Soldering Help

[Dave]

Hello,

I am looking for some soldering advice... I am trying to practive soldering basic components to strip board, LED's, Resistors etc. I place the iron so it is touching the wire and the copper track at the same time then apply the solder to the joint but it just does'nt want to melt. Only way I can get it to melt is put solder directly on the iron tip but then it gets messy. My iron is a Antex XS25 with a pointed tip and i'm using 0.8mm solder. Strip board and component are clean, I have tried filing the iron tip but it does'nt help.

Can anyone offer any advice, I was thinking maybe a flat tip may be worth trying?

Thanks,

Dave.

[Simon (Webmaster)]

Hi

A small flat tip might be worth a try - it gives a bigger contact area to transfer heat to the lead / board. Filing the tip isn't recommeneded anymore, as it removes the iron cladding. If you get a flat tip be sure to apply solder to 'wet' it as it heats for the first time, and after each use before you unplug the iron to protect it until it is next used.

When you get it right you should be able to apply the solder within a second of applying the tip. As you probably know a good joint should have a crate-like appearence.

Hope this helps, let me know if you have no luck.

[Dave]

Hi,

Thanks for the reply, i'm still not having much luck. When I try to tin the iron the solder just goes into little balls and wont stick. I will try to get a new tip and try that.

Thanks.

Dave

[Simon (Webmaster)]

Definately sounds like the tip is the problem. I've never got on terribly well with pointed tips - thinking about it I think I have the same iron as you and I got a flat tip for it for much the same reason.

Also when you do get a flat tip put the flat face against the component lead (with the edge of the tip against the board). The heat sould transfer quickly. The iron you have is certainly powerful enough - in fact I have a smaller one as well as I found it was a bit large for fiddly jobs so this shouldn't be a problem.

[andyamos]

Hi all,

I am new to this forum and have actually made my first topic on the site. Reading through some of the topics, I came across this one and remembered a really good site I had been told about by a work mate that explained the basics of soldering.

His site, where he actually has some electronics projects of his own can be found at:
http://www.brokentoaster.com/butterflymp3/index.html

On the site he details some of his work, one being a rather clever little home made MP3 player. I have had a look at it and have been truly inspired. So much so that I have decided to get back into electronics. I studied electronics at Bristol University, but having no practical experience since graduating would have to unfortunately admit there is very little I remember from those lecture theatres. With the help of sites like this and my curiousity, I hope to regain my interest and share with you my experiences. So talking about sharing, here is that link I promised...

The soldering How-To is http://www.curiousinventor.com/guides/How_To_Solder

I hope this helps.

Good luck and happy soldering.

[Dave]

Definately sounds like the tip is the problem. I've never got on terribly well with pointed tips - thinking about it I think I have the same iron as you and I got a flat tip for it for much the same reason.

Also when you do get a flat tip put the flat face against the component lead (with the edge of the tip against the board). The heat sould transfer quickly. The iron you have is certainly powerful enough - in fact I have a smaller one as well as I found it was a bit large for fiddly jobs so this shouldn't be a problem.

Yes, it appears it is the tip. I am going to get a small flat tip for it and make sure I look after it properly.

andyamos... that website on soldering is excellent thanks. I have studied electronics aswell a few years ago, unfortunately all the big electronics companies in this area had closed making employment almost impossible. I am just getting interested again from a hobby point of view, just trying to gather all the tools again!

[geriatric]

I find that working small, eg on stripboards that the main problem is lead free solder. The old solder works great on any bit

[Hughes909]

you must have to use the soldering solution to fix! sholdering iron is an art.

[nigelwright7557]

But you should have the soldering tip tinned to solder properly.

Put a little solder on the tip first.
Then solder the joint by touching lead and copper and applying solder.

The only other problem might be a dirty tip.