Comparing Ersa IR/PL 650 and SV560 rework stations

[LAPSKRFC]

Hi everybody,

Can somebody please compare Ersa IR/PL 650 (or other machines from Ersa) with SV560 rework station? I'm thinking of buying a rework station possibly with the reflow capability but I'm not sure which one to go with. The SV560 does not have reflow capability and will cost about $25k. The one from Ersa costs about $35k-$75k (depending on the machine) and they have reflow capability as well. I'm not sure which one to go with. The smallest components that I need to solder is in the order of 0201.

I very much appreciate all the help,

[mairo]

Ersa are quite good, have worked with theirs BGA rework stations before and can only say positive things about it. Do you really need to get it brand new? I mean, these things if you ask me are way over priced for what they are, it is only because they are specialty items with low sell volumes. Try and see if you can source some from an auction/eBay. A nearly unused less than 2 years old Ersa IR/PL550 sold for less than 5k at an auction. Another Ersa HR600 went for just 2.5k - yes 2.5k, the stupid auction wanted 5k deposit for bidders  ...

In regards to your comparison b/w Ersa IP/PL 650 and SV56 - are you sure you are after the 650 version of Ersa, or the 550? I think Ersa 550 is a better comparison to the SV560 due to theirs max board size that each can handle.

If you are after a smaller boards (what Ersa 550 can handle) then also have a look at Pace IR 3000, you may get better deals new in USA.

[LAPSKRFC]

Thanks a lot for your very useful information. Actually, I'm considering the following three machines and still I'm not able to pick one. Budget-wise I can cover any of them but I just wanna make sure that I'm selecting the right one. I will be soldering SMD components and the smallest components that we may use is 0201.


https://www.kurtzersa.com/electronics-production-equipment/rework-inspection-systems/rework-systems/produkt-details/hr-550-1.html

https://www.finetech.de/products/finetech-product-overview/all-round-hot-air-bga-rework-station-fineplacer-core-plus/

https://www.pcb-repair.com/bga-rework-station/sv560-bga-rework-station/

The boards that I will be placing the components on will be max 20cm*20cm. And I would prefer to be able to place components all over the board.

Could you please let me know if you have any suggestion on this?

I very much appreciate your help with this.

[SMTech]

Frankly they are all expensive enough that they should be able to bring one to your lab/office/factory and let you try it out in person on some real workpieces. At the very least you should be able to take your work to them, nothing beats some first hand experience. You've missed Apex but I presume there are other suitable shows you might be able to see a few at.
In the UK Blakell Europlacer are selling the Seamark ones which are Chinese and there are lots on the usual marketplaces, as far I can tell they mark them up something close to 100% but if they're prepared to shift them they must be at least OK, apparently popular with makers of LED panels that are otherwise basically un-reworkable.

[LAPSKRFC]

Thanks a lot for the useful information

[HalFET]

I'd definitely ask for a demonstration or, if possible, maybe ask to rent one of each for a month and figure out what works best for you? It's not uncommon to do this with some other "small" manufacturing equipment, so the distributor might actually be up for such an arrangement. But I do know that the smaller scale rework tools from ERSA (i.e. the HR 100) can have some reliability problems, though most of them are caused by improper use (like unplugging the device before it has cooled down sufficiently).