Soldering helping hand: the board holds itself, you solder with both hands

Resoldering a battery connector or redoing an IPS screen ribbon cable while holding the board in one hand and the iron in the other is the best way to tear off a trace. This crocodile clip arm sticks to the workbench with its magnetic base and holds whatever position you give it thanks to its flexible gooseneck: the part stays still, both hands stay free.

What it does

• Magnetic base: the magnet holds the arm down on a steel work surface or a metal plate, and it no longer moves during the job.
• Flexible arm: the gooseneck bends by hand and keeps its angle — you bring the part to the iron, not the other way round.
• Crocodile clip: holds a board, a wire to be tinned, a ribbon cable or a connector while the solder cools.
• Independent arms: two clips are enough for a simple joint; the set of 8 lets you hold the board, several wires and the ground at the same time.

What it doesn't do

• It is not a vice or a rigid PCB holder: on a large board, or for prolonged hot air desoldering, a proper board holder remains more stable. The supplier's original title mentions a “PCB board holder” — in this set, it is the clips that hold the board.
• The magnet only grips on a ferrous surface. On a wooden desk, a silicone mat laid flat or an aluminium plate, it won't hold: you need to add a steel plate.
• The clips are bare metal. Clamped too hard, they mark a shell, crush a flexible ribbon cable or nick the solder mask: sleeve them before clamping a fragile part.
• No magnifier, no lighting, no spool holder, no soldering iron: none of these are supplied.
• The supplier states neither the arm length, nor the base diameter, nor the manufacturer. These values remain to be confirmed: we prefer not to make them up.

Compatibility

A generic workshop tool: it does not mount on any console and does not depend on any model. It works on anything that ends up on the workbench — Game Boy, Game Boy Advance, PS1, PS2 and Dreamcast boards, modern handheld consoles, arcade sticks, cable harnesses, USB encoders. As for the surface, it needs something ferrous: a steel workbench, a metal plate, or a soldering mat laid on a steel sheet. It does not stick to wood, aluminium or glass.

Skill level required

No prerequisites for the tool itself: set it down, bend it, clamp. It is the work around it that requires experience. To be bought separately: a temperature-controlled soldering iron, solder, flux, desoldering braid, and a steel plate if your work surface is not magnetic. Adjust the pressure before clamping: on a ribbon cable or a painted shell, it is better to put a piece of heat-shrink tubing in between than bare metal.

In the box

• Set of 2 or 8 magnetic arms with crocodile clips, depending on the variant chosen.
• Each arm combines a magnetic base, a flexible gooseneck and a clip.
• Nothing else: no soldering iron, no base plate, no protective sleeving.

Read before ordering: Console accessories

Delivery in 10 to 18 days · ships within 3 to 5 days · 2-year legal guarantee of conformity · 14-day returns.