Love it or hate it, or somewhere in between, attaching parts to one another via molten solder is an essential skill for electronics assembly. Applying surface mount parts generally involves solder paste, and if you don’t have a stencil, this means squirting small dabs of the stuff over and over on your designated connection points. In order to dispense the appropriate (tiny) amount of solder onto your board, without the fuss of electronic manipulators, Albert van Dalen is offering the Spoty micro-dot solder paste dispenser.
The video below shows a demo of the device in action, dispensing paste for 0603, and even 0201 components, along with a clip of how the device itself is assembled. Use wise, you position the dispensing head over the solder pad, then push paste out mechanically via the trigger lever, similar to how a caulk gun works. It’s a beautiful in its simplicity, and something that should make things much easier than trying to squeeze out just the right amount of solder paste from a syringe unassisted.
For another solder dispensing option, I reviewed the e.Dispenser system here. It’s much more versatile, and even offers vacuum pickup capabilities. At the same time, it’s more expensive and complicated than the Spoty device, so you’ll want to consider which of one best suits your needs.