mentioned) Always populate a board with the smallest parts first (height wise) and then go up from there.
Thank you man for the helpful video.
Nice tips m8.....thanks. god Bless u guys....
Great video Ben, Thank you. One question: Please show info of the Solder you were using including item number,etc...Not sure if it is C254.Element 14 has many types. Best regards.
I found the item number. Nevermind, thank you.
I am in a high school vocational class called Electronics and Computer Technologies and when I'm doing soldering I use that same solder one lead then pull method you were demonstrating with the LEDs
How do you set the temperature profile in the oven while "cooking" a board like the one in the video? Various components require different temperature characteristics.
So what about using the new nuwave hot plate thing for reflowing? Might work.
England isn't having an icy winter this year. Instead we're all trying to evolve gills to cope with the flooding and constant rain.
And in the summer we'll have over-reported "droughts" that last for weeks.
Hey you have great videos!! I just bought a brand new Soldering Station.... i see people making solder stick to the tip so all you need to do is just touch a smd led to tin it. How do i get the solder to stick to the tip??
you have to practice, practise and again practice..... Start with soldering wire to wire , and work up from there
Martin Whitehurst get yourself some flux aswell, soldering iron best friend
Thankyou for making the great videos!
You sir just got a subscriber!
Good video, thanks so much!
can you still do the oven method when you have SM components on both sides if the board?
For LED's and other devices that art through-hole, I like to tack
the device on 1 pin first, then press on the device from the top
while hitting the joint on the bottom at the same time, so you
can be sure that the part lays flat.
I think pulling on the lead, isn't always going to be a way that
will insure the part is, indeed, laying flat!
explained in quite an
understandable way
what soldering iron or station would you recommend?
Where do you guys print those boards? Is there any place that accept printing boards for just few numbers? What software do you use to order for pints?
Jon Saw There are multiple companies offering such "prototype" PCB manufacture via online orders. They exist on every continent, but sometimes postage from China is so cheap that using Hong Kong / Shenzen services may be cheaper than buying from someone local, though local services are often faster due to shipping time.
Cool stuff. I wonder if you should build yourself an automatic mounting machine like they have at factories, or maybe its too complicated and its better to rent one if needed..
Well, the precision required (sub-millimeter accuracy over an area the size of the whole board) is very, very, very hard to DIY. I have heard of there being a home pick and place machine kit out there, but my understanding is that it's so slow that it's actually faster to do it by hand. The consensus is that right now, it's not feasible for the DIYer.
Ben, I've noticed you have a reflow oven, but why no reballing machine?
Is the brand and type of solder a secret? Anyway, thanks for this instructional video; well done!
Damn, you were spot on with the movies. You know I had to check them out, it was almost too tempting:D
Back to the Future 1?:))
Hello, sorry for my noob question.
How do elements stick to the plate with out applying soldering iron ? Does plate comes with soldering iron on it enough to "catch" elements ?
What do you mean by 'elements'?
Thanks, excellent
hey Ben can you build a lvds-hdmi adaptor for raspberry?
Is it possible to etch a stencil? (From brass, I guess, don't know what else I'd use) - I've been meaning to try my hand at photo-etch.
Yes, it is, but my understanding is that home etching simply isn't precise enough to produce stencils for tiny SMD parts.
Woo On Wisconsin!
can you reflow chips on a existing board IE could I use the surface mount chips with the solder paste on a Game Gear to recap it. I know the oven might mess up the plastic parts, but I mean with a heat gun.
Hey Ben, where should I go to learn more about circuitry?
I'm just going out on a limb here, but I think that he would recommend Element 14. Just a guess though...
TheLegomaster86 Ha funny
Is it possible to unsolder surface-soldered components and repurpose them for other projects or are the surface-soldered components permanently "cooked" to the board and only usable once?
If the parts can be unsoldered and reused, what is the damage/fail-rate for removed components, are they still fairly reliable or does the act of unsoldering and re-soldering with surface-soldering make them more susceptible to malfunction and failure?
PGIFilms Using a solder-wick for suface soldered components, can help to remove such components. They aren't 'cooked' or 'fried' in the sense that you mean when these components are removed from the board. They can certainly be re-applied, and relatively easily too.
As for a fail-rate, i'm not entirely sure, but I think as long as you have enough practice with soldering surface and through-hole components, as well as un-soldering them, you should be just fine and your components shouldn't have a fail-rate.
Hope this helps.
Yes,place the copper wick on the soldered spot to be absorbed,touch the wick with the hot iron. When the wick is hot enough it will melt the solder. Immediately the solder will stick to the wick. Always start with fresh wick part to prevent remelting of old stuff on it.
Even though it looks simple enough, could you show building the salt sprayer?
sir can u make a video on applying solder masks to pcb's ..
Did you just mention Tomb Stone? Awesome! Big Trouble in Little Chine, even better!
did you say those small capacitors have polarity, what about the small resistors? i used to solder smt about 18 years ago and i forgot if capacitors and resistors have polarities for smt. i will take soldering test tomorrow for a job but i have not solder in almost 20 years.
