[sdiy] Another dumb question about reflow ovens

[Anthony Rolando]

> From: lists at studionebula.com
> To: synth-diy at dropmix.xs4all.nl
> Date: Mon, 29 Sep 2008 13:00:04 -0600
> Subject: [sdiy] Another dumb question about reflow ovens
>
> I've assembled several smallish PCBs with surface-mount components, both
> commercially fabricated boards and boards I've etched myself. I don't use a
> reflow oven; I use an ordinary soldering iron (it's a temperature-controlled
> Weller, but I count that as "ordinary"), a flux pen, tweezers, a magnifying
> Luxo lamp and a steady hand. It seems straightforward enough to me and I now
> generally prefer it to through-hole assembly.
>
> My question is this: is there any advantage to using a reflow oven for a
> one-off board assembly job?

Somebody that is prototyping with BGAs would need to reflow. Otherwise, I would probably agree with you.

TOny


 It seems to me that applying solder paste and
> placing the components represents a greater amount of work than just
> soldering the components on by hand. On top of that there's the cost of the
> reflow oven (either paying for one outright or cobbling together a toaster
> oven with temperature control), the paste dispenser, and the hassle of
> storing the paste. These things seem unattractive to a hobbyist; aside from
> the flux pen, all of the stuff I bought for doing SMT work can also be used
> for through-hole work and hence doesn't represent an additional outlay of
> cash.
>
> Thanks in advance for any opinions offered.
>
> --Adam
>
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