Aoyue 866 SMD Digital Hot Air Rework Station with Built in Pre-heater

I have been using this unit to rework BGA, CSP and various other tiny components for over a decade. It's by far the best bang for your buck in reworking PCBs and other electronic boards. Preheater is a must in most cases. Top heater is excellent, controlled air flow and precise temperature control. I cannot recommend highly enough. Even comes with spare parts, diff size air nozzles and little tool box to keep everything together. Very happy with this unit, Aoyue seems to be making great hot rework tools.

I did a lot of research before settling on the Aoyue 866 soldering/rework station, and I'm happy with my choice. The re-work area is a good size for the PCBs I work with, and it doesn't take up much room on my bench, although it is a little high when the hot air gun is in its holder.. The hot air gun replaces the diaphragm pumps usually found in other rework stations, with a small fan. I found the fan to be smooth and quiet enough, with quite sufficient heat and airflow for removing ICs. It worked well for the limited amount of re-work that I have used it for to date. The Aoyue "toolbox" that comes with it is small, at only 9-3/4" wide, but it's big enough to keep all the spare tips, nozzles, and heating elements.The only complaint I have is with the 6 PCB holders that go on top of the unit. These are used to clamp the board you're working on over the screen, and you can use the hot air gun while it's in its holder, keeping your hands free. I think it's a good idea, and I could position the hot air nozzle directly over the IC I wanted to remove, and have both hands free. Anyway, my complaint is that the edges of these 6 aluminum bars are very sharp. It's as though they were CNC'd out of a thick sheet of aluminum, but neglected to bevel the edges. When I get some time I can file the edges down, but as they are it would be easy to cut yourself on them. Other than this, so far I'm completely satisfied with this rework station.

Great unit. Temperature control seems spot on. Heats up quickly. Nice assortment of accessories. My complaints: I wish it was possible to remove the air gun from its holder while there is a tip attached. When I received the unit, the hot air gun's blower did not work. Upon opening the main case, I discovered the power for the fan was not plugged in. Easily fixed but this isn't something an end user should have to do.

This is an amazing rework station. I do various electronics repairs, and I can use it to transplant 100 pin+ SMD chips.I have not tried BGAs but I don't see why it won't work.Basically with this rework station, the limit becomes my skill instead of the equipment.As far as temperature accuracy goes, the included optional external sensor is off by quite a bit. For example, room temperature measures as 120 degrees (I believe it is in Celcius). However the temperature setting for the iron is basically irrelevant. Iron not melting solder? Just increase the temperature... On the other hand, the temperature sensor on the pre-heater and hot air gun is quite good. I have it set to 200C for the hot air and 180C for the pre-heater, this melts the solder just fine. Since solder melts at 180C, I guess the temperature is accurate.The only problem I have with it is the poor assembly instructions, basically your best friend is going to be the stock photos on Amazon, just put it together the same way as the picture looks.I was hesitant to buy such a cheap device that promises so much, but honestly it is perfect. If you want to remove chips, get this thing. The chips I've transplanted are up to 2cm x 2cm in size, though I'm sure bigger ones are possible with the correct nozzle.P.S. The vendor, SRA solder, is just as good as Amazon.com.

I bought this a year ago. I have not used it that much, maybe10 times over the past year. I was using the hot air and then BOOOM. Power gone, everything dead. I opened the unit to check and there is no fuse. The transformer is blown, quality is not too good, considering that it blew after ten uses. I doubt there will be any sort of warranty. I will not buy again, build quality is not good either. Go with Hakko, more serious company with better support. I will buy from them a new unit given my problem with this brand.

I purchased this because it looked to have the most bank for the buck and would do everything I wanted to do with soldering. The first unit died shortly after it arrived. After it had been on for awhile it blew the circuit breaker at the main Power Panel in the house. It looked like some of the power wiring to the main transformer was pinched under the transformer and shorted.Amazon is great to purchase from. Went online and filled out the RMA form and ordered a replacement from Amazon. It was delivered the next day (On Saturday). Sent the defective one back and had a refund from Amazon in a couple days.Control functions are very easy to use and nicely laid out. Temperature for the iron, bed, and external temperature sensor were very accurate. Temperature for the hot air gun is a different story. Actual temperature of the hot air is about 200 degrees F. higher than what is displayed on the front panel. Both units I had were off by the same amount, so I think it must have been a design error. I just have to remember to set the hot air to 200 F lower than the desired temp.I still gave it 5 stars because overall I am very pleased with it. Have not had any other problems.

MY AIR GUN FAN DID NOT WORK - SENT BACK FOR THE T870A - SEE MY REVIEW ON THAT WORK STATION.I DON'T TRUST A UNIT THAT CAN'T WORK INITIALLY FROM THE FACTORY.