The "stuffing" of modern devices is becoming more and more complicated every year, and radio and electrical components are getting smaller. It is simply impossible to repair such equipment using a conventional classic soldering iron. For the installation or replacement of various electronic components (microcircuits, chips, processors, SMD elements), both professionals and amateurs currently use special soldering stations. Such equipment greatly simplifies the soldering process. The choice of these devices is currently very wide both in price and in purpose and functionality. Which soldering station to choose depends on the complexity of the equipment that you plan to repair with it. Only this way and nothing else.
Design and advantages of the soldering station
Technologically, any such device consists of two main components:
- devices for heating the place of soldering to the desired temperature;
- control and adjustment unit.
The advantages of the station (compared to a conventional soldering iron) are:
- Possibility of installation and control of working temperature of the soldering. This minimizes the risk of thermal damage to the part being mounted and overheating of adjacent components.
- Complete galvanic isolation of the working area from the mains (220 volts). This prevents failure of mounted elements due to electrical breakdown.
We hope that our review article will help you figure out which soldering station is best and how to choose the fixture that will be most suitable for your specific tasks of repairing, servicing or making various electronic devices yourself.
Varieties
Depending on the design features, all soldering stations are divided into several main types:
contact (heating of the junction of the leads of radio-electronic components is carried out by direct contact with the soldering tip);
- non-contact: hot air and infrared (soldering occurs under the action of a stream of hot air or infrared radiation);
- dismantling or repair (they are equipped with a special suction that removes solder from the junction);
- combined (these are two-in-one or three-in-one devices that allow you to produce various soldering methods).
The answer to the question of which soldering station to choose depends largely on the elements that need to be dismantled (or vice versa soldered) with its help. To repair entry-level household audio equipment, it will be enough to acquire the simplest contact device. Forrepairing equipment with numerous SMD parts, it is better to use contactless stations.
Main Specifications
The main technical characteristics of modern soldering stations (regardless of variety) include:
- power - from 8 to 3600 W;
- operating temperature range - from 50 to 550 °C;
- stability of maintaining the set temperature throughout the entire period of work (for top models - plus / minus 1 °C);
- heating time to maximum temperature (depending on the type of heating element and usually does not exceed 1 minute).
It is rather difficult to answer the question of which soldering station to choose according to the characteristics indicated above.
Note! For fine jewelry work, an 8-watt contact station is quite suitable. Soldering with refractory lead-free solders requires power of 80-90 W or more.
Contact stations
Contact stations were the first to replace the "archaic" soldering iron. It is they, thanks to an affordable price, a wide range of models and the soldering method familiar to many, that are most widely used as home appliances.
According to the principle of maintaining a constant temperature of the tip of the soldering iron itself, these products are divided into:
- analog (heating element supply voltage is periodically turned off by an electromagnetic relay);
- digital (constant tip temperature is maintained using a special electronicregulator).
Heaters at contact stations are:
- nichrome (the cheapest, however, due to the short service life and high inertia, they are practically not used in modern models);
- ceramic;
- induction (the tip is heated using high frequency currents).
To decide which best soldering station (contact) to choose, you need to read user reviews. And not only about the product itself, but also about its manufacturer.
Popular models of contact soldering stations
Compact contact soldering station Rexant ZD-99 with an analog temperature controller (in the range from 100 to 450 degrees), a 48-watt soldering iron (with a ceramic heating element), a convenient holder (with a sponge for cleaning the tip) today a day costs 1700-1800 rubles.
The cost of digital contact station 937D is about 3000 rubles. In the Russian market, it is known under various brands: Kendal, Element, WEP, Zeny. Of the features, it is worth noting the LED indicator of the operating temperature and a set of six interchangeable tips (included in the package). Power - 50 W, operating temperature - 200-480 ° С.
Which soldering station to choose - analog or digital? If you want to save money, then the first one, if the accuracy of setting the operating temperature is important to you (and, as a result, the safe installation of the electronic component), thensecond.
The Quick 202D induction station provides ultra-fast tip heating with high frequency currents (400 kHz). A powerful soldering iron (90 W) and a wide temperature adjustment range (from 80 to 480 ° C) make it possible to use this device for soldering a wide variety of elements and parts (including lead-free solders). The temperature sensor, built into the tip of the tip, ensures accurate (±2 °C) maintenance of the set temperature throughout the entire soldering process. Adjustable auto-off mode (in the range from 1 to 99 minutes), liquid crystal display and sound alarm (when the temperature deviates from the set values) complement the convenience of use. The cost of such a device is 9500-9700 rubles.
Hot air soldering stations
How does a hot air soldering station work and which one to choose? In such devices, the place of soldering is heated to the required temperature using a stream of hot air. Structurally, such a station consists of:
- devices for supplying hot air (hair dryer);
- heating element;
- discharge pump (turbine or compressor);
- control unit.
There are two types of such stations:
- compressor (the heating element and pump are installed in the control unit, and hot air is supplied to the hair dryer through a hose);
- turbine (the heating element and the pump are mounted in the hair dryer itself, which is connected to the control unit using an electriccable).
Both varieties have temperature and airflow controls.
Which soldering station with a hairdryer to choose for your home: compressor or turbine? The former are equipped with more durable heating elements and pumps, however, when using them, it is necessary to prevent kinks (or clamps) in the air hose. The latter are more convenient to use, and, importantly, cheaper. The undoubted advantage of both varieties is the possibility of simultaneous heating of several leads of any radio-electronic component, regardless of its geometric configuration.
Note! For motorists, the answer to the question of which soldering station to choose for bumpers (the repair of cracks and chips that have to be done quite often) is unequivocal - hot air. Indeed, as a solder, you can easily pick up a piece of plastic (similar to the material from which the bumper fairing of your car is made).
Models of hot air stations
Numerous owners of game consoles who have certain knowledge in radio electronics and are used to restoring the performance of home appliances with their own hands, the question arises which soldering station with a hairdryer to choose for repairing PS3, PC4 and the like. There is no definite answer, however, according to user reviews, we can recommend the two most popular models in terms of price / quality ratio.
Compressor hot air station Yihua 850 currently costs 3400-3500 rubles. The temperature of the hot air flow is adjustable inwithin 200-480 °C. The hair dryer is connected to the control unit with a flexible hose made of heat-resistant silicone, about 1 meter long.
The price of a more compact turbine model SumSor 858D is 2400-2500 rubles. The temperature adjustment range is 100-450 °C. The length of the electric cord from the hair dryer to the control unit is 1 meter.
The set of both stations includes 3 nozzles for hair dryers of different diameters.
Combination devices
If you are in doubt and cannot decide which soldering station to choose for cell phone repair, then you should consider purchasing a universal two-in-one device. It combines all the advantages of contact and hot air soldering stations. For example, you can successfully use a soldering iron to replace the charger connector or battery contacts. But for the installation of surface-mounted elements, it is better to use a hair dryer. The correct choice of soldering method and temperature will allow you to successfully repair your mobile gadget.
Universal station "2 in 1" Lukey 702 with a 50-watt soldering iron and a 750-watt hair dryer costs 4200-4500 rubles. Independent temperature controllers of both heating elements and two separate temperature indicators allow using both parts of the station (contact and hot air) at the same time. Compact dimensions (300x250x140 mm) and light weight (about 1 kg) make it easy to store and transport the device.
Which soldering station to choose - highly specialized or combined - depends, of course, on personal preferences and financial capabilities. However, the versatility of universal devices contributes to their growing popularity among people with "skillful hands".
Features of using infrared soldering stations
Classic microcircuits or chips, in which contacts are located along the perimeter of the case in the form of metal "antennae", can be successfully soldered / soldered using a heat gun (and in some cases even using a conventional contact station). Microcircuits in BGA packages, widely used in modern computer technology, have a characteristic technological feature: the contacts are located on the bottom of the package and are miniature metal pads, so mounting/dismantling of such elements is impossible using standard soldering methods.
If you do not know which soldering station to choose for repairing laptops and phones (as well as various game consoles), where BGA chips are widely used, pay attention to a special high-tech device with an infrared heat emitter operating in the range from 2 to 10 µm.
The design of such devices has two heating elements: upper and lower. The first evenly warms up the contacts of the chip. Moreover, to prevent overheating of neighboring parts, special focusing templates are used, the dimensions of which correspond to the dimensions of the replaced element. The second warms up the board from below (inchip installation site), which greatly facilitates the soldering process and prevents temperature distortion of the textolite.
The answer to the question of which infrared soldering station to choose depends on how often and for what purposes you plan to use it. If your hobby is repairing laptops for friends and acquaintances, then it is advisable to first purchase the simplest kit, consisting only of an infrared emitter gun and a control unit. By practicing on the motherboards intended for ejection and purchasing additional necessary (only in your opinion) accessories (for example, a tripod and a bottom heater), in a very short time you will be able to appreciate the advantages of IR soldering devices. If, in the process of professional activity, you have to deal with the restoration of the operability of motherboards not only for laptops, but also for servers, various game consoles and other modern digital electronics, then you cannot do without a multifunctional IR station equipped with a special editing table and equipped with all the necessary devices.
Models of soldering stations with IR heaters
The simplest model Tornado Infra Station with a manual ceramic heating element (gun), a maximum heating zone with a diameter of 50 mm, a temperature range from 130 to 520 ° C, a digital control unit and a 4-digit liquid crystal display today costs about 14,000 rubles. The temperature in the working area is controlled using a special remote thermometer (whichincluded in the scope of delivery). Naturally, to work effectively with such a tool, you will need to spend some time on training (trial) dismantling / assembly operations.
To the question "which infrared soldering station to choose for professional repair of computer equipment of any complexity" (including for dismantling/mounting chips in a BGA package), many experts give an unambiguous answer - the Jovy Systems RE-8500 repair complex. And although the price today is about 92,000 rubles, its use for specialized service centers is economically justified. The characteristics and functionality of this device are impressive:
- maximum component size (for mounting/dismantling) – 60x120 mm;
- total power of heating elements - 3600 W (upper - 600 W; bottom three - 1000 W each);
- convenient mounting table for fixing motherboards;
- monitoring the workflow with a computer via the built-in USB port;
- a set of reflectors for the top heating element (for different chip sizes);
- vacuum lifter of dismantled chip (weighing up to 200g);
- storing settings for frequently repeated processes in the device's memory.
The high performance of this product allows it to be used even in small factories specializing in the development and production of electronics for various purposes.
In closing
We hope that the above information will help you answer the question of which soldering station to choose for your home. In any case, even the simplest analog contact device will be much more effective in use than an old soldering iron.
