Soldering is one of the amazing activities in electronics. Or maybe I just think so.
Good soldering is the result of experience and the right soldering tools. I mean, quality tools are essential if you work professionally.
Even if you are a beginner, invest in quality tools. What happens when you have bad tools?
Well, the first thing is. Your end project doesn’t look good. You may hurt your motivation.
Second, the connection may be lost. This way the circuit will not work the way it was designed for.
Third, bad soldering results in adding extra noise to the circuit. This may lead to circuit failure and some bad outputs.
But…
When it comes to surface mount devices (SMDs) you should be more careful. As they are small and really need full attention.
To work with SMDs we require a special type of soldering station specifically called the hot air rework or simply SMD rework.
Well, there are so many options for rework stations out there on the market.
How to choose the best SMD rework station? Now if you are a beginner or buying an SMD rework station for the first time. You may have a few if not a lot of questions about it. For example, which station to buy? What parameter to consider in the best SMD rework station? What are the famous brands and so many more questions like these?
This is what we will cover in the article.
At the end of this article, you should be able to know.
- What is SMD rework
- Technical parameters to look for in the best SMD rework station
- List of top quality SMD reworks stations used by thousands of people
Sounds interesting? Then I am sure you will enjoy the rest of this article as well.
Let’s get started.
Best SMD Rework Station
You know, SMD Rework Station is also called the Hot Air Rework Station. The reason for such a name is: This station blows hot air to melt the soldering wire around the SMD connection. That is why the station name is hot air rework.
Well, this may not be that important to discuss, but I think you should know this thing especially if you are a complete beginner.
There are two types of electronic components. What I mean by this is that electronic components come in through holes and SMDs.
- Through holes components
- Surface mount devices (SMDs)
Through holes, components are those which have thick terminals you may say legs that go through the holes of PCBs.
While on the other hand SMDs are soldered on the surface of the PCBs. Both components have their own uses and advantages. It is not like which is better – it totally depends on what you are designing.
So if you want to solder through hole components then you need different tool kits. But if you want to solder SMDs then you need to be very careful and would need a particular type of soldering device.
Now, we are interested in SMDs. So that is why let’s see what are some best hot air rework stations out there for SMDs soldering.
Well…
The best SMD Rework Stations that field professionals recommend are the DE-5000 ESR Meter, or the. They are the best because they come from proven brands, are used by thousands of people, are of high quality, are reliable, and have a decent price tag that anyone can afford.
Alright!
Now, let’s talk in detail about these mentioned guys and see how they can be a lovely asset to your lab.
Choosing the Best SMD Rework Station
One can compare a few parameters to judge whether a station is good enough or not. There are a lot of other things involved, but I suppose they are understood, like a personal budget or other requirements i.e., personal color choice, brand likeness, etc.
Following are the things you need to keep in mind while choosing the right desoldering station for yourself:
a. Wattage
This term indicates how much power will be converted into heat energy. Now, it is obvious the higher the power the higher the heat and the quicker the soldering.
b. Temperature Control
Some devices require little temperature while some may require a little higher. So a soldering station with varying temperatures is a must. But here are the following few things you should really keep in mind.
- There must be a digital display where you can clearly see the temperature value
- There must be a discrete button by which you can increase and decrease the temperature. If you avoid the analog wheel, then it would be great. Because when you are using an analog wheel sometimes it is very time-consuming to get to a certain fixed value.
The rule of thumb is, for a hot air rework the temperature range must start from 340 to 850 °F. A little variation from this range is acceptable unless it is that deviation.
c. ESD Safe
Electrostatic discharge (ESD) is the sudden flow of electricity between two electrically charged objects caused by contact. So your station must be ESD safe else it will damage your devices on board.
d. Auto turn off
Automatically turning OFF increases the life of your station, especially the life of your nozzles. It is a very safe function, it saves you power and gives you safety. In my opinion, this is the must-have feature of any best quality rework station.
e. Nozzle
Nozzles are like the tips you put on the gun when you solder. To use a hot air rework station, attach the nozzles to the air blower (gun) and then tighten them with the help of a screwdriver to perfectly hold them in place. The included nozzles must be easy to swap out.
Make sure your station has various nozzles for various jobs. Like for focus work you would need a small nozzle while for others you will need other sizes. Also, make sure they are easily available and interchangeable.
f. Hot Air speed
We are talking about hot air rework. So, it is obvious to have rework with a decent airflow else what is the point. Right?
The rule of thumb is to choose a rework station that has the minimum specification for airflow is at least 20 liters/minute.
