Soldering Techniques

[David LaRoe]

First reply from a person who really knows how to solder!  Carter uses a 15W
heating element while I use a 12W when I can still find them.  In extremes,
when soldering to a ground plane, I might go as high as a 20W element. For
disordering, using a solder sucker is ok but it is a skill operation.
Practice,, practice on surplus parts prior to attempting your first real
board.  Soldering on harnesses is no longer allowed by Mil Spec or NASA.
Too much of a chance of have a cold solder joint or wicking of the inserted
wire.  Acquire a good crimping tool for the  size pins you are using and do
"pull tests" once in a while for your own quality control. ..............
Dave


----- Original Message -----
From: "Carter Shore" <clshore at yahoo.com>
To: <diy_efi at diy-efi.org>
Sent: Wednesday, November 28, 2001 7:22 AM
Subject: Re: Soldering Techniques


> Just some soldering tips (no pun intended)!
>
> 1) Use the smallest iron you can find. My favorite is
> an Antex 15W (yes, 15 watts) with a 0.075" tip. You
> seldom require a larger iron on circuit boards, only
> for large or unusual components, or mounting hardware.
> When your iron is not being used, turn it off. The
> tips are consumable, and melted solder left on the tip
> will dissolve the coating, or turn into dross. The
> small irons warm up in a minute or so, so there's no
> excuse.
>
> 2) Get small guage rosin flux core solder. I use 18
> guage Kester. Larger solder has more thermal mass, and
> so it takes more heat to melt at at the joint.
>
> 3) Keep a moist pad to clean the tip of the iron. A
> small sponge is good, but a damp (not wet) paper
> towel, folded to around 3" x 3" works very well.
> Inspect the tip often, and remove any dull/extra
> solder and debris by wiping lightly with the pad. The
> tip should be shiny before you start to solder each
> joint. Tin the tip as needed (apply a fresh layer of
> solder to the tip by just touching it with the end of
> your solder)
>
> 4) Let the iron do the work. Touch the tip to the pad
> and/or component, maximizing the contact area if
> possible. After about 1-2 seconds, when you see the
> color of the plating on the pad change, touch the end
> of the solder to the joint. As soon as the solder
> melts and starts to flow out, add just enough extra to
> wet the joint fully, without 'blobs'. The best joints
> will show a slightly concave fillet between the
> component and the pad.
>
> 5) *DO NOT* hold the iron to the pad for more than a
> few seconds. The bond between the copper and plastic
> of the board will fail, and the pads and/or traces
> will lift. You can tell from the distinctive smell
> when this happens. If the solder fails to melt and
> flow into the joint, then something is wrong that you
> must correct. Adding too much heat will definitely
> damage your circuit board.
>
> 6) Use a lighted magnifier if you can. You have to be
> able to see what's going on to do a good job.
>
> 7) If you use soldering flux, be *sure* it's rosin
> based, not acid based. You need only a very tiny
> amount, wiped on in a very thin film. A dