On Thu, 01 Apr 2010 17:10:48 -0500 RubbishRat wrote
in Message id: :

Hi,
Does anyone have any good tips for desoldreing these SM caps without
damaging the pads?
I tried wicking each pad dry but the darned thing still took one of the
flimsy little pads off with it. Also would it be OK to replace a SM cap
with a similar value radial if I support the radial with a blob of silicon
sealer or something after soldering ?
Any help welcomed.


I routinely re-cap Tektronix acquisition boards from TDS series scopes.
I've found the best way is to cut them close to the board - right where
the can dimples in a bit. Then I just flick the remaining part of the can
and plastic off with an x-acto knife, and remove each leg with a soldering
iron. There's about 70 in each scope, and I've probably done 50 scopes in
all. Never damaged a single pad.