How to Remove a Component From a PCB - Tron Optical Sensor

I had to remove the Optical Sensor from my Tron Rotary Controller PCB. It was cracked and needed replaced. So I thought I might as well show how I did it. I was told that this component was very hard to remove, so I figured I should take extra care to make sure I can pull it out without damaging the board.

Tools Required:

• Soldering Iron
• New Solder
• “Solder Sucker”
• Desoldering Braid or “solder wick”

The following needs to be done with each pin of the component

1. Flow a slight amount of new solder onto the pin. This will help loosen up the old solder. Don’t put too much on, or it will be drawn down through the PCB hole and lock the component in from the other side.
2. Immediately remove the solder with the solder sucker. This is done by removing the soldering iron from the melted solder over the pin, quickly covering the pin and melted solder with the solder sucker, then pressing the button on the solder sucker. This causes the spring action of the solder sucker to suck all of the melted solder away from the pin. If this is done right (which takes a little practice) then there will be little if any solder left over.
3. Use the soldering iron to hold a small amount of fresh solder wick over the pin to draw out any remaining solder from the pin
4. Finally, GENTLY remove the component. There may still be some sticking of the pin to the contacts, so use the soldering iron to hit any stuck pins until they move freely. This is the toughest part, especially with components like IC’s that have rows of pins and can’t flex.

Here are some pictures that I took:

“Solder Sucker”

“Solder Wick”

Solder Sucker removing solder from hot pin

Using the Solder Wick to remove residual solder from the pin

Close-up of the pins after solder removal

Success! The component has been removed.

Here’s what the component looks like after removal. The pins are in great shape with no damage.