Spare circuitboard component removal

[zachtheterrible]

If you're like me, you have a box or boxes of old circuitboards just laying around, taking up space. You justify it with "im sure ill use something from those 20 circuitboards someday". But you don't, you keep adding to the pile because whenever you see a thrown out radio, TV, etc you just cant help yourself. Of course desoldering all the components on the board would allow you to trash the boards, but it would take ALL day.

Ive come up with a very simple solution. Propane torch. Just point it at the back of the board wherever your component is, and yank it out :lol: . You can even remove transformers, and multi-pin components with ease because you can direct the flame on a ton of different connections at once.

Another solution I was thinking of would be to put the bottom part of the board in water, and heat the water to solder melting point (i forget what it is). This would be even easier, as you could literally just pluck as many components off the baord as you could get your hand over.

Using the torch solution, I have just dismembered about 5 boards in a half hour.

 

[mstechca]

only take Zachs advice if you don't care about the component quality, because some components can be easily damaged from excessive heat.

Did you even think about checking the temperature limits for the IC's you are planning on flaming? :shock:

 

[Jay.slovak]

Another solution I was thinking of would be to put the bottom part of the board in water, and heat the water to solder melting point (i forget what it is). This would be even easier, as you could literally just pluck as many components off the baord as you could get your hand over.

As far as I know, you can't get water hotter than 120C (with Salt), so how do you want to melt solder (melting point ~300C), or am I missing something here?

 

[Klaus]

Another solution I was thinking of would be to put the bottom part of the board in water, and heat the water to solder melting point (i forget what it is). This would be even easier, as you could literally just pluck as many components off the baord as you could get your hand over.

As far as I know, you can't get water hotter than 120C (with Salt), so how do you want to melt solder (melting point ~300C), or am I missing something here?

How about another form of water, like steam? you can get that hot enough to melt solder but the terriffic pressure at that stage would make the whole exercise pointless

Only Zach would dream up the idea of using boiling water to melt solder

:lol:
Klaus

 

[Exo]

Or let your boards be used in a school for first graders soldering class...
They learn to unsolder parts on them..
They do the work, and i get my loose parts back later...

 

[i_build_stuff]

How about a heat gun?

 

[moody07747]

If you're like me, you have a box or boxes of old circuitboards just laying around, taking up space. You justify it with "im sure ill use something from those 20 circuitboards someday". But you don't, you keep adding to the pile because whenever you see a thrown out radio, TV, etc you just cant help yourself. Of course desoldering all the components on the board would allow you to trash the boards, but it would take ALL day.

Ive come up with a very simple solution. Propane torch. Just point it at the back of the board wherever your component is, and yank it out :lol: . You can even remove transformers, and multi-pin components with ease because you can direct the flame on a ton of different connections at once.

Another solution I was thinking of would be to put the bottom part of the board in water, and heat the water to solder melting point (i forget what it is). This would be even easier, as you could literally just pluck as many components off the baord as you could get your hand over.

Using the torch solution, I have just dismembered about 5 boards in a half hour.

ive seen this one site that had something like this on it

this site was the one that tole me how to build a welder from a microwave

his site:

www.dansworkshop.com

and the desoldering tool/hot air pencil:

https://www.dansworkshop.com/SMT Hot Air Pencil.shtml

one of my top 10 sites

once i finish my audio mixer im building one of these as i have an extra microwave transformer from the welder i built

seems really useful

he said he does not have much time with his new job but when he gets the chance he will post more pics

 

[zachtheterrible]

hmm, interesting, i like that hot air pencil.

I dont remove any sensitive compnents with it, like ICs. Mainly diodes, capacitors, inductors, transformers, stuff that can take the heat.

Yeah, id like to see what the propane torch would do w/ SMT :lol:

 

[tansis]

I would reach for a 100watt pistol grip type iron and use the braided shield scavanged from old tv arial cable as desolder braid. Saves having to keep stop and de-clog the the nozzle of the vacuum desolder pump.

Speed is the secret to salvaging , if you have to reheat the same puddle of solder two or thee times to suck it all up with a spring vacuum tool , then odds are it will be damaged by the heat.

 

[mstechca]

tansis, never come after zach in posts reminding us to never stir cold coffee with a soldering iron, or he'll torch ya :lol: j/k

But if you really want to get down and dirty with components, and see which ones survive the most, throw the entire circuit in a campfire, and leave the campfire going. Hey, you might get fireworks too :twisted:

and if you try it, let me know what components survived!
:lol:

P.S.: We are NOT responsible for any damages involved to your components in any way, shape, or form. This material should be treated as material, not your only guide to success. 8)

 

[Someone Electro]

That reminds me that an 555 times makes an good smoke bomb.

Well i fryed an 555 timer by reverse voltage.So the only use for it was to conect it to an mains transformer that outputs about 10A at 20 VAC (200W of frying power)

The chip poped after about 3 seconds in a huge ball of smoke.Prety fun to watch.

 

[jrz126]

I use a heat gun and compressed air to blow the molten solder away. Just be sure to wear safety glasses. Hot solder in the eye doesnt feel too good.

 

[zachtheterrible]

555 smoke bomb eh? Ill have to try that :lol:

you really wanna make smoke? throw a circuitboard in the microwave. smoke will pour out of the microwave :lol:

 

[Klaus]

hmm, interesting, i like that hot air pencil.

That sounds like an interesting idea, thanks for posting the link.

Yesterday I started to make a hot air pencil after realising I had all the parts for it lying around.
I used ten turns of a junked bar heater element for the heat source and a small, vibrating type, air pump which once inflated air splints.

First try was using the glass tube of the bar heater as a containment for the element as I did not like the fragility and fire hazard of the exposed heater used in the original article.

The glass tube was too fragile, got too hot and could not be drilled for a connection to the element within. :cry:

Next I used a 90mm long teflon spacer, drilled out to 7mm, to suit the ten turn heater spiral. This was fitted with a turned brass nozzle (its nice to have a lathe :wink:, gloat). The nozzle had a 2mm opening at the business end.

The front end of the heater spiral connected to the nozzle, the aft end to a short 8BA screw through the teflon tube. This brings both connections to the outside, where I ran 20SWG tinned wires, heat shrink covered to the teflon spacer, to the rear end of the pencil.
The heater spiral can only be connected to by means of clamping, I used a longish 8BA tapped strip as an inside clamp nut

Findings: the air pump was way too powerful, cooling the element too much. An air bleeder was fitted into the ail line and this got the heater red hot with 80W of heater power. I use an adjustable 12V power supply for the power source, its good for 8 Amps

Further findings: the element was partly inside the teflon tube which started bulging alarmingly when the heat was turned up to red hot.
I will have to turn a longer brass nozzle that contains most of the heater spiral, which is where the project is stalled at the moment.

So, its not quite as simple as it looked at the outset :roll:

I will keep you posted if there is a successful outcome in the end :wink:

Klaus

 

[Someone Electro]

I also tryed the same thing whith an transistor but it only melted the plastic.

An nother fun thing is poping hidrogen bubels that you get from runing curent trough water.(but the thing i hate is that you get water in your face,especialy if its a big buble)

I also tryed the bouncing stuff of speakers thing.I built and realy crude audio amp whith an L3900 Op amp and an transistor from an switchmode PSU.It wasent realy good but it wokred and the bass was good.(It didnt need to be big since the speaker was only 20W)