Desolders

jdduffield

jdduffield

Active member
I treated myself to purchasing one of these desoldering pumps on Amazon. Has anyone else tried these? I think it’s terrible. Wondering if I’m missing something.

The tips aren’t pointed enough to get into small areas so it is hard to aim and not burn stuff. It also takes too long to melt the solder. And finally, it is messier than just a normal $15 mechanical pump. I’ve switched back to using one of those instead. I thought I was upgrading.

Maybe the $200 ones are better? I didn’t get an expensive one because I thought the smaller version would be better suited for small electronics.
 

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I bought the hakko and it is awesome. Can you buy different tips for the one you bought? Perhaps there is a smaller or needle nose style tip available?
 
jdduffield said:
It also takes too long to melt the solder.
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I'm gonna say IME this is the #1 reason people new to soldering have problems, and its due to either an underpowered iron or not letting a tip come up to temperature through impatience. Often its a combination of both but both can typically be overcome by obtaining a decently powered iron.

The solder should very quickly, if not immediately, melt when the tip is applied. The longer one must apply heat increases the chance of damage to either the pad/trace and/or component.

I apologize if you already know this but I thought I'd throw it out for anyone that might not and comes across this thread.

Sorry I cant give more advice other than get a better (not necessarily more expensive, just better) desoldering tool. I've read good things about Yihua like was mentioned earlier but no personal experience.

I use a manual solder sucker myself, an original Edsyn Solderpult. I used them early in my career with great results, then for a while tried the much less expensive ones with not good results. Finally I got another real Edsyn and it is great. I was considering a desoldering station but have put it off since getting the Edsyn-havent really needed it and have removed a few 8 pin DIP sockets with good success with it.
 
jdduffield said:
I treated myself to purchasing one of these desoldering pumps on Amazon. Has anyone else tried these? I think it’s terrible. Wondering if I’m missing something.

The tips aren’t pointed enough to get into small areas so it is hard to aim and not burn stuff. It also takes too long to melt the solder. And finally, it is messier than just a normal $15 mechanical pump. I’ve switched back to using one of those instead. I thought I was upgrading.

Maybe the $200 ones are better? I didn’t get an expensive one because I thought the smaller version would be better suited for small electronics.
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I got one sort of like that as a gift and it was awful. Same price (around $40). Just did not work well and clogged easily. My solder sucker and braid work much better. I do have the one @Erik S linked about in my wishlist for awhile now. One of these i may get one to try out.
 
VanWhy said:
I got one sort of like that as a gift and it was awful. Same price (around $40). Just did not work well and clogged easily. My solder sucker and braid work much better. I do have the one @Erik S linked about in my wishlist for awhile now. One of these i may get one to try out.
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The fit and finish on the Yihua isn't amazing. It definitely feels like it was built cheaply but it's worked flawlessly so far, and I've used it enough at this point that if it died I'd probably just order another one. I'm sure the Haako ones are much nicer though.

I had to swap a bunch of DIP8 opamps on a vintage synth that I didn't want to mess up, and it was worth it to me just for that.
 
$200 for a solder sucker is just INSANELY overpriced. Just buy one with a tubular aluminum body, buy it from an electronics place like Mouser of Digikey instead of the cheap crap on Amazon (which suck in a bad way). The one I bought was from Aven Tools, got it at Digikey, it now sells for ~$20 and it's served me for many years.

And don't forget about old fashioned copper solder wick, sometimes it's the best when you are having trouble fitting both the soldering iron and the solder sucker into a tight space.

Edit: corrected info on my desoldering pump
 
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I don't have much need for anything beyond the SS-02 style sucker. I'd only ever want to upgrade to a Pace soldering station so I can get that sweet shovel tip that spans across 3 lugs of a pot, but that's a lot of money for one specific thing lol
 
darwin999 said:
$200 for a solder sucker is just INSANELY overpriced.
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Yes.

Kinda depends on how often you desolder and whether it’s worth it to have the electrical pump built in. I hate desoldering stuff and I figured it would be worth it to have the tool for the next decade plus.

I have a Weller manual solder sucker and for one offs it is totally fine for sure, but the hakko desoldering gun sure makes things easy and smooth, and it’s faster which makes it less likely for me to damage components.

Totally get why some would feel that’s a silly purchase, but I’ve been nothing but happy with it since I bought it a year ago.
 
I like desoldering braid but it has to be a good one. The stuff from Tayda isn't very good. The one I have which really works is a brand called Gootwick from Taiyo Electric. I get it from Jaycar in Australia. It works amazingly well, unlike any other I have tried. I think it has flux imbedded in it or something - it just pulls solder off cleanly and easily as soon as you apply heat.
 
