Well today i began my first attempts at soldering so i have a few pics of my work. So for you veterans, let a newbie know whats really good.



Thanks John for the site with the soldering info, very informative, hopefully i did it justice.



I have two soldering pens, 25 watt , 700 F, 1/8" tip and a 40 watt, 900 F, 1/4".

Rosin 60/40 (Tin/Lead) Solder (.032" diameter), 8oz spool

Bought a 81 peice assorted terminal set with various connectors, spades and eye thingies.

Also have a desoldering bulb to suck up the excess solder (you can also use a desoldering wick but didnt find any at Radio shack)

Also have a sponge w/holder and a soldering pen holder.



I was playing with 14 gauge wire since thats what i had in my stash.















First 3 attempts (First is far right going to the left)















^^ yes i know about the connectors, not the right type, was just trying to see if i can solder wire to other metal peices

 

LOL, ok this really made my day. The fact that you have a hard hat and a respirator about made me fall out of my chair! You have a badass little setup there though. I'm no where near a pro solder-er, but I used a high dollar multi adjustable soldering iron once, and it worked like a dream. I didn't have to twist the wires around each other, which I'm sure is a fine method. What I'd do is hold the wire to the iron, as the wire heated touch some solder to it, which would sorta infuse itself into the wire. Then do the same thing to the other wire, then touch the two together and heat again with maybe another touch of solder, and done. It would be so strong you couldn't even pull it apart if you tried. A buddy of mine had the equipment and knowledge....he went to sodomy school or something, lol.

 

make the connections like the one in the middle they look good you should be abled to pull on them almost as hard as you can and they should not break other then thae nice job thats the proper way to do things

-james

 

yeah about the hardhat, i work for a construction company so the hardhat, respirator and safety goggles is a must on the job site when im working around mold, lead and asbetos. I didnt wear the hardhat while soldering just the respirator and safety goggles.



Thanks for the input. For the wires i put a lil solder on the tip and touched it to the bottom of the wire. Once the wire got hot enuff i put the solder on the wire and it was drawn towards the heat. The solder spread evenly thru.



I gotta find a better way to hold the wires, any suggestions. As you can see i have the peice of wood on top of the table to elevate one side. I kept burning myself touching the wire after i had soldered it. Kept forgetting it transmitted the heat to the entire wire lol



I want to do soldering on PCB like the cars ecu and stuff, any hints for that. I gotta desolder the joints first before i can resolder. For that i got a 1/8" tip pen so i dont burn surrounding things.



Can i swap tips? from 25watt to 40 watt pen?

 

yeah actually all the connections are very strong mechanically, i wonder if there any good electrically. They must be, if electrical tape works fine my lil soldering jobs must be good too.



I also got heatshrink. Im practicing cuz i gotta install my RB header soon and gotta do my o2 sensor.

 

Get some flux.



The best way to solder two leads together is to "hook solder" them.



First, tin the wires. You strip to the right length (short as possible) without disturbing the lay of the strands or nicking them. Apply flux to the stripped wire, pool plenty of solder to the iron tip, and transfer the solder to the wire in one smooth motion up the bare copper. When your done it should look shiny and wet looking, but you should still be able to see shape of the strands.



Then, forming the hook. Put a proper sized shrink tube on one of the wires. Form the hooks on the tinned wires with a small needle nose. The inner radius of the hooks should be similar to the diameter of the tinned lead.

Put a drop of flux on the joint, you can use the transfer method again or apply solder right to the joint. Dont ball the solder on the hooks, you should be able to clearly identify the two soldered hooks. Clean the flux off the joint with isopropyl alcohol. Then shrink your tubing and your good.



Soldering and de-soldering on a PCB is a different world. You would have to be more specific on what your doing or I would have to write a book on here about the basics.

 

Like the CPU connections for the horn, and other things of that nature.



Doesnt the Rosin core have a flux center?

 

does solder still have lead in it?

 

I know there's lots of different kinds, but I'm pretty darn sure that you can still buy it with lead in it.

 

On the CPU you can just heat and reflow a little solder. Just melt a tiny drop of new solder at the tip of the iron before touching the joints. It makes a heat bridge to instantly melt the old solder without transmitting too much heat to the board.



Rosin and flux work almost the same way, they help the solder flow. But the flux is semi corrosive and cleans up oxidation for a perfect joint. You just need to clean it up afterward.