All, Believe it or not, I already own both of the RS items. I abandon the desoldering iron because of the temperature issue Ron mentioned. I feel that the sucker doesn't really cut it as far as vacuum power. I was planning on using my Weller WES50 station and the trusty old Sold-a-pult. I guess I panic whenever there is a chance the a board could get destroyed. It seems the consensus is that the rock-and-pull method should work without a problem assuming the temperature is kept low enough.
I guess the next logical question would be, "What's the difference between the old and new crystals?". Were the older crystals of inferior quality? Thanks to everyone, Jim --- [email protected] wrote: From: "Ron D'Eau Claire" <[email protected]> To: "'elecraft Reflector'" <[email protected]> Subject: Re: [Elecraft] Upgrade question Date: Thu, 29 Jan 2009 09:58:47 -0800 These are inexpensive and effective desoldering tools, but be aware they are *not* temperature controlled. The tip temperature can soar to well over 800F, especially while sitting on the cradle, then drop too low if you are removing parts from board that includes a fair-sized ground plane. Such heat extremes - too high or so low the iron is on the board too long - can easily debond (lift) circuit traces and do other nasty stuff. That's why Elecraft calls for a temperature-controlled iron in all the manuals and mod instructions. It's the temperature control that causes most of the price difference. Ron AC7AC -----Original Message----- From: [email protected] [mailto:[email protected]] On Behalf Of Sam Morgan Sent: Thursday, January 29, 2009 9:27 AM To: Joe Planisky Cc: elecraft Reflector Subject: Re: [Elecraft] Upgrade question Joe Planisky wrote: > Hi Jim, > > I've had good results using a GC Electronics "Solder Popper" (part # > 12-2157). It's a 30W soldering iron with a built-in spring loaded > solder sucker. While it's certainly not equal to something like a > Hakko 808, it's adequate for occasional use. And at less than $40, > it's about 1/4 the cost. > I made a homebrew version of that using: http://www.radioshack.com/product/index.jsp?productId=2062731 removed the rubber bulb and added a piece of clear tubing and: http://www.radioshack.com/product/index.jsp?productId=2062745 total cost about $20.00 I used it for removing the 14 xtals in my K2 just a few weeks ago worked just fine. If you have a little solder left in the hole that doesn't want to come out (after the xtal is removed) just add a little solder to the hole, then use the sucker again, and it will remove it all, resulting in a clean hole. -- GB & 73 KA5OAI Sam Morgan Linux, the lifetime learning experience. _______________________________________________ Elecraft mailing list Post to: [email protected] You must be a subscriber to post to the list. Subscriber Info (Addr. Change, sub, unsub etc.): http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/subscribers.htm Elecraft web page: http://www.elecraft.com _______________________________________________ Elecraft mailing list Post to: [email protected] You must be a subscriber to post to the list. Subscriber Info (Addr. Change, sub, unsub etc.): http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/subscribers.htm Elecraft web page: http://www.elecraft.com _______________________________________________ Elecraft mailing list Post to: [email protected] You must be a subscriber to post to the list. Subscriber Info (Addr. Change, sub, unsub etc.): http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/subscribers.htm Elecraft web page: http://www.elecraft.com
