Reflow Oven Kit for VHS - TILT

[Majicj]

Wow @iMakeRobots! Thanks for your generous donation! Also a big thank you to the other contributors as well!

@ColinFitzgerald

Hi all,

Just thought I’d chime in here as I have massive experience in SMT reflow methods (in a professional capacity)…

First off, DO NOT buy a cheap reflow oven from China or anywhere else:

Hi Colin:

Thank you for providing all this information. I agree with you on the above point!

SMT reflow with a normal, decent quality, toaster oven is super easy and doesn’t require a controller. I’ve reflowed hundreds of boards this way, with both leaded and lead-free paste. Large BGA’s are pretty tricky due to shadowing, but everything else works fine. The low temp Bismuth paste is crazy easy (can use a hair dryer…lol).

The trick is just profiling the oven. Usually I do 5 minutes of preheat at ~250F then crank to max for 2-3 min. The last bit is more critical but you can just watch it. Once you see the solder start to melt, count down 30 more seconds then turn it off. Simple as that. Let it cool down a bit before the next board. The two step, preheat then max is critical and the ‘secret’ to making this work.

Just a FYI. We currently have a Controlleo Reflow oven at VHS which I have successfully used for about 7 or 8 boards. Obviously I do not have your professional experience in reflowing. However I like it because it is dead simple to use. You put the board in the oven and hit the green button to start. That’s it. Everything else is taken care of for you.

No other actions are required on the users part. This is an ideal level interaction for folks who are new to reflow soldering. No mentions of profiling, timing and temperatures etc are required. There is nothing to intimidate newbies.

Anyways as I originally promised I will not be purchasing anything from the tilt funds until we get consensus on the best approach for VHS.

I am looking forward to a discussion on what is best for VHS considering the following

1. Effectiveness in successfully reflowing boards (does it work?)
2. Ease of use / training for complete beginners
3. Cost

Whatever we decide I want put this into motion by Monday October 24th. That gives everyone two weeks to discuss our options and reach consensus. This also gives Colin time to do a presentation.

Best

Mark