HamishR said:
I like desoldering braid but it has to be a good one. The stuff from Tayda isn't very good. The one I have which really works is a brand called Gootwick from Taiyo Electric. I get it from Jaycar in Australia. It works amazingly well, unlike any other I have tried. I think it has flux imbedded in it or something - it just pulls solder off cleanly and easily as soon as you apply heat.
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I got some of that good fluxed stuff and it gave me a whole new outlook on using braid.

I've found the cheap stuff works just about as good if I give it a swipe with my liquid flux pen though.

I think braid is the best at drawing out the last little bit of solder from a hole - when the component is wiggling like a loose tooth but still stuck. Getting impatient and tugging at that stage is the only way I've lifted pads.
 
I’ve got a cheapo ($20-$30ish) no-name, no-fancy-controls, plug-in solder sucker (from Amazon or EBay, can’t remember). I only use it when braid won’t cut it: chunky stuff like jacks and switches.

Plug it in, make sure it’s not sitting anywhere it shouldn’t be, go do something else for 5 minutes, come back and do your thing. Never had any problems.

For as infrequently as I need to use it (braid does the trick for 90% of my de-soldering needs) I don’t think I’d want to spend much more than I did. YMMV 🤷‍♀️
 
There's some technique involved with the powered suckers - works best if you can get the component leg sticking straight up into the nozzle. Then I'll let it heat for 1-2 seconds before I hit the suction, then move in a quick little circle hula-hooping around the leg. That will usually get the leg moving around and clear the solder from the sides of the hole.
 
Thank you for all the replies. Now I want to get a flux pen. Never tried it. I’ve not liked the braid but only ever tried the cheap stuff.

I will say I recently gave Kester solder a try and it makes a world of difference. I thought the stuff I was using before was pretty good, but now Kester is a must-have.
 
So I recently decided to dabble with trying pedal kits and then breadboarding and possibly modding or repairing pedals I have accumulated over many years. I have both Hakko and Weller Soldering stations with adjustable temp. I have modded tube amps in the past so I also have a few different tips depending on what I am working on. With these smaller pedal PCB boards and things crammed so close I am finding diffculty removing components to test if they are good or faulty. I bought a YiHua 948 desoldering/Suction Station. Along with others posting on here I am also finding it takes a while for the solder to melt. What are some of you setting your temps (C or F) at? I was afraid to get too high however its seems like more damage could be done at too low a temp for too long. Thanks in advance!
 
TheCrunchGuy said:
So I recently decided to dabble with trying pedal kits and then breadboarding and possibly modding or repairing pedals I have accumulated over many years. I have both Hakko and Weller Soldering stations with adjustable temp. I have modded tube amps in the past so I also have a few different tips depending on what I am working on. With these smaller pedal PCB boards and things crammed so close I am finding diffculty removing components to test if they are good or faulty. I bought a YiHua 948 desoldering/Suction Station. Along with others posting on here I am also finding it takes a while for the solder to melt. What are some of you setting your temps (C or F) at? I was afraid to get too high however its seems like more damage could be done at too low a temp for too long. Thanks in advance!
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Check the melting point of the solder you are using. It should be on the side of the spool. If not, find the datasheet. Go 20C or so above that.
Also, if you have cleaned the board of flux or you are doing a repair on old gear, you'll need to add flux.
Add more flux if more than a couple attempts are needed. Sometimes, as weird as imthis sounds, adding fresh solder is the trick.
 
My 2¢ on flux: no-clean can be cleaned up fairly easily, so the answer to how much is needed, especially for reworking, is "yes." I'm weird and use flux paste to get it where I want it and stay till the heat is on it. It's essential to my workflow, be it soldering or desoldering. If you're solder work is all done on the back side, no one's going to see it in your gut shots 😉

I have one of those vacuum desolder stations, and while it can be useful, I'll echo what the above have already said and it takes getting used to. 9 times out of 10 I'm using solder wick; it's just more flexible. Also takes getting used to, but what doesn't?
 
I've got the same de-soldering iron.

My take? Its fine. It's best for when you have, like, *a bunch* of de-soldering to do. Like if you're scavenging components.

But it's bulky, and imprecise. And I don't trust the solenoid in it to like...not burst into flames in my hand. But it's definitely gonna be a bit more rapid-fire than a spring loaded jobbie.

Manual suckers...I've only ever had luck with the sacrificial silicone tipped guys that make a seal around the joint. Bonus points if you can heat from one side and suck from the other. Gotta suck it good.
 
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