[Elecraft] K3: PTT IN problem - cause found...Joe picked it...

[Rick Tavan N6XI]

Having recently done my first SMD board, I'd like to add one tip that made
it easier for me. Instead of tinning both pads, I tinned only one. Then I
held the part with tweezers, flat on the board, just touching the lump of
solder. I re-heated the solder and slid the part over onto the pad, holding
it still as the solder solidified. Then I soldered the other pad.  This
leaves the part nicely flat against the board, with no need to push the
part down through hot solder while bending it through cold solder on the
other side. I used curved, padded handle, very sharp tweezers designed for
the purpose and an Optivisor magnifier. I did about a hundred of these and
it felt pretty good right from the start.

Warning: I am a definite SMD newbie and my advice may not be technically
correct. It seemed to work for me, though.

73,

/Rick

On Thu, Apr 12, 2012 at 7:52 AM, Ron D'Eau Claire <ron at cobi.biz> wrote:

> A two-terminal SMD is very easy to replace. Find a small, thin tool (e.g.
> tiny screwdriver, tip of a knife blade or even a toothpick) and place it
> where the SMD body touches the board and lift up on the SMD while heating
> one end with your soldering iron. It will tilt up, held by the solder at
> the
> other end. Now touch the other end with your iron while holding the part
> with small needle nose pliers or tweezers to free it.
>
> Clean any excess solder off of the pads and leave a small drop of fresh
> solder on each pad.
>
> Set the new part in place and hold it in place with the little tool you
> used
> to pry the old part off with earlier. Touch one end, then the other with
> your soldering iron to "sweat-solder" the part in place. Optionally, you
> can
> clean off the pads entirely and have a tiny drop of solder on the tip of
> your iron that will flow onto the solder pad when you touch each end.
> That's
> a little trickier to do at first. Most people tend to have too big of a
> drop
> of solder on the iron. If your first just make a "bump" of fresh solder on
> each pad and wipe your iron before touching it to the joint, you won't have
> excess solder.
>
> --
Rick Tavan N6XI
Truckee, CA