S-993a desoldering gun! Life saver.

I've done a lot of recapping in my life, or MVS surgery to fix a Cart or two. But my god my hand is a claw after a few hours of removing components. Googling I wasn't going to spend $250+ on a Hakko, so I needed options and there walked in the S-993a gun. Chinese? Yes. Cheap? Yes. Actually works? Yes. I removed all mask Roms on both boards of a Zedblade cart in less than 5 minutes without the hand cramps from hell. Transplanted to the new board, I got everything soldered back in within about 30 minutes. Desoldering usually takes me hours and those radio shack tips fall apart after 5+ uses of removing chips. This thing is great, I just wanted to give people a heads up. I ended up recapping my gamegear too. Two projects down that I've been meaning to work on forever.

Thanks for the heads-up. A friend has been talking about buying a Hakko and that has me thinking of getting a desoldering gun of my own. I mean I can get it done with the Giant Robodick spring-loaded deelie but I've been wanting to step it up.

DanAdamKOF said:

Thanks for the heads-up. A friend has been talking about buying a Hakko and that has me thinking of getting a desoldering gun of my own. I mean I can get it done with the Giant Robodick spring-loaded deelie but I've been wanting to step it up.

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Oh man, I've never had any luck with those spring loaded solder suckers. My Hakko was probably one of the best tool investments I have ever made.

RIP Zed Blade cart.

Dag seems like there arent many US sellers for this on EBAY. They all come from China.

Yodd said:

Oh man, I've never had any luck with those spring loaded solder suckers.

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I've been using them for ages. As long as you keep them clean and greased, it works ok. I've only had trouble with ground points while desoldering DIPs.

I've been wondering about these cheaper desoldering guns. I've been meaning to invest in one. While I'm used to old skool desoldering, I'd rather take an easier route.

Wachenroder said:

Dag seems like there arent many US sellers for this on EBAY. They all come from China.

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This one ships from LA:
https://www.ebay.com/itm/252225562858

thanks man. i set it to nearest but i couldnt get one outside of China. Probably just a bad copy paste on my part.

Can you swap tips on this? If so will it take Hakko tips?

How is the serviceability, i.e. dumping out the hardened sucked up solder, keeping the tip and tube clog free?

I ponied up for a Hakko about 6 months ago. Best investment I've made in equipment, but it definitely hurt the pocket book for a couple months. It's paid for itself multiple times over now. I doubt it's going to fail anytime soon, but I always like to have a backup plan. The one complaint I have with the Hakko is the tip that comes with it clogs pretty easily. Once it's clogged, there is no clearing it without the tip drill...which is a separate purchase.

NoAffinity said:

How is the serviceability, i.e. dumping out the hardened sucked up solder, keeping the tip and tube clog free?

I ponied up for a Hakko about 6 months ago. Best investment I've made in equipment, but it definitely hurt the pocket book for a couple months. It's paid for itself multiple times over now. I doubt it's going to fail anytime soon, but I always like to have a backup plan. The one complaint I have with the Hakko is the tip that comes with it clogs pretty easily. Once it's clogged, there is no clearing it without the tip drill...which is a separate purchase.

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Which Hakko did you get? If you have the FR-300 it comes with a 'pokey' that you can jam through the tip to unclog it if needed, you just have to heat it up first.

Mine is giving me issues though with the pump... still need to look into it.

Yeah mines the fr-300. That pokey is all but useless. It was good for the first couple weeks, but then once it clogged the first time, the drill is needed every time it clogs. I learned it's best to point it toward the sky with the trigger still pulled for a few seconds, as soon as finishing each desolder. That reduces the clogging.

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