[quote author="thomasholley"]I am envious of those that can do the SMD stuff. I am not even sure what 90% of the abreviations stand for and could probably not be able to focus on the pins long enough to solder the damned devices (assuming I could hold the iron steady).
...snip...
For those few of you who can do it, please have at it, but every once in awhile explain what the devil you are doing for the fogeys like me, or maybe a link to some site that can explain it.[/quote]
I'm new to the SMD game so am probably good from a starter's point of view. I have no idea if the way I'm going about it is the "correct" way or not but can only tell you that it works, seems reliable and looks ok.
The good news is that you probably don't need any specialized equipment to get going. I used a Dick Smith $49 soldering station with a 1.6mm tip to do my first boards. The one thing that I would suggest though is to get one of those magnifying lamps with a circular flourescent tube.
The other thing that is handy but you probably already have around is a pair of tweezers, preferably ones that have a locking action either by latching or by reverse action (release and they close). You want them to hold the component steady while soldering. I've seen suggestions that you can hold them in place with solder paste but I don't use that method. I've also seen it suggested that you need to use eutectic Sn 63% solder (solder that has no 'plastic' state) but I'm using regular 60/40 and it seems to work fine.
Keep the components on the tape and in marked bags. You don't want to have to try reading the markings, especially on caps. Tin one pad lightly, grab your component, line it up and reheat the tinned side to tack it down. Go to the opposite side and do a proper soldering job. Then revisit the first side and give it a nice joint.
I laid out a Wackie "VU" circuit for some projects and used 0805 sized components throughout. I couldn't get certain values so some parts ended up getting doubled up and others put in series but even with a home-etch it worked out pretty well. The only thing I didn't use SMDs for were the LEDs and the electrolytic cap.
Here's a pic of the component side with the tip of the iron for scale:
*edited for typos