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Tom Gardner[_2_] Tom Gardner[_2_] is offline
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Default Tiny, tiny metalwork - chip re-soldering


"GeorgeD" wrote in message
news:dvs4k.36013$lE3.12345@trnddc05...
Tom Gardner wrote:
My good friend asked me to repair his Dell laptop, an Inspiron 5150 that has
a well documented problem with mechanical stress cracking solder joints. The
door for the communication cards has little tabs that bump on a surface mount
chip causing the joints to crack and fail. I could see the cracks with a
hand-held microscope. I made a tip for my soldering station using a piece of
28 ga. copper wire and fluxed the joints with a brush having a single strand
of horse hair and some melted "No-Corrode" paste. I didn't add any solder,
just remelted the existing. It took me over an hour to do the whole chip, it
was like circumcising gnats with an axe!

This job was beyond my limits but I got lucky and the laptop works. I want a
REAL boom microscope with a built in camera! I wonder how this job would be
done by real repair people?

Carefully. If you are referring to the brand "No Corrode" soldering paste, it
is corrosive. It was developed for the plumbing trade a century ago. The
definition of no corrode for plumbers is different that for electronics. “No
Corrode” brand flux can not be used electronics.

Been there done that. Talked to the “No Corrode” flux people.


I did clean it up with Trichloroethylene 1-1-1, I hope that cleaned it good
enough. That paste works so well, what is the equivalent for electronics?