Home >> Hobbies >> Ham Radio

Technique for 208 Pin Soldering

The technique used to solder a 208-pin pad onto a circuit board is called drag soldering. This is a fairly simple process that involves adding solder to the pins of a microchip by sliding it over the pins to adhere it to the board. It needs to be done carefully, because any bump to the chip while you are soldering can cause it to misalign.

Things You'll Need

Soldering iron with 1 mm to 2 mm tip
Tweezers
No-clean flux dispenser
Solder wire with built-in no-clean flux (less than 1 mm diameter)
Magnifying glass or microscope
Printed circuit board
208-pin integrated circuit or microchip
Desoldering tool
Scissors

Instructions

- 1
  Open the flux container by cutting off its tip. Add a drop of flux to one corner pin of the microchip. Add one to the opposite corner pin.
- 2
  Align the pins of the chip up with the metal pads on the printed circuit board with a pair of tweezers while looking through a magnifying glass or microscope.
- 3
  Place the end of the soldering wire up against the soldering iron's tip until a small amount of solder melts onto it. Gently set the soldering iron tip against the bottom, or toe, of a corner pin until the solder wicks around it. Add a drop of solder to the opposite corner pin.
- 4
  Apply the no-clean gel flux to all of the pins of the chip.
- 5
  Add a drop of solder to the pin next to the first corner pin that was soldered by touching the soldering iron's tip gently to the pin's toe. Move on to the neighboring pin and do the same. Keep adding solder to the individual pins until they are all soldered to the board.

Ham Radio