We wonder if [Carl Bugeja] was looking at a 3D printer’s heated bed when he got the idea to create a PCB reflow heater using a PCB. He tried a quick test to heat up a standard PCB and made it ...

With reflow soldering, sometimes close is good enough. At the end of the day, the home gamer really just needs a hot plate or an old toaster oven and a calibrated Mark I eyeball to get decent results.

The reasons why it’s best, or perhaps not a good idea, to bring your PCB/SMT assembly in-house. How to select the PCB/SMT equipment you’ll need to get started—stencil printer, pick-and-place machine, ...