SDG

[@nrcha]

I am exchanging emails with Nigerian prince. Should be able to get one of these units soon. Fingers crossed!

[@cjh0751]

Looks like a nice unit for professional population of PCB's or someone who works in a repair shop all day.

[@dcallan812]

Nice extractor, I can se this being really useful in desk - lab locations. 👍👍

[@threethousandyen]

I have a 'dumb' KNOKOO extractor and MX-5200 connected to an extension cord with foot switch. I step on that to turn them both on and off at the same time. It's nice their new kit has that kind of functionality built in though.

[@jet613]

Oh man the hand piece usage detection is super cool! I wish I had that with my hakko fa-430.

[@jaro6985]

You could add the functionality with a power saving power bar, can be had for $15. Or a optical interrupter.

[@TheEmbeddedHobbyist]

i have the two port one with the remote green lit stop/start switch, one thing i have found is it can if your not careful eat SMD components. mine sucked up a large opto slot switch and i spent hrs looking on the floor for it. never thought it could suck it up over an inch or so. but this seemed to do 4" or more, 🙂

[@HwAoRrDk]

I'm guessing the filter life indication works based solely off run time. I don't see by what other means they could be doing that (e.g. pressure drop).

[@sdgelectronics]

I came to the same conclusion - I suspect there's not much pressure drop from an expired filter due to solder fumes/particulates. I'll update when it expires, but there's no RFID tag or anything, so technically it should be possible to reuse if you know it's not been used heavily.

[@acoustic61]

Looks like a subwoofer!

[@sdgelectronics]

Definitely a funky design.

[@davadoff]

That Weller zero fog is *not* single speed. It’s very quiet on low. See EEVblog video #1616, May 2024. It’s not obvious but that grey label you can see at 2:38 has a membrane button for changing the speed. Marco reps has a bofa fume extractor. It’s really bloody loud so I guess that one is single speed.

[@ivanr5315]

Just a rant: Regardless of the brand I think fume extractors are really useful from an health perspective and most people doing moderate level of soldering indoor should use one. I have a Purex fume cube but I guess the majority of units manufactured by reputable suppliers will get the job done. Companies like purex, metcal and even jbc supply a specific market segment and it is completely understandable. In most cases the cost of a fume extractor is more than the soldering station so the typical hobbyist will do without one. Maybe if there were some more reasonably priced units more people would actually use one. I tried the small desk fan with filters but that never really worked all that well for me. Maybe something like the MULTICOMP PRO MP740529 is a good compromise between cost and performance however I have never tried it so I cannot comment on its performance.

[@sdgelectronics]

It's a good point, even the basic desktop ones are quite expensive. I will hunt for something more hobbyist friendly.

[@adthelad1]

The biggest challenge with lower cost fume extractors seems to be the fan/pump. Most reputable brands seem to be using large combustion fans which can easily cost £200-£300 on their own before you factor in any filters or housing, etc. I am not sure there is an easy way around this, something like a centrifugal fan is needed to generate the static pressure to pull enough air through any kind of HEPA/Carbon filter. There may be a route to build a DIY extractor by buying replacement HEPA filters from the reputable brands and then combining this with your own centrifugal fan, but I think this is already in the region of £300-400 in parts alone.

[@jaro6985]

@@adthelad1 Quality DIY solution can be made for

[@BucifalulR]

@@jaro6985Any tips for making one? What specs should the inline duct fan have?

[@jaro6985]

@@BucifalulR any good highly rated 4 or 5" duct fan, since peoples noise tolerance varies, something that is speed adjustable. If its designed for grow tent carbon filter use you know it will have enough power. The specs they give are kind of meaningless.

[@yodjisuzuki9033]

thanks

[@SimonAttwood]

Did Metcal give you any indication when the firmware update would be available? Got the CV-5200 and BVX-250 last year and have had multiple emails ignored when I asked about how to get the standby function working

[@sdgelectronics]

It's in the next firmware release I think. Waiting on an estimate for the date.

[@LackofFaithify]

6 months ago, I would have seen this and thought, meh, over priced fancy stuff I don't need. But after getting my Metcal station, I am having to hold my right hand with my left to not go and order it just from my experience with an actual soldering station that works, lol. Seriously though, after seeing what a filter looks like after sucking in some solder fumes, if you don't have a fume extractor and you solder, you need to go get one.

[@adredy]

Nice sound😂

[@electrodacus]

I will agree that is way to noisy. I use no filer as I extract the smoke directly outside (offgird other people around). Since my fan is outside the noise is super low inside. I'm surprised they used that type of centrifugal fan exactly the type used on vacuum cleaner's so high pressure but also high noise. A larger centrifugal cage fan could move the same amount of air at lower speed with less noise.

[@tookitogo]

My guess, as someone with no training in pneumatics, is that the centrifugal fan has a higher static pressure. Really fine filters can require significant pressure to have meaningful airflow. :/

[@electrodacus]

@@tookitogo That airflow is already over the top for what is needed even at low speed. But needed pressure can be solved with a large surface area filter if that was to be the problem. It is nothing more special than any other HEPA filter + carbon filter used for indoor air filtration and most of those are much more quiet and use a much larger centrifugal cage fan. Same as for axial fans the larger the fan the quieter it is for same airflow. This sort of small very high speed fans as used here are normally used in vacuum cleaners where much higher air flow and pressure are needed and noise is not an issue as it is normally not used for extended periods of time.

[@tookitogo]

@@electrodacus And also, vacuum cleaner manufacturers figured out that even though consumers often complain about vacuum cleaner noise, when it actually comes down to choosing them, they associate loudness with power, and power is something they want. So quieter vacuums _with the same performance_ sold more poorly compared to louder models! This is why we can’t have nice things…

[@ampuh214]

because you say that, i build my own fume extractor from a vacuum cleaner. its quite loud but it do the job. ec31-2bb, 2 hepa filter

[@cannesahs]

smaller hole gives higher air speed for same air flow. why your esd mat was visible inside metcal nozze? not connected correctly?

[@jaro6985]

Its a cutout to add a filter to the nozzle, so parts don't get sucked in.

[@Phou1984]

Did the suction power go down if you use two hose?

[@jaro6985]

Yes, physics.

[@jdennee]

$1k for a fan seems extreme

[@tookitogo]

Solder fume extractors (and professional soldering equipment in general, IMHO) are wildly overpriced for what they are. This one doesn’t stick out as being priced more extremely than the competition.

[@unintendedperson]

First