smd assembling

If you are following my blog, you know that I'm into hand assembling of SMD/SMT components on PCB boards for prototyping or small series. So, I'm always in search of tools to make me more productive by making the job easier or faster.

A month ago, I stumbled upon a China made Pick Up and Place Vacuum Pen for SMT SMD which also came with a 5 way feeder. See the picture below:

The thing is very simple: a motor compressor with adjustable speed with goes into two connectors whose you can attach plastic pipes with a vacuum pen. The pen has different needles and suction pads. I give a complete review in the following video.

Conclusions are that the product seems to be working pretty well. It's capable of sucking up the components pretty effectively and reliably. The presence of various needles and suction pads make it effective even for heavier components. The only thing I'm skeptical about is the need to cover the pen hole with a finger: I think that in long hand assembling sessions this can be tiring for the hand. A part from this, I think I'm quite satisfied by this product.

Also here are some detailed pictures about the product.

The whole product:

5 ways feeder:

Feeder Channels:

Feeder tapes mounting:

Vacuum pens:

Air pump motor:

The original mains plug and the replacement plug for using within Italy:

UPDATE 2011-11-13: according to the product webpage this looks like a 220-250 V AC only device. However, I'm attaching a couple of pictures of the inside, just in case someone wanna hack this into 110V.