Solder paste

O.k. i have been soldering since, gosh i was little. But now i am seeing soldering with paste!!! Anyone use it? It seems so wild to just see the component settle into place! And clean too And without scorching! I really need to try this! The youtubes really speak to my inner child!!! :wink:

1 Like

Works great! Just make sure you’re using paste intended for electronics and NOT one intended for plumbing. Plumbing flux is acid based and over time can cause corrosion problems

1 Like

@Rocco85 , are you using a solder rework air gun or baking in an oven? Also, are you just brushing it on or did you make a solder mask? I’ve always wanted to play with this too.

Inivtation to a rabbit hole - I find Stephen Hawes enthusiasm infectious.
On his YouTube channel, he’s documented the process of developing an open-source pick-and-place machine from a solo project to a fully staffed business - Opulo where they manufacture and sell the LumenPnP.

He’s recently been working on a solder paste dispenser head that rides right along the pick-and-place head. He’s hoping to cut out the solder paste stencil portion of the process.

6 Likes

Looks lik i have seen a couple of his videos! Neat stuff!

I haven’t done a solder mask/solder paste setup like the professionals do. I have used solder paste on surface mount chips (even without a mask, don’t hate me). With a good solder mask built into the PCB, the solder ā€œwantsā€ to go to the right place and it just requires a little rework.

I haven’t used it at all at home. But if I was making more than a couple, a full oven and mask would be pretty cool. A PnP machine would be awesome too.

I met Stephen at Open Sauce and he is just as nice and enthusiastic as he seems.

4 Likes

Christian Knüll built a machine that can place the chips etc. automatically:

3 Likes

closing old topic to help fight spambots