ENGINEEREngineer Solder Suction Device SS-03

I like how fast this little sucker works very quickly, fits in palm of your hand, the comfort is ok as well. The durabiity hasn't let me down yet when it comes to getting the solder of whatever i am working on. The price is ok, not to high neither, and finally when it sucks up the solder, it doesn't get hot in hands holding it.

The SS-02 is peak-engineering and design realized.It saves time, effort, & yields better results than the cheaper alternatives.I really only regret not buying this sooner. Desoldering ~65 switches with a cheap-o solder-sucker resulted in 3 or 4 instances of binding and needing to stop, open, & clean the tube. it took forever.Whereas, when using the SS-02 for an even larger amount of switches to desolder: i was able to work uninterrupted by tool maintenance and cleaning. The work became enjoyable! My attached photo is the end result of non-stop desoldering with no interruptions needed for cleaning or unbinding - though i did so afterwards to protect it from neglect.The only area for improvement i can think of is with the silicon tip - which i place directly on the ~350°C soldering tip when desoldering (a debated practice, from what i've researched): after doing this a few dozen times the silicon tip does show wear and functional degradation; though this is easily remedied by rotating the tip 180° &or flipping the silicon to it's unused side. You can do this 4 times per sectioned tip, so it'll still be a long time before i need to shop for silicon tubing.But I think this tool is an example of what peak-engineering and craftsmanship looks like and it would be easy to take it for granted had i not suffered through the less costly alternatives.An easy add to my short list of favorite tools for electrical work.

This tool works! It feels solid and is great for the occasional use. The compact size takes a bit to get used to but once you start using it, it's fine. I used it to clear a variety of holes from standard 0.1" header holes, 0.2mm pitch header holes, and USB Type A connector through holes. The silicone tip does seem to help create a good seal and helps to clear the holes.Cons - Found two issues, 1) the solder gets stuck in the silicone tube. This requires you to have to pull it off, clear it with tweezers, and put it back on. This is why I said it is good for occasional use only. I think if the silicone tube were specially formed to match the tip diameter this would be less of an issue, however, the silicone tube fits over the tip of the solder sucker and create a lip/ledge where solder can accumulate and get stuck.2) Related, when you eject the solder nugget, the plunger doesn't come down into the silicone tube so it can't eject material from that area. I've also had the plunger get jammed and had to disassemble the unit to clear it.Over all I think it is a great tool to have on the bench, but if you are doing rework all the time and needing a solder sucker, this will have some short comings. If you mostly do SMT work and only need an occasional through hole cleared, this is a very good product.The review asked me to rate ease of use. I gave this 3 stars because of the issues mentioned above as well as the fact that the body is overly compact making it slightly hard to handle. It also asked me to rate "sheerness". As I have no idea what they are asking me to rate, I gave this 0 stars.

This thing works great, will last you a long time, and is accurate as all get out. It’s a little more expensive than some but is completely worth it. It feels great in the hand and is easy to use.

This is a nice middle ground unit between a cheap desoldering blub (squeeze bulb) and a much more expensive desoldering iron. If you want something more effective then a clumsy bulb, which is bulbus, wiggles as you squeeze it, and has weak suction, but can't justify the cost of a real desoldering iron, this is perfect. It is slim, easy to use, fast, and it really works. It is made of aluminum (not plastic) and is not made in China! A rarity these days. The packaging clearly states it is made in Japan and, based on the quality (and the Japanese all over the packaging), I believe it.As others have stated it is not perfect. If you are removing a lot of solder it will 'fill up' fairly quickly. Ejecting the solder is normally a simple task of depressing the plunger fully and pulling away or knocking off what comes out. I've gotten proficient at doing this with one hand. That said, the solder sometimes forms into long, stringy chunks that get caught in the unit. When this happens you have to unscrew it to fully clean it. Not a huge deal but it does happen. If you are desoldering a lot of stuff, like recycling the components from circuit boards a lot, then you should probably invest in a real desoldering tool. For someone like me, that is just noodling around on small projects and hasn't yet mastered the art of soldering it is perfect. It allows me to clean up and fix my happy little accidents with less frustration then the bulb I was previously using.

I normally used a solder wick and steered clear of these since solder suckers usually did not do a good job. But then there is this thing. It has changed my view on solder suckers. I reach for this instead of my solder wick now. The many things that sets it apart is the silicone hose for the tip. This allows you to put it over the molten solder and soldering tip for a better suction. The thing also just seems really well designed, almost over-engineered, but I won't complain about!Very happy with this tool. There is also a nice Gridfinity holder available for it out there that you can 3D print and can make it fit nicely in a Gridfinity workbench organizer, which is a plus too.