Vacuum pick-up tool for PCB stuffing

[Bassman59]

In his thread about pick-n-place, rx8pilot mentions that he bought a vacuum pen pick-up tool for small SMT parts. A web search turns up a bewildering list of options ranging from $5 to $500.

So what’s a good choice here? A foot pedal for vacuum on/off control seems like something I want.

The parts I deal with are the standard things, QFPs up to 144 pins, QFNs, nothing really tiny (no passives smaller than 0805).

Thanks ...

[rx8pilot]

This is what I have.....essentially a reversed fish tank air pump. It can be had for lower cost if you dig around but I wanted a complete ready to rumble kit.

I purchased a few more tips over time and it easily covers 0201 passives to fairly big inductors.

http://www.techni-tool.com/758SO100

[rx8pilot]

These tips are excellent for 0603 - 1206 or so. Much better than the rubber booted ones. For the really small stuff, I use bent stainless steel 26ga luer lock needles from McMaster Carr.


http://www.techni-tool.com/758SO910

[NorthGuy]

I bought a cheap one. It didn't work. So, I ordered fish tank pump in Amazon and combined it with the pen which came with the pick-up tool.

I don't have a pedal, but I have a tee on the hose and I close the hole with my left hand when I need to pick up something. I was thinking abut voice activated valve instead, may be when I have time ...

[rx8pilot]

Mine just has a hole on the side of the pen. Cover it up and you have vacuum....slide your finger off and the part releases. No buttons or valves.

[KL27x]

The $5.00 vacuum pickup pens are useless, because you have to push a very stiff button a very long way to release the part.

Hakko 394 works well for me. You release a light button to drop the part. The movement need be just enough to break a 3VDC arc. In practice, it works pretty much the same way as how Rx8 uses a pickup station, but for me it is more ergonomic, makes less noise (and only when it's on), and it's cordless. The batteries last me a year or so, and I use it regularly.
https://www.tequipment.net/Hakko394-01.html

If you really wanted, you could put in your own switch for foot or left hand use. You could operate a click switch between your teeth. The nice thing about this pen is when you cut out the motor, the part drops immediately. With aquarium line setup, you have to fiddle a bit more than that; just cutting power will mean the part drops... eventually. You have to either do a big air hole which you cover/uncover with a finger or whatnot - or a combo of some tuned small air hole near the pen and cutting power.

It is great not having another line/hose on the bench. But for me, this isn't a compromise, at all. I've fiddled with the conventional pickup tools and foot pedals and air holes. I did it that way for some months before finding this. For me, there aren't any drawbacks other than changing batteries. AND it's cordless.

[NorthGuy]

Mine just has a hole on the side of the pen. Cover it up and you have vacuum....slide your finger off and the part releases. No buttons or valves.

I'm very clumsy. I cannot place a part and release the hole with the same hand - the release inevitably moves the part away.

[KL27x]

The ergos of the tool are important.

A typical vacuum pen is small diameter plastic tube, or sometimes people use a plastic syringe. There's no weight to it. If you add some metal and bulk it up a bit, it can be a lot more stable.

[Gary.M]

https://www.aliexpress.com/item/QS-2008-Vacuum-Suction-Pump-Pick-and-Place-Vacuum-Pen-for-SMT-SMD-work-bga-repair/32765957311.html?spm=a2g0s.9042311.0.0.19344c4dpNnCKb

https://www.aliexpress.com/item/OOTDTY-AC-250V-10A-Heavy-Duty-Metal-Momentary-Electric-Power-Antislip-Foot-Pedal-Switch/32844421661.html?spm=a2g0s.9042311.0.0.19344c4dpNnCKb

And get some curved tips via Ebay or Aliexpress. I find the paste grabs the part enough that when the vacuum is cut the part stays where you want it.

You could also elaborate on this mechanical system which I am in the process of doing at present....

https://blog.phdev.fr/?p=172&lang=en

[NorthGuy]

You could also elaborate on this mechanical system which I am in the process of doing at present....

https://blog.phdev.fr/?p=172&lang=en

I think this is great little manual PnP machine.

How do you rotate the parts?

[rx8pilot]

Mine just has a hole on the side of the pen. Cover it up and you have vacuum....slide your finger off and the part releases. No buttons or valves.

I'm very clumsy. I cannot place a part and release the hole with the same hand - the release inevitably moves the part away.

It took practice to get this sorted out. I learned that lifting my finger off the hole creates too much movement. Sliding it did not. My body position, chair height, arm angles, grip, etc all play a role when putting down the small stuff. I make a tripod - two points with my elbows and my free hand holds the other steady. I tried the foot switch, but it created much more unwanted movements. That was especially true with a swiveling chair.

