LE LED Driver Replacement

[combustionmark]

I have the hot air station, reflow oven, vacuum pickup tool, magnifiers, even a digital microscope. If you are going to play, might as well start off right.

I first started with just a soldering iron, while difficult, once you get the hang of it, not so bad. The practices you use for through hole parts carry over. One big exception, Hand soldering with an iron, plan on bridging solder joints. Its the best way to get good solder joints, You're going to get them no matter what you do, might as well take advantage.

Next would be fluxing the board and dragging solder from point to point.

The cleanup is where you make it look good. Things do go together a lot faster.

Then when you get to use paste and an oven, like putting pegs in a light bright. Just watch out for them blame tombstones, some of them little parts just love to stand on end.

If you want to get a little taste, pick up a Radio Shack bread board, one with all the holes and copper circles, and a grab bag of surface mount parts. Then see how many you can solder down without shorting them out.

One of the best videos I have seen.
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You will probably want to watch the other videos. There is so much, Might as well subscribe to Daves channel. I have learned so much from his videos. I really like the ones on manufacturing design.

Have fun.

[n1ist]

Surface mount with a soldering iron is not bad, at least for the parts we would use.  I routinely hand solder 0603 sized parts and TSSOPs.  I can do QFN and 0402 parts but they are getting a bit tiny.  All with a Metcal or Weller iron, a sharp tweezer, and some thin solder. 

/mike

[rrowan]

Surface mount with a soldering iron is not bad, at least for the parts we would use.  I routinely hand solder 0603 sized parts and TSSOPs.  I can do QFN and 0402 parts but they are getting a bit tiny.  All with a Metcal or Weller iron, a sharp tweezer, and some thin solder. 

/mike

Show off 

Sadly my eyes are going down hill and I need glasses on just to solder in a standard resistor (read not SMD)

Rick R.

[pk]

+1 to what Rick said.  We get older, or eyesight gets worse, and the parts are getting smaller!!

[Steve Gase]

+1 to what Rick said.  We get older, or eyesight gets worse, and the parts are getting smaller!!

groan... 

[rdebolt]

[
Show off 

Sadly my eyes are going down hill and I need glasses on just to solder in a standard resistor (read not SMD)

Rick R.

Not sure about you, but old age is not only affecting my eyes, but my hands are not nearly as steady either.

[bisquit476]

Not sure about you, but old age is not only affecting my eyes, but my hands are not nearly as steady either.

+1

[Rainlover]

[
Show off 

Sadly my eyes are going down hill and I need glasses on just to solder in a standard resistor (read not SMD)

Rick R.

Not sure about you, but old age is not only affecting my eyes, but my hands are not nearly as steady either.

My concentration deficit disorder is also a problem.

[rdebolt]