Hot Air Rework Station
 

What am I looking for in a hot air rework station.

It's only for very occasional use so looking for something a lot less than £100.

Advice and recommendations please?

Re: Hot Air Rework Station
 

They can be had for £20-30 on eBay, Amazon etc. Model number is 858D, they aren’t the best quality but for under £30 they are perfectly acceptable for occasional use. If you go for one it’s worth checking the internal mains side wiring, especially the earthing arrangement!

In a previous job we had genuine Hakko units and in my home workshop I have a clone version which works well but it was still fairly pricey when I bought it (years ago). The sub £30 ones aren’t far behind in capability but the price reflects the build quality.

HTH,

Kev

Re: Hot Air Rework Station
 

Thanks for the recommendation Kev

A very simplistic view of these items is that they blow hot air, so apart from build quality what additional functionality comes with the more expensive models.

I have seen eye-watering prices for Hakko Hot Air Rework Stations on eBay and Amazon!

Re: Hot Air Rework Station
 

Those are the cheap and cheerful ones that work reasonably well, for a while, I found, using them at work.

The really cheap ones do seem to have problems, blowing out pieces of glass after someon put the handpiece down too hard.

I tried a fairly expensive Weller, but it kept eating elements. So that got replaced with a JBC unit. Very expensive, but very good, easy to use and dependable. But JBC are at the Rolls Royce end... at least they deliver what they promise. That Weller was very disappointing. Have they lost the plot?

Back in the HP days, I used a Pace hot air station. Superb. Tightly focused air and a very small handpiece. The bench top part looked industrial. But it did require a compressed air feed at about 50psi, along with dryers and de-oilers.

I don't have a hot air setup at home. I do have compressed air, so an old Pace would be very attractive, but I may have to save up for a JBC station.

These better units are smoother to use, the air is less erratic and it's a lot easier to not blow parts all over the place. The cheapie ones need a lot more skill to get good results.

David

Re: Hot Air Rework Station
 

Martin Lynch has some on offer at the moment
https://www.hamradio.co.uk/accessori...ons-pc-793.php
Usual disclaimer, I have no connexion other than being a customer.

Re: Hot Air Rework Station
 

Thanks Dave - the HAIRUI brand seems to be a step up from the 858D, at least in terms of price. I note that all the HAIRUI products are 'Intelligent' and some are even 'Digital Intelligent' ! :)

I also note that the 858D comes with 3 nozzles whereas you have to pay an extra £7.96 for 3 nozzles from HAIRUI.

I am, however, happy to pay the additional costs if this delivers better results? As Radio Wrangler succinctly put it "These better units are smoother to use, the air is less erratic and it's a lot easier to not blow parts all over the place. The cheapie ones need a lot more skill to get good results."

Re: Hot Air Rework Station
 

The combined 999D at £74.36 looks pretty good value. Tips very reasonable as well. And a well known UK supplier rather than online maybe from stock dumped in a container and offered online via usual sites.
No connection, in fact I don't think I ever spent a penny with them all these years!

Rob

Re: Hot Air Rework Station
 

Thanks Rob - I already have a digital temperature controlled soldering iron so wouldn't be interested in the combined 999D although, as you say, the price is very attractive.

Re: Hot Air Rework Station
 

I have used a cheapo saike hot air station from eBay for years mostly for heat shrinking duty which it excels at and it’s never missed a beat for my light duty use. Mine has a digital screen but it’s not really needed as I always run it on full air and highest temp. I can see something very similar but without the screen on eBay for £20 posted. Might be worth a look.

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/700W-SMD-...-127635-2958-0

Re: Hot Air Rework Station
 

I bought a cheap 858d for 25 quid delivered!
It is excellent for heatshrink use.
Heats up to 200+ C in seconds and shuts down when handpiece placed on holder.
Fully controllable heat and air flow.
Makes removing surface mount components a breeze.
Also used for re-melting glue gun glue.

Mark

Re: Hot Air Rework Station
 

My original question related to the fact that I currently have a Black & Decker BD 1602 hot air gun which has been used for heat shrink duties over the years. This is rated at 1600 Watts so my thinking (!) was just to buy a set of nozzles for this? I appreciate though that I have no control over the temperature or air flow.

Re: Hot Air Rework Station
 

Small parts in the airflow are likely to be damaged.

David

Re: Hot Air Rework Station
 

Depending what you want it for as David says a black and decker would be a nuclear option :0) ….the nozzle I use most on my cheapo Chinese station is about 5mm ….and very controllable…but it comes with a set of nozzles for different purposes.

Re: Hot Air Rework Station
 

In the 1990s I remember using a blowtorch to remove a bunch of 4116 memory chips from a scrap board.

Very effective!

Re: Hot Air Rework Station
 

I spoke to M.L&S this morning (21st Jan) and am now told "due to the current situation in the far east" these not available to buy at this time. No timescale for restocking was available.