You really should put the element14/Newark/Farnell/AVNET catalog numbers of tools and parts in your video descriptions (because your sponsors use different numbering for differently branded outlets).
how you make your PCB's? you print your own or design on computer and a company print it?
I get mine here: www.element14.com/community/community/knode/pcb_prototyping/pcb_fabrication/pentalogix
Hey, can someone explain to me what a reflow oven does? does it harden the paste to keep the chips in place, or does it do somthing different?
It heats up, which melts the solder, bonding the components. (Solder paste is paste flux with ground up solder mixed in.)
A well deserved like! You're very funny, and I like how you make everything look so easy while giving great useful tips! Thanks a lot for the video, keep the great content coming ^__^
Please how can I get your reflow machine or make one.
I didn't know those tiny one were capacitors. Wow! I learned something today. lol
He pronounces Wisconsin correctly!!! So happy...
How can u do the reflow technique in a double sided board with surface mount components?
Use adhesive to secure large components like ICs, otherwise, you simply place components on both sides. The tackiness of the solder paste, and then the surface tension of the molten solder, will keep small components in place upside down even without adhesive.
0:22 i usually cringe at some puns but this pun is as good if not better than #LizaKoshy puns
I suggest you get a camera/microscope so we can see what you are doing.
A-Salt Rifle
I see what you did there
what IS the pin-pitch on that PIC32?
Did you just mention Tomb Stone? Awesome! Big Trouble in Little Chine, even better! The girl with green eyes!!
6:36 Brilliant... makes me feel dumb. I always fight with SMD LED landing upside down then its a chore to get them to sit up...
Why didn't you use a vacuum pickup pen. LOL
Thanks for doing this video. I've been afraid of SMDs for a while. This takes the worry and fear out of doing. it. SMD is definitely here to stay. :D
Oh, Ben :P
Did you build that salt rifle just for that pun?
Why else? :)
I hoped there'd be more tips to make this easier without the reflow oven but it was interesting anyway.
wait where are you in Wisconsin i also live here in eau claire
It says wiki instead of wyk/wick
Slot1Gamer John wiki
"A-salt rifle"
the wiki has flux?
isnt an ouya portable counter-intuitive?
How did you learn how to do all of that?
That's why it's called a question so he can answer it duh.
Wisconsin!!!
ASSAULT RIFLE
Desoldering tiny bridged pins frequently shows up in my nightmares.
10:53 "The WIKI has flux in it which helps as well." :O
Yeah, I put it there. The article on soldering didn't have any flux, so I edited the article and added some.
I actually prefer a chisel-tip on my soldering iron for these small pin-pitches since I find it easier to pull bridges away.
Also, if I had to manually solder smd components I'd first tin the contacts on the board and then reflow it with the smd parts in place. It's way less pain to do it so in my oppinion.
You're correct about using a chisel tip. But actually tinning the lands on the PCB is a bad idea. You're much better off using solder paste and then reflowing.
Nice PCB...
"The wiki has flux in it",good to know! ;-)
I do all my SMD as small as 0604 by hand, even IC's.
Yeah me too.. But it is a lot easier with the new reflow oven
and controller we just built.
Ben "Iron Thumbs" Heck.
what's the salt for?
i thought salt makes stuff colder
Salt actually melts ice and snow from concrete and metal also I believe.
i can barely remember what year it is NOW
Why do the components self-center in the oven??
***** Well everything is physics but I just don't know and still don't understand.
Surface tension.
for the fine pitched L shaped leads. The best way to reflow is to use a clean half conical tip. Just drag th flat part of the tip across the leads from one end to the other on one side. clean the tip and repeat on the other. some of the excess solder will come off on the flat area of the half conical tip.
A hoof tip would also work.
Example:
m.mscdirect.com/mobileweb/product_detail?id=88550579&hasRestrictedParts=false
You typed wiki in the caption not wick. I Love through hole.
Leads! Leads! We don't need no stinking leads!!
Actually, text doesn't "always" run the same way on IC's, that totally depends on the manufacturer.
annoys me when people say components self align...They rarely DO so care must allway be taken to make sure components are align by your hand and not the reflow
Except that small components DO self-align, there are tons of videos on here demonstrating it. As long as the component is actually in contact with the solder paste on both pads, then it will align when heated, due to surface tension.
You can tell its an "a salt" rifle because of that dangerous forward grip and the high capacity bucket. It would probably also accept a .30 cal magazine clip, just like the ghost guns do!
I think you need to zoom more into the part you are working on to make your video clear...good series though.
Surface Mount Soldering.
You did wiki instead of wick
I love portable gaming .
the only UA-cam comments more annoying than people complaining about bad video game playing are people complaining about bad soldering
ICE man you can do it Take away the ice so i can drive to school
I'm sure you've found that capacitor by now but 2:51 two of them fell out! 9:06 hmmm Useless trivial pursuit! 😁😏
Good Video! :-)
Another trick to keep through-holes components from falling off is just use tape
0:30 : How to pollute your soil 101.
10:33 so, I'm not the only crazy person? :D
10:58 "The wiki has flux in it which helps as well" :-D
salt... heh salt... leag players relate