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Tools & Supplies

Written by

pbanj

in

I’ve been meaning to make this for a while now. I buy cheap tools & supplies from Aliexpress to test. That way I & others can recommend cheap tools & supplies when people ask. So here’s a nice list. I’ll add to this list as I do more.


You’ll See MECHANIC mentioned a lot. They make tools and supplies & the quality is solid. They have a really nice patent policy too. RELIFE is also used a lot. They seem to be a MECHANIC clone but some of their stuff performs better. All Aliexpress links are ones from the app as they tend to work for everyone vs using the .us domain. They’re not affiliate links. They will be the exact listing I bought from or from one of the stores below if the listing is gone. The tariffs made a lot of sellers stop shipping to the us so I wasn’t able to get the exact one for some.

Section Index:

  1. Stores
  2. Desoldering Wick
  3. Flux
  4. Iron Tips
  5. Screwdrivers
  6. Solder
  7. Solder Mask
  8. Misc Tools & Supplies

Stores I regularity buy from on Aliexpress.

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Supplies

Desoldering Wick:

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  • MECHANIC SR20.
    • My personal favorite wick. It performs as good if not better than MG Chemicals, & Chemtronics wick. It comes in a nice little dispenser that you can use as a solder holder afterwards.
  • MECHANIC R350.
    • Cheap wick that works well. Thinner widths have been known to fall apart but I’ve heard they fixed that.

FLUX:

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  • MECHANIC SD360.
    • Works well but not suited for high temp work as it’ll burn. Very Sticky, helps hold parts in place. Cleans up well with a tooth brush & Isopropyl Alcohol unless you’ve burned it. It’ll still clean up but takes a bit longer.
  • MECHANIC Q60.
    • My personal favorite flux. It leaves a protective coating. Great for cleaning up old points. Kind of annoying to clean up, so you don’t want to use a ton. It can expire/go bad. If what you get has any brown in it, return it. Helps solder to a bunch of metals. Not great for BGA work.
  • MECHANIC M35.
    • Wasn’t a fan of this one. Seemed like a worse performing SD360.
  • RELIFE HW11.
    • Works well, cleans up fairly easily. The low smoke claim is fairly accurate. I like it more than SD360.
  • RELIFE F-22/F-22A.
    • Seems to work well. I didn’t use it too much outside of initial testing. It seemed to work as well as the Q60. I’ll update this when I use it more.
  • RELIFE RL-420 RL-421 RL-422.
    • These I got in a 3 pack. Only did some initial testing with them. They all worked well.

Iron Tips:

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  • MECHANIC C210.
    • Cheap & typically accurate. These are typically in my iron. They tend to have a little break in time when first used. Takes about a min max. During this time the temp will be going all over the place. If after a minute it hasn’t stopped, the tips is most likely junk. Once broken in, they’re stable & accurate. They last a good while unless you’re abusive. I’ve had a few D.O.A. & one that just kept going all over the place.
  • Sunshine C210.
    • Somewhat cheap. I’ve tried a few different types of sunshine tips & they’re all kind of meh. Seems to be a lack of QC or something as they are typically D.O.A., horribly inaccurate, & don’t last very long. I’d try & avoid.
  • HZY C210.
    • Cheap & accurate. These are the other tips that are typically in my iron. Don’t seem to have a break in period. They also last a good while unless you’re abusive.
  • OSS Team C210
    • Can’t remember if I’ve actually used these yet. currently giving these a try. The J tip does not handle higher heat well. It bends real easy after about 400c. While it’s bent to hell, it’s still working well.

Solder & Solder Paste:

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Solder Mask:

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  • MECHANIC SU3.
    • Fast curing, holds up well & comes in a bunch of colors. This is part of the purple Solder Mask I make.
  • RELIFE RL-UVH902/*
    • Fast curing, holds up well & comes in a bunch of colors. This is part of the purple solder mask I make. The end of the Part Number is the letter of the color it is. Here’s an alt link for it.

Screwdrivers:

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  • STREBITO Small Screwdriver Set – 39 in 1. Amazon.
    • Has some of the best fitting bits I’ve used. Them being longer helps them reach screws in more systems. Goes for around $12-$15.
  • SHARDEN Precision Screwdriver Set, 60 in 1. Amazon.
    • Bits are double sided which comes in handy, but bits are shorter. The case is magnetic & holds the bits really well. I dropped it & only a couple bits came out. Goes for around $7-$9.
  • 25 in 1 off Aliexpress.
    • Sold all over Aliexpress for $2-3. Handle is plastic, bits are cheap. I’d avoid unless you don’t care if they last past what you needed them for.

Misc Tools & Supplies:

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  • RELIFE RL-062A TubeMate.
    • This is a handheld extruder for 10cc(10ml) tubes. So for flux, thermal paste, solder mask, etc… Great if you have hand issues. There’s also the RELIFE RL-062A Pro but I haven’t tested that one yet. They make one for larger 30cc(ml)-60cc(ml) tubes, RL-062B.They also make one for 3cc(3ml)-5cc(mml) tubes, RL-062C.
  • Kaisi K-2208 TubeMate.
    • Same as the RELIFE RL-062A. They make one for larger 30cc(ml)-60cc(ml) tubes too, K-2209.
  • Mechanic High Temperature Resistant Polyimide Tape, aka Kapton Tape.
    • This is all I use. It’s good for up to 400c before it will start to degrade. The adhesive holds really well & it’s thicker than regular Kapton Tape. I use this to line my PCB heater. Should have a blue core, but I have gotten some with a white core that seems to be the same but I’ve yet to actually test it.
  • SucceBuy SF-808 440lbs Digital Shipping Scale.
    • Cheap & accurate. I use it to weigh stuff I ship, & myself 😄.
  • SucceBuy 48pcs Wall Storage Bins.
    • I paid like $25ish. Quality is pretty solid, better than I expected for the price. Has that fresh out the injection mold smell, goes away fairly quickly.
  • Mechanic IX5 Ultra PCB Heater.
    • The price on this one is all over the place now but is around $22. I haven’t used this, But a good friend loves his.
  • MECHANIC Aax-17 Bent Tweezers.
    • Good tweezers. They’re bent which makes holding components. Don’t use with Q60 or either F22 or f22a. It’ll allow solder to stick to them.
  • MECHANIC S One Tip Cleaner & Refresher.
    • Not exactly the cheapest, but it works extremely well. There will be an example at the bottom.
  • RELIFE RL-067B
    • Little PCB heater that straps onto your iron. It supports all handle types. works great for assembling little PCB for projects. Also works well for heating a targeted area/port.
  • N3DS/XL/LL Friction Connectors.
    • You lifted these didn’t you? Well you can buy new ones if you have the skill & means of replacing them.
  • RP2040-Tiny Clone.
    • Cheap & effective. Not sure why but they remade the page for it it seems. I’ve been ordering from them for a while now. These are great for all sorts of projects.
  • Carbide Scribe “pen”
    • This is a little hidden gem. Makes scraping mask off extremely easy. Requires little to no pressure as the weight is normally enough. It’s pretty smooth vs other methods, & much more accurate than a fiberglass scratch pen. Here’s some examples. Make sure the tip is straight when you get it.

MECHANIC S One tip cleaner example.

Cranked my Pinecil to the max & just stuck it into the plastic, let it sit a bit to burn and then cool. before I used the cleaner as it wants a low temp.
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