Okay, I'm no stranger to soldering. I'm not the best, but I manage. I'm having huge issues desoldering the IR transmitter for the WiiMote, and really need some advice. It's 20 pins, close proximity, through the PCB, and on the practice board, I simply cannot get the thing off without destroying it, which defeats the point a little. Reason being, I need to extend it, and move it ~10 inches forward (So it sits at the end of the barrel that shows, rather than the end that doesn't), thus making it usful. I've tried using those crazy things that suck the solder away when it's molten, I've tried the braid, nothing does the job. Anyone got any advice they could throw my way before I lose my rag with it?
You may have to lay out for a specialist Soldering iron bit, that re-flows all 20 pins at once, so you can pull it out - then you get to work with the flux and the solder braid. Trying to find a link, but not having much luck... Ninja Edit: In fact, the easiest way may be to add more solder, enough so you have all the pins connected at once, and try to re-flow all the joints at once - use a nice big tip or lay your iron down to try and avoid hotspots. Be careful when lifting the package out though - the risk of lifting tracks goes up when applying so much heat.
I've got one specifically for testing things out on, so damaging that isn't a big deal for me, since this is the last thing I need to do to finish the damned thing. I'll give that a whirl either tonight or tomorrow (If the weather holds out, I think it's Guitar work night tonight). Hopefully, since I can trace all the tracks on the PCB, it shouldn't be so bad for lifting (hopefully), as the thing pulls the tracks towards the PCB. Somewhere I've got a 3mm tip for my Antex irons, I don't fancy borrowing my dads Weller, it's probably way too hot for this stuff.
Aluminum tape to isolate the pins, and a heat gun may do the job. The other thing, if there is no plastic involved, is to use an oven to reflow the solder. The final idea I have is a solder pot, just get the pins in contact with the molten solder in the op and use insulated gloves, or padded pliers to pull it off. This assumes the receiver is not glued down.
I've used an oven to remove the cover from a Pentium Pro and expose the ICs under it, but if there is plastic then this could be a problem. The heat gun idea can be a bit dodgey, it's easy to overheat things unless you have one with really good temperature control. The solder pot idea might work, but again, it's all about heat control. The new RoHS solder can be a real !@#$ to work with. Wave solder machines seem to get solder up into the vias well enough that you can never get it all out too. Once the part is out of the hole, cleaning them up is a snap, but getting to that point is getting very difficult for the hobbyist.
I've actually tried the heatgun approach on another part that was attached to the board - eff all good. Get it hot enough to melt the solder, and thanks to not being focused enough, it melts the plastic parts too. PITA I'm confident the thing is not glued down, there is a visable (not very, but definitely there) gap between it and the board. I've not had a chance to try anything else yet - I've been making the most of the lack of rain and been working on another project. Nitrocellulose laquer removal stuff stinks way too much to use it anywhere but outside
I do alot of desoldering at work as part of my job. Without the benefit of a proper desoldering station, I would recommend the following: First I assume you have the correct solder tip. What I tend to do is cut a small piece of braid off from the main reel (otherwise it acts as one big heat sink) then apply a very small amount of solder (braid can be funny sometimes and not conduct the heat quick enough when doing this kind of work). Using a pair of twezzers hold the braid on the joint and apply the iron then remove (should take less than a second to dewick). Hopefully the solder has been pulled clear and the pin is now free. If the pin is still stuck to the plated through hole then using twezzers and iron gently wiggle pin whilst dabbing the iron on the leg to free. Hope this helps.
liratheal i've done what you are trying a few times with complete success. My solution might not be the most preferred method but it worked great for me. For doing this i grabbed my cheap-o $20 adjustable temp soldering iron you can get at any electronics store with changeable tips. For me the tips were the trick. I take a tip or two to the bench grinder and grind down the tips to a point that will pierce the skin, basically making a needle. once i have it good and pointed i put it on the soldering iron, and since the rest of the part i used on the grinder is roughed up a bit it holds the solder pretty well. I crank up the heat as high as it will go, touch the pad for hardly any time and it draws it right up on the iron. I clean it off and continue. OK now the bad part, these tips do not last long doing it this way, but hey i am able to successfully desolder some pretty small surface mount without using ovens, IR, air, or other toys that take longer to get out and setup compared to just using a custom tip.
