1) I really don't mind BGA as long as the pitch isn't too fine and you're using a stencil.
A stencil made the biggest difference for me! I had always tried to save money in the past and just apply paste with a syringe but it's not worth it at all if you have tiny parts.
Once the paste is in place, you can drop tiny parts on quite easily.
Here's what I use for working with tiny parts, including BGA and 0402:
- stencils - they're cheap from oshstencils.com
- high quality fine-point tweezers
- 10x loupe - it's cheap and works very well for inspection
- hot air station - this is a great way to solder everything down without touching
- hot plate - I use this for preheating 6-layer boards to about 200c since they're hard to solder if you have pours
That's it! It's really only a $200-$300 investment for the basic stuff needed to do prototypes in-house.
Here's a time-lapse of me assembling something with BGA and 0402:
+1 for oshstencils; I recently tried their new stainless steel stencils -- very nice! Stiffer than the kapton ones (less oozing underneath) and much more durable.
A stencil made the biggest difference for me! I had always tried to save money in the past and just apply paste with a syringe but it's not worth it at all if you have tiny parts.
Once the paste is in place, you can drop tiny parts on quite easily.
Here's what I use for working with tiny parts, including BGA and 0402:
- stencils - they're cheap from oshstencils.com
- high quality fine-point tweezers
- 10x loupe - it's cheap and works very well for inspection
- hot air station - this is a great way to solder everything down without touching
- hot plate - I use this for preheating 6-layer boards to about 200c since they're hard to solder if you have pours
That's it! It's really only a $200-$300 investment for the basic stuff needed to do prototypes in-house.
Here's a time-lapse of me assembling something with BGA and 0402:
https://vimeo.com/168423683