PCBs and PCB accessories

Sorry for the lack of blog post this week, I’ve been busy trying to set up a workspace and procure equipment to work with PCBs. I had already bought a toaster oven to use as a reflow oven but I hadn’t been able to operate it since I needed a way to evacuate flux fumes (since I have a rather strong preference to not have flux fumes in my bedroom). I’ve ordered a fan with appropriate diameter, a metal hose, and also steel plates to make an enclosure (sorta like a fume hood) around the toaster oven / hot air station / soldering iron; with the idea that the fan will be able to suck air from the enclosure and blow the air through the hose and eventually, out the window.

I’ve also ordered a “microscope” (actually just a camera that outputs HDMI, let’s hope it doesn’t have too much lag) so I can place 0402’s, a thermocouple (to calibrate the toaster oven), and also bolts / nuts / brackets / drill bit / a hole saw / steel bars to assemble everything together.