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I wish to solder this type of HDMI connector (Datasheet) to matching pads on a PCB:

enter image description here

So half the pins are protruding out into the clear, and that row is easy to solder.

But just behind that row, as you can see, the 2nd parallel row with the other half of the pins are located inaccessibly underneath the body of the connector.

How can I do this soldering job?

  • Using a soldering iron, I wouldn't be able to reach there obviously.

  • Would this require using a hot air gun to apply heat from the underside of the board?

  • Or if I have to use an oven, can I apply solder paste and place the connector as-is on top of the pads? (The connector doesn't have any special thermal-protective tape.)

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  • \$\begingroup\$ Hot air gun or PCB heater only way. And its very tricky without a stencil because the part just goes everywhere except where you want... \$\endgroup\$
    – Piotr Kula
    Sep 17, 2013 at 14:38

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By far the easiest thing to do is simply using a hot plate and a hot air gun. Apply solder paste to the pads (this doesn't need to be very precise, just make sure you don't apply too much). Heat up the board to ~100-150 degrees C on the hot plate, hold the component with thin tweezers (don't use thick pliers, they heatsink too much) and gently use the hot air gun to further heat the part. It will solder very quickly and easily.

If there are heat sensitive (plastic/plastic-wrapped) parts nearby, put some aluminum foil over top of them so they don't get scalded by the hot air gun.

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  • \$\begingroup\$ (One small correction: I am soldering it ON to the board, not off, but the technique applies of course.) Question: Why the hot plate AND the hot air gun? I haven't heard of both of them being used. Is it just to emulate the standard reflow curve stages as best as possible? \$\endgroup\$
    – boardbite
    Sep 17, 2013 at 12:23
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    \$\begingroup\$ "It will come loose very quickly and easily." - The OP seems to be wanting to solder the connector to the board, not take it off. \$\endgroup\$
    – Anindo Ghosh
    Sep 17, 2013 at 12:23
  • \$\begingroup\$ Ha, well, that proves I should start drinking coffee. Yeah, this works just as well to solder things! Just apply solder paste first, then perform this action. This indeed is a way of emulating a typical reflow oven. \$\endgroup\$
    – user36129
    Sep 17, 2013 at 13:12
  • \$\begingroup\$ @boardbite the hotplate is to preheat the board. You could skip that part though. \$\endgroup\$
    – Passerby
    Sep 17, 2013 at 14:26
  • \$\begingroup\$ @user26129, please add the clarification to the answer itself instead of just the comments. \$\endgroup\$
    – travisbartley
    Sep 18, 2013 at 4:45

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