tough to remove components

[analog kid]

I have a synth unit that I am trying to replace a slide switch in that had just fallen apart. The switch is 3 position and is the type with two larger 'body' ground lugs on the outer edges and there are 5 pins soldered into the PCB. I  found a two position switch that's almost the same desiign except for 6 pins rather than 5  but it looks like it'll fit, how it will work is another question .
My PROBLEM at the moment though is getting the old switch legs out of the pcb. I just had to cut the switch body away from the legs to get those outer grounds off (much like you would with an opamp) and now am left with the 5 pins still in the board. I have desolder braided these things to death trying to get them loose and now I've made the mistake of cutting the legs completely down to the board on both sides!, leaving no way to even get pliers onto them and pulling while applying heat.
Does anyone here have experience with a situation like this and have some solutions to offer up??? I knew that a pcb mounted switch like  that would be hard to remove from the get go ... but never dreamed I'd run into this trouble.
: Is it ever acceptable (or recommended)to "RE" Drill out the pad/holes in a pcb with very carefully selected and small size drill bit) in a situation such as this?? with the legs still in there I wasn't sure if that might not  hurt more than helping? I don't know how much more heat I wanna have to put on these traces but I don't have much choice cause I can't turn it around now!!
thanks for any suggestions

[MartyMart]

Do you have one of those "solder suckers" ? thats the only way to get globs of solder off, in particular when pads are on "both sides" of the board.
Get your iron nice and hot, with a clean "tinned" tip, then when the solder is "flowing" ( 3-4 seconds ) use the sucker to get it off, solder braid wont lift that much off and is sometimes hard to get right where you want it !
If its still a problem, you could try a 1mm drill, just be VERY careful

Marty.

[loscha]

For things when I'm trying to get really clean, I use Desoldering braid, aka wick.
It's a copper woven tape, with some chemicals on assist moltern solder to be drawn into the braid by osmosis, the same as water is taken from your body after you bathe into a towel.

Some jobs needs the pump, some want the wick, there is even limited place for the "heat and tap" -- get your iron as hot as possible, heat up the board and bash it onto the bench, but, that's only if you're stripping the board.

what synth you working on?

[analog kid]

I'm afraid my problem is a bit more of a tough one than just doing that. I have braided and solder sucked the pins to death! as I said. There really IS NO solder globs on either side of these pins. which are VERY small by the way. There just isn't enought to get hold of to heat and pull or to really even lay the braid down to try and remove whatever is remaining on them.  I am afraid that even when totally clean of solder at the tops of the pins that they likely STILL won't just come right out! and there's nothing to grab to work them . this is why Im getting worried I have ruined the thing by even taking the broken switch off the way I did. 'and at least it was working in that one posistion that it was broken off in!!
it's a Yamaha , I know nothing of keyboard players toys

[O]

Do you have those "dental picks" that come with the RatShack soldering kits? I kinda made my own. All you need is a 3/8 wood dowel, a thumbtack (the ones with the plastic body), soldering iron, and a set of small pliers.

-Get the thumbtack and poke a hole in the center of the dowel. Don't make the hole too deep.
-Heat up the metal part of the thumbtack to separate it from the plastic body.
-Get the small pliers and push the square/blunt end of the metal part of the thumbtack into the dowel using the hole you poked earlier.
-You can use some wood glue or epoxy to glue the metal part of the thumbtack in the dowel.

Once you have your DIY dental pick, heat up the board and just push the part out of the way from the opposite side.

Code Select Expand



               |  |        <-- DIY dental pick
                \/                
================|[]|=======  <-- pcb
                /\
               /  \          <-- soldering iron  
              |    |
              |    |
               


the pointy thumbtack is small enough to push through most PCBs without tearing out the pad.

[Torchy]

crp

[Paul Perry (Frostwave)]

Zero is right, those stainless steel dental picks are the go.
It feels counterintuitive to add solder before usign them, but the idea is, the solder you add conducts the heat to the solder holdign the parts in.
And once the part is out, leave the pick pushed in as the solder cools, so you still have a hole (if you pull the pick out before the solder solidifies, it fills the hole).
And yes, you probably have wrecked the thru-hole plating by now :x  :cry: jusdt check when you replace the switch, that everythign still connects as it should on both sides.

[guitarmonky55]

i personally would just try to find a little needle orsomethign.  crank the soldering iron up, put it as close to the pins as possible and start trying to push it out.  the copper pad that the pins were soldered too should conduct the heat and loosen the remaining solder thats holding the pins in to allow you to poke it out.

[analog kid]

I was just afraid if it took that much heat to get them to come loose it  would be a slow death for the pcb,which by the way is strange..it's really thick with the "green" coating on both the top and bottom. when using the  Pick technique do you need to pick a tool that is skinny enough to go all the way through the board.? I assume so. I have some sharp attachments that came with my Xacto knife kit but none are thin enough for the whole length.   25watts probably just isn't enough heat to get these things moving is it.?? I tried putting a blunt object on the switch side of the remainging legs before and pushing against the board while appluying heat and they did move out a bit and you could hear the leg screech against the inside of the hole they're in there so tight!!
Anyway you need to apply heat at one side and insert thepick in the other and try to push out right?? It may be difficult to get the pick on top of the legs as there's just enough of a nub sticking out to offset the pick when applying it And they are super tight , close together!!
but I'll try to procure a tool for this job. THIS THING DOESN"T BELONG TO ME that I'm so worried about not being able to get the switch in that I'm almost ready to just try and solder short leads to all the proper pads and FIX a switch to the top of the board!! that'd be pretty...