Question about reballing GPU chips with a $20 heat gun instead of a real reflow station

Last week I tried reballing a 2011 MacBook Pro GPU with a cheap heat gun from Harbor Freight and cooked the chip in 90 seconds flat, anyone got a reliable budget method that actually works without destroying the board?

2 comments

2 Comments

lisa_jones211d agoTop Commenter

Wait did you use any flux at all before you started? @betty_scott18 mentioned it but I gotta stress that even more - flux is seriously the difference between a clean reball and a destroyed chip. When I first started I thought flux was optional and I was wrong every single time. The cheap heat guns just don't have enough control no matter what you do, like you're basically playing roulette with that board. If you're set on using a budget tool you gotta at least spread the heat by moving the gun in circles and keep it really far back, like 6 inches or more. I learned the hard way that patience matters way more than having fancy gear, but honestly a used hot air station is worth it because you'll mess up way less boards.

betty_scott181d ago

Did you use one of those little pencil tip heat guns or the full size one? I tried the same thing on an old laptop and my results were basically the same as yours, it cooked the chip before I even knew what happened. The problem with those cheap guns is they just blast hot air in one spot and you have no control over the temp. I ended up getting a used hot air station on eBay for like 40 bucks and it made a huge difference. You really need something with a temp dial and a proper nozzle to focus the heat evenly. Also make sure you use flux, that stuff is magic for getting the chip to sit right. I ruined like three boards before I figured out the flux trick.