BGA rework

[gndl00p]

I have watched Louis' video over Should I buy a BGA machine. However, I have a VERY large amount of iphone 6/6s/6+/6s+ touch IC failure and power IC failure coming to my shop. I am out in the west texas oilfields where people can be rough on gear. I have ran the numbers and it seems economically viable to purchase a machine to do this, however I am worried about the reliability and predictability with these repairs. Also if this truly is a direction I would like to go in what is the most appropriate equipment to purchase. I am not a fly by night repair shop, trust me . So my question is should I do this? What do you think? If so is there a gold standard for equipment?

 

[aprendiz]

Just buy a good preheater, a good hot air station and you are done.... You don't need a large BGA machine to work on such small boards

 

[gndl00p]

So what situations would you actually use those for?

 

[aprendiz]

Preheater and hot air station, in any situation for any iphone, large BGA machine only for GPU, Processor, PCH on any laptop or graphic card...

 

[gndl00p]

Last question. You see the semi auto $6k-25k that do just about everything and have the really neat optical alignment tools and then you have the simple infrared systems that just follow a heating profile and leave the rest to you. Are the simple IR stations just as capable of reliably completing a rework as the expensive machines, assuming the operator is qualified?

 

[leonattpcs]

The cheaper bga machines won't be capable enough. For the boards you talk about though, a good hot air station will be fine. By good hot air station, I mean at least a Hakko. I bought a Hakko FR810 then a metcal hct2-120. I have never spent so much on tools, but I use them every single day now and have easily paid for them by now by way of the repairs I wouldn't have been able to complete without them.