The little rectangle things are capacitors....and very sensitive to static electricity. Some of the components may not be soldered. Sometimes a silver dust impregnated epoxy is used, and can only be removed with heat. (conductive epoxy).

So.. could I take a blow drier, and hold it there for a few minutes, and pry off the stuff I want?

Are those caps worthwhile to remove? There doesn't seem to be much identification on them, so I don't know if they are worthwhile of my keeping.. would they ever really be used? By me, of course.


-justin

You would need to get the epoxy to about 200°C, and not damage the circuit board substrate in the process. Not an easy task, and now you see why warranty work doesn't go to the component level on boards.

To use those caps, you'd need an LCR meter or some such tool to determine what they are. I used to use one to 'match' them to the proper values.

ah, too much work. I'll stick with the standard solder when removing components from old boards. I used a heat gun [1200* F I believe], and I couldn't get the stuff off.

Those small caps aren't worth my time. I tried removing one off a board that was soldered on, and all I did was melt half the damn thing. I'll stick with the cermic disk, and electrolyte caps.


-justin