| Does anyone out there have hands on experience of selective soldering. Either masking or miniwave type. I am looking for pointers with regard to equipment selection and known process problems/ limitations | Charles,
I've used both miniwave and selective solder fixtures. My personal preference is selective soldering fixtures over the regular solder wave. I like it better because:
1) The regular solder wave is much more repeatable 2) The regular solder wave is less operator dependent than a miniwave 3) The miniwave only heats the board locally and often has no preheat. If your component is near the edge of the board, htis is not a big concer, but if it is towards the middle, the rapid heating causes localized expansion, but the only available direction is Z. You can do some nice damage this way. 4) The regular solder wave has nice peel off for debridging. The miniwave tends to bridge more, depending on the component.
If you're looking for selective solder fixture vendors, I use MB Manufacturing (973)586-2988 and EMC (215) 340-0650.
Chrys
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