Re: gEDA-user: Re: Soldering irons

[DJ Delorie <dj@delorie.com>]

> What method did you use to solder them?  Did you place a blob of
> solder on each pin of the 0803, place the part, then reflow the
> solder?  Or did you just place the part, somehow fix it to the
> board, then solder?

I put a small blob of solder on ONE of the pads for each device.  I
held the device in the tweezers, in approximately the right spot and
reflowed that pad.  Then I repositioned the tweezers to push the
device against the board and reflowed again (same pad), so that the
other pad is now in contact.  Then I soldered the other pad.

I suppose with practice I could get it in one reflow, but they were
too small for me to grab precisely with the tweezers (they were pointy
tweezers, too) so I did it in two steps.

> SOICs and QFPs I can just see running a single bead of solder down
> each row of pins (basically a poor man's wave soldering).  It's the
> small stuff that worries me most.

I did that too, but ended up touching each pad in turn with the fine
conical tip afterwards to clean them up, verify the reflow, and get
rid of any remaining bridges.