The first day I used my vacuum pen, I thought it was a mistake to purchase it.
The second day was somewhat more encouraging.

By the fourth or fifth try, I had learned that my tweezers would rarely come out.
A few years later.....I am really fast and accurate with it. Also, I am not particularly steady or coordinated. I make up for that with good biomechanics.

[asmi]

I use this tool for over a year now: http://www.zeph.com/zt3web.htm
Very happy with it - works with everything down to 0201's (with right tip and a microscope of course)! The cool part about it is the tip - it's made out of somewhat soft material, so whenever I work with small components (0805 and below) the pen "automagically" releases the part when in touches the board, so I don't even need to remove a finder which blocks a hole in the pen. Thanks to this placing small parts is incredibly fast, which is a huge bonus for me as my boards tend to have a lot of small decoupling caps!

[Gary.M]

The pickup pen rotates where your fingers hold it.

I have had some of the parts 3d printed to test the fit before I order the rest. I bought 400mm rails and printed the screw down rail supports as I don't like the stability issues that would arise from the temporary suction cups.

[Dubbie]

Where do you guys get tips small enough to work with 0402? I got a set with my vacuum pen, but they are all much too big.

[rx8pilot]

https://www.mcmaster.com/#75165a26/=1doq0pt

Either 24g or 25g

[Dubbie]

Great thanks rx8pilot

[KL27x]

i need 25 Ga for 0402. The 24 is too big and can suck in the corner of the part. But maybe my tips aren't calibrated as well as McMaster-Carr stuff.

The 25 gauge needle is my goto because it goes down to 0402 and it also picks up 1206 and SOT parts just fine.

26 is where it gets so small that clogs seem to just happen for no reason. I keep an empty syringe around for flushing the tip out with alcohol.

[Dubbie]

Just ordered 100 25G tips from eBay for $8. About 99 more that I need, but that’s less than half of the shipping cost from McMaster.

[Wirehead]

Erem 7SA for 0402 (smaller would even be ok with that tweezer) - No vacuum needed, better control. Best SMD investment -ever-

I only use a reversed aquarium air pump for large things like micro's etc..

[Bassman59]

This is what I have.....essentially a reversed fish tank air pump. It can be had for lower cost if you dig around but I wanted a complete ready to rumble kit.

I purchased a few more tips over time and it easily covers 0201 passives to fairly big inductors.

http://www.techni-tool.com/758SO100

For the record, I ordered the Techni-Tool vacuum pickup thing and head, as well as some tacky flux.

Now I'm just waiting for them to ship the damn things. It was two days of delay because they saw the ship-to address was my day job but they were confused about why it wasn't on our account. And rather than sending email, they called, which you would think is nice, but they're three time zones away so they called me at 5 am. And by the time I returned the call (4 pm my time), their office in Pennsylvania was closed ...

I think my next project will be building a reflow oven from the Whizoo kit.

[KL27x]

About 99 more that I need, but that’s less than half of the shipping cost from McMaster.

Well, they very occasionally work loose, the stainless steel needle from the plastic base. Esp if you flush them with alcohol after accidentally jabbing the tip into paste about a dozen times.  So you might need 3 or 4 in a lifetime. 

On a straight needle, it wouldn't matter. Friction fit is fine. But on a bent needle, you can get spinny spinny.

[rx8pilot]

About 99 more that I need, but that’s less than half of the shipping cost from McMaster.

Well, they very occasionally work loose, the stainless steel needle from the plastic base. Esp if you flush them with alcohol after accidentally jabbing the tip into paste about a dozen times.  So you might need 3 or 4 in a lifetime. 

On a straight needle, it wouldn't matter. Friction fit is fine. But on a bent needle, you can get spinny spinny.

I have clogged a few and damaged a few.....over a number of years. Very glad to have the spares.
The pen I have grips the luer lock rather well - never had a spinning problem. If you are pushing hard enough to spin the bent needle - your part has already shot across the bench 

[nanofrog]

Found a complete Virtual Industries TV-1000 for a song on eBay I couldn't pass up. I still grab my stainless tweezers quite a bit though.

[rx8pilot]

Found a complete Virtual Industries TV-1000 for a song on eBay I couldn't pass up. I still grab my stainless tweezers quite a bit though.

That is the one that I really wanted - excellent you found a bargain on one. $500/new is pretty heavy.

[nanofrog]

Found a complete Virtual Industries TV-1000 for a song on eBay I couldn't pass up. I still grab my stainless tweezers quite a bit though.

That is the one that I really wanted - excellent you found a bargain on one. $500/new is pretty heavy.

I got it for $45.   

Still see them come up for under a $100 with the necessary parts to actually use it though.