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Homebrew_PCBs@yahoogroups.com > so is there a preference for paste vs solder?
> do most folks use irons or reflow?
I think its a horses for coarses kind of thing. You can get a lot of
milage out of a good soldering iron and good technique. Some things
are easiest with paste/reflow though. Ceramic smt caps spring to
mind. It's pretty easy to damage these with thermal shock. A hot
soldering iron can create hairline cracks on these and they can fail
fairly quickly. I use paste/reflow for these. I still use an iron
for most everything else. It's pretty easy to drag solder tight
pitch smts if you've got a good iron and lots of flux.