List of top SMD Rework Stations
I think I have shared all the information that I have about the topic. Now let’s have a look at some power supplies. I will start with very basic SMD Rework Stations then I will talk about the intermediate models and then will end with some professional SMD Rework Stations. So please keep on reading.
I am not going to repeatedly talk about the above must have features of SMD Rework Stations over again and again. They are applied to all the below mentioned models.
Also, I am not going to add some fancy-looking models that you will see a bunch of them online. Look man, I am an engineer and technical terms are more romantic to me than looks.
1. YIHUA 959D-Digital Hot Air Rework Station
Starting with our first station from the famous Yihua brand. Yihua is well known for its quality soldering tools. They manufacture high quality and reliable soldering and desoldering stations.
The Hot air rework station from this brand is amazing. I am first sharing the basic one and as we will continue I will share some high end models as well.
Important features:
- The hot air gun heats up rapidly when picked up from the holder thanks to the improved heating element and heating system design.
- The control panel is made with solid & brushed aluminum to prevent leaving burnt marks by accident.
- Save your regularly used settings into three preset channels and jump between channels with just one press.
- Capable of putting out 120L of hot air at a maximum stabilized temperature of 932°F.
- An in-holder standby function to help cool the hot air gun when it is not in use, preserving your hot air gun in mint condition for longer.
- Exclusive Hot Air Gun Fail-safe function to make your work safer, and effectively prevent the risk of any fire hazards.
In a short summary, the YIHUA 959D-Digital Hot Air Rework Station (Amazon link) is amazing, and you can use it to conduct rework operations on a broad range of components. It also includes quality accessories and tools to provide an optimal experience for your work.
2. Yihua 995D+
The next rework station is from the same brand as above. Basically, it is the same model, but it has now a soldering iron as well. I think, instead soldering iron is a very nice extra feature.
This guy has the features I already discussed above, so I am not going to repeat myself. Let me share what else new it has for us:
- It is 75W, which means it will heat up very quickly.
- Temperature Range 392°F ~ 896°F/200°C ~ 480°C
- Hot Air Gun: 500 Watts – Temperature Range 212° F ~ 896°F/100°C ~ 480°C with auto cool down safety feature
- It has a few extra nozzles and tips for different sets of soldering which gives it an edge over other market competitors.
In a short summary, the Yihua 995D (Amazon link) has got all the fundamental functionality you will need for your soldering. It can be your normal soldering station and your hot air rework all in one package.
2. YIHUA 948-II
Opposite to soldering, we do desolder as well. If you are a kind of repair guy then you need a complete package that you can use to solder both SMD and through hole components and also use the same station to desolder them as well.
If that is the case then Yihva 948-II is going to save you a lot of money and would be the best suited for you.
Important features:
- This station integrates a 75-Watt De-soldering Station, a powerful 650-Watt Hot Air Rework Station, and a 60-Watt Soldering Station. It is like 3 in 1 package.
- PID program is implanted to give temperature control at super high speed to deliver accuracy.
- Customizable Functions
- Digital Temperature Calibration
If this is the station that got your attention, then this is the link, YIHUA 948-II (Amazon link), you can follow to learn more about this one of the best hot air rework stations.
3. X-Tronic 6020-PRO-X
The next best short air rework station is from the X-Tronic brand. This is another famous brand for making quality soldering tools and stations.
The SMD air rework from this brand is unique because of its design.
Important features:
- 750 Wat
- Powered by a Brushless Vortex Fan Motor, that puts out ≤31 L/min of Air Flow
- Auto Cool Down & Standby Mode is a great safety feature
- Temperature Range of the Hot Air Gun of 212°F ~ 932°F
In a short summary, the X-Tronic 6020-PRO-X (Amazon link) is one of the best hot air rework stations made for the Professional, but the Features are Simple Enough to Understand and Program that an Amateur will have No Problem Using this Unit.
4. Hakko FR810B-05
I don’t know if you know this or not but let me tell you Hakko is a big brand when it comes to soldering and desoldering tools. It is considered a tough competitor next to Weller.
Important features and benefits:
- Compact and lightweight design (only 3.3 lb.)
- Self-contained turbine air supply, capable of delivering up to 115 L/min
- An amazing integrated vacuum pickup system that includes a visual indicator for reflow, allowing the operator to visually see when the component has completely reflowed and is safely lifted from the PCB
In short summary, the Hakko FR810B-05 (Amazon link) is one of the reliable rework stations that you can have for your soldering work.
