Need a small SMT Batch Oven

[ruckus328]

Anyone here have one?  I'm looking at this model that's plastered all over ebay, if it does the job for the price you really can't beat it.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/1500W-T962A-INFRARED-SMD-BGA-IC-HEATER-REFLOW-OVEN-300-320MM-BRAND-NEW-o-/110764347760?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item19ca11d170

Have read some decent things about it, a few negatives (but that's always the case with anything).  If anyone has any other recommendations please let me know.  My budget is $500-$1000.  Something that will do a 12" x 12" panel would be plenty for my needs, mostly just looking to do prototyping, maybe very small production runs of small simple boards.

 

[Rochey]

i've heard and read horrow stories about these ovens.

You may want to consider the humble toaster oven type. I know that companies like Adafruit are still using this kind of hardware for their production runs.

 

 

[ruckus328]

Yea, I heard a few bad things as well, but seen plenty of people saying they work just fine, so I don't know.  Heard horror stories about Toyota brakes not working and people dying too, but the wife drives Yaris and no problems  ;D

I know about the toaster oven method, don't really have time to be DIY'ing something though is the problem, and then time to get things working correctly, there's a whole trial and error there I'd imagine, so was looking for something off the shelf and ready to go, even if that means I have to spend more, it'll pay for itself with what outside vendor proto assembly costs will be.  There's some stuff on amazon as well, looks like the same **** with a different front to me though.........

I can go through the people we use for our in house equipment, takes like 3 months though delivery, which I can't wait, need something here by xmas (that's all right out of china too though).  Really is there anything not out of china these days lol?