Basic Tools & Equipment in Electronics
Troubleshooting and repairing electronics requires a good number of specialized tools that are not found in most regular tool kits. It makes little sense to own sensitive diagnostics equipment and application-specific tools if you're not doing electronics repair on a regular basis. If you do plan on going into electronics repair, here are a few tools you should make sure to have on hand.
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High Voltage Probe
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If you plan to do any sort of TV or computer repair work, a high voltage probe is essential. Being able to check for the voltage on various points of a circuit board will help you determine if the board is having trouble and where. Without this tool, diagnostics would be impossible. You would be forced to simply replace circuits arbitrarily until you found the problem. Make sure your choice of voltage probe has more than enough voltage range for the applications in which you'll be using it.
Soldering Iron
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Any sort of electronics repair is likely going to require some soldering work, so having a good soldering iron is necessary for any electronics tool box. Don't pick a soldering iron with too much power because excessive heat can damage delicate circuit boards. Aim for somewhere between 15 watts and 30 watts. Also note the difference between a soldering iron and a soldering gun. Soldering guns are for large projects and lack the pinpoint accuracy of an iron.
Vacuum Placement Tool
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Electronics repair often requires detailed work on very tiny circuit boards with even tinier parts. Their size can make placing parts troublesome; that's where the pen like vacuum placement tool comes in. This mini vacuum has different suction cup attachments and allows you to pick up and place tiny parts without worrying about your fingers getting in the way and bending or breaking important bits.
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References
- Photo Credit multimeter image by Aleksey Bakaleev from Fotolia.com