5. X-Tronic 4040-PRO-X
The next hot air rework station is from the same X-Tronic brand we saw above. But this model is more professional than the above one.
This station is a complete package that includes a 700 Watt Main Power Unit, a 75 Watt Soldering Iron along with a Deluxe Upright Tower Hot Air Gun & Soldering Iron Holder with a Wet Sponge Included.
Important features:
- The Hot Air Gun is 600 Watts and is operated by a Brushless DC Centrifugal Fan & Blower Motor.
- ESD Safe
- Anti-Static Designed
- Adjustable Soldering Iron Sleep Timer (0 to 30 Minutes)
- Celsius to Fahrenheit Programmable
- Dual Bright White LED Readouts on Control Panel & Hot Air Gun Fan Malfunction Protection with Auto Cool Down Function.
- PID (Proportional-Integral-Derivative) Technology is also built into this unit for Temperature Stability.
In short summary, the X-Tronic 4040-PRO-X (Amazon link) will definitely exceed your expectations with its quality and durability compared to any other product of its specific class.
6. NEWACALOX 858D
The next rework station is from the NEWACALOX brand. This brand is new to the market, but it has amazing products.
Important features:
- Microcomputer controlled soldering station quickly heats up to the set temperature within 3-5 seconds
- The highest temperature is 500 °C
- Digital LED display
- High performance
- Temperature stabilization and airtightness
- Use the brushless fan, long life, and low noise.
- An automatic cooling function that can effectively extend the life of the heater and protect the heat gun
- This is safer for the user
- It also has a memory temperature function
In a short summary, the NEWACALOX 858D (Amazon link) is suitable for soldering multiple components such as SOIC CHIP QFP PLCC and BGA, etc. (especially for flat cables and cable connectors).
7. MYPOUOS SMD Rework Station
The last rework station that I have for you is from the Mypouos. It is amazing and has a large capacity hot air gun, heating quickly, gentle and big wind, suitable for lead and lead-free work.
The whole station adopts an anti-static design, effectively eliminating the damage to SMD components. It also has the function of fault self-detection and fault warning.
Important features:
- Equipped with a heat gun and a soldering iron
- Has a big screen dual blue LED display
- Accurate setting and control temperature at +1 °C, temperature adjustment range from 100 °C to 480 °C (212 °F – 896 °F)
- Temperature tolerance is within +2 °C.
In a short summary, the MYPOUOS SMD Rework Station (Amazon link) has the most scientific and fashionable two-in-one design and comes with high-quality ABS plastic shell. The overall station is compact and durable.
What is SMD Rework Station
In electronics, we work with two types of components. One is through the hole and one is SMD.
To soldering SMD traditional soldering stations fail. For these tiny components, we need a hot air rework station.
Such a device to solder SMDs is called the hot air rework. It blows the hot air for melting the soldering wire and that is why it is named hot air rework.
The black thing on the very left is the shirt air blowing gun. It blows hot air. You know, SMDs are small components and this gun melts the soldering wires across the small terminals of any SMDs. Thus making a perfect connection with high level of neatness.
Conclusion
Soldering plays a crucial role in making circuits. We do soldering for either repair work or for making a PCB prototype of a given circuit.
The soldering station is the basic tool for repairing. A bad station can lead you to ugly results so care must be taken when it comes to choosing a soldering station.
Hot-air rework is similar to a soldering station except it blows hot air to melt the soldering wire to make connections. It comes very handy when we just can’t solder very small devices on the board using normal soldering tips.
Now you cannot use hot air rework for through-hole components and soldering stations for SMD. So if you are working with both types of components you need both types of stations.
The following are the key things you can follow to get yourself a decent rework station.
- First look for a famous brand that has a proven track record.
- Write down your requirements, like what type of board you will repair? What key components you will solder the most?
- Manage your budget, and never settle for a low price station you will regret it very soon.
- There are some key features a station must-have in any case that is below
- Temperature control with a good PID control system
- ESD safe and have tips for interchangeable compatibility
Now, other useful words I want to share are the following.
- Play safe with these tools as they may harm you, and never touch the nozzle’s tip with your fingers to check whether it is getting hot or not. I have done it that’s why I am telling you, my finger burnt so badly I can’t put it here in words.
- The other thing is never leaving the station plugged into the power cord when you are not working with it even if it has an auto turn off or going into sleep mode.
Alright!
Well…
That is it. That is all I have for you about some of the best SMD rework stations out there on the market. I hope you enjoyed it.
Thank you and have a grateful life.
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