Reflow Soldering Basics

Founder and CEO of Neoden USA, Peter Swann, explains the basics of reflow, and its importance in maximizing the potential of your SMT manufacturing setup.

00:00 -- Introduction
00:31 -- What is "reflow"?
01:09 -- What is solder paste?
02:35 -- Preheat phase
04:05 -- Soak phase
04:47 -- Reflow phase
05:24 -- Cooling phase
05:46 -- Temperature setting considerations
06:40 -- Conveyor vs. drawer-style oven
07:22 -- Stencils, and consistent solder application
08:06 -- Finished board comparisons

Sources:

[NeodenUSA]

8:20 -- In addition to the obvious color difference, it should also be noticed that on a board that doesn't reach the specified temperature, you may notice that the parts aren't completely embedded in the solder

[dodotech]

Hi peter thanks for sharing…is the in6 6zone reflow or just 3 zone?thanks again.

[MitchDavis]

Excellent video! Do you have any pointers on how to get components to “snap” into place? When I reflow boards by hand with a heat gun, they tend to “snap” in place, even if they were slightly crooked. With the IN6 reflow oven, they tend to solidify in place, which is pretty annoying if something like a microcontroller is slightly crooked.

[ahcalori]

I have a Neoden IN6, but the settings menu confuse me a little bit. How can I set the temperatures in the six zones. For instance, zones 1 and 2 must have the same temperatures as you shown on video? And zone 3 equal to zone 4; and zone 5 equal to zone 6? Thanks for the excellet video!

[paulgallagher]

The guy applying the solder by hand on the stencil looked like he was buttering toast. Worst technique possible.