Hakko FR-300 Desoldering gun teardown

[djQUAN]

I just myself a Hakko FR-300 from Tequipment and I find it a joy to use.

It works very well and removes solder quick and clean. Parts just fall off the PCB after desoldering.

I had one gripe though. The LED indicator is a blinking red LED indicating if the heater is on but prevents me from knowing at a quick glance if the unit is on or off so I had to modify it. So I took the chance to take pics of the inside of my unit.

My unit on the workbench


Four self tapping screws and two metal thread screws later, the side comes off.


The tip assembly is mounted to the case with fine thread screws (M3) and metal inserts in the case.


A detail of the air pump crank and bearing.


Power cord strain relief and ground screw. It does not ground the case (obviously plastic) but just to connect the power cord ground to the tip assembly. No shakeproof washers on it.


motor is a DC brushed motor with a PCB at the back which contains a FULL BRIDGE RECTIFIER and a capacitive dropper for it to operate at the full 120V mains.


The PCB lifts after removing two screws.


overview of the PCB, it is a single sided load.


The temp and calibration controls use PCB mounted trimmers.


mod detail and a couple more pics here: http://quan-diy.com/misc/hakko_mod/fr300.htm

[GEuser]

Sure is a funny spot for the Led . good pics ! .

[AKM]

Your post motivated me to finally take mine apart and get rid of the small plastic piece that was rattling inside. Thanks!

[djQUAN]

My unit has been pretty reliable so far. I have removed lots of components in a few days I've had it. When I have nothing much to do and there is excess power from the solar off grid system in my workshop, I go and sit there and pop components off scrap PCBs

[GEuser]

djQUAN lucky you to have pcb's to pop off (btw that's also called a rainy day) , i'm in rural part of country and all the places in where i used to get pcb's from (the tip) one cannot even walk past the front gate now , new laws and a change of style and are now called transfer stations , i thought i was the one doing the transfers ha ha ha .

These units FR-300 are a bit pricey for me ATM but as soon as i can or if or able too one will be on the bench , i also looked at the FR-400 and very nice .

Please keep updating for later , like how long tip last , first jam up of solder , cheers ...

[djQUAN]

My PCB collection was from when I was a kid years ago. I plan to discard some to make room in the shop so I remove what can be used and throw away everything else.

It works pretty well, I just needed a small drill (0.8mm) and a holder to clear up the tip once in a while. Besides that and regular clearing of the waste solder canister, it works wonderfully.

I have a box full of loose components now.

The weight and the resistor dropper in the handle makes it pretty warm so it gets a little tiring after a few hours of use.

[GEuser]

My PCB collection was from when I was a kid years ago. I plan to discard some to make room in the shop so I remove what can be used and throw away everything else.

It works pretty well, I just needed a small drill (0.8mm) and a holder to clear up the tip once in a while. Besides that and regular clearing of the waste solder canister, it works wonderfully.

I have a box full of loose components now.

The weight and the resistor dropper in the handle makes it pretty warm so it gets a little tiring after a few hours of use.

With a gadget like that after a few hours i'd imagine a few 1L ice cream containers full so that's not bad imo .
thanks for the OP , and cheeers .

[jayrjoe]

Hello DJQUAN,

Where can you buy a motor for this? my hakko FR-300 just died.
Any idea of the voltage of the motor? My problem is, I have dismantled it months ago and I lost the small board (the one with bridge diode). attached on the back of motor

Thank you so much