[Coco] Desoldering tools

[Salvador Garcia]

Since desoldering was mentioned in the thread titled "I've killed my CoCo", I thought I'd ask about what tools are used to desolder chips.

Ed mentioned that different techniques work for different people, so I am interested in hearing what others have to say.

Lately, I had to desolder a bunch of electrolytic caps (not CoCo related) and I found that it took a while for the solder to melt and release the cap's lead.

In the past, I've used a desoldering pump like this one:

https://www.digikey.com/product-detail/en/17537/243-1184-ND/1992578 

While effective, I found that I needed to press it against the PCB because if I didn't, the "kickback" from the pump action would move the pump away from the PCB, not effectively sucking the solder. Also, I found that for me, this device worked best when I applied the heat on one side of the PCB while pressing the pump's tip to the other side and releasing it when the solder melted. However, this was not always possible and sometimes I found myself having to melt the solder (on the PCB''s solder side) then quickly pressing the pump's tip against the PCB and releasing it. This worked, but rather clumsily. Currently, the pump has seen better days because it no longer locks in position reliably.

When I had to remove the 6809 from my non-functional CoCo 3 I used solder wick. This worked, as evidenced by the silvery finish on the wick, but I have taken too long to remove all the solder and I still have not been able to free all the pins.

I saw a desoldering gun in action at a recent Maker event and was impressed.

I don't desolder often, but when I do, I really need an effective way of doing this. I was looking into buying a desoldering gun, but the prices hover around $150 USD and this is too expensive for me for just occasional use.

I hope other share their experiences and the tools that they use, perhaps recommending specific products.I certainly am interested in learning from others' expriences :-).

Thanks, best wishes, Salvador