I'll also chime in with a plastic stencil source in the usa:

http://www.pololu.com/catalog/product/446

I've used them a number of times, fine work, on time, but I've decided 
that if a stencil is called for, spending another $30-$50 for metal is 
worth it, to try to cut down on tssop bridges.  But it is a cheaper 
option, and one can of course do multiple board designs on one stencil 
and cut apart.

J




Wouter van Ooijen wrote:
>> anyone have any further advice on not-so-mass production that doesn't 
>> involve one at a time connections with an iron?
> 
> I switched from hand-soldering to using plastic stencils ( 
> http://www.smtstencil.co.uk/ ), placement still by hand, and reflow with 
> a IR-bottom-heater plus paint stripper. For second-side-components I use 
> the paint stripper for global pre-heating and a hot-air rework station 
> for the actual soldering.
> 
> Works fine, but hand-placement is still a lot of work (and error-prone). 
> I would love to have a table-top placement machine, but both the price 
> (~ E 12000 2nd-hand) and the size (I don't have much room left) are 
> still killers.
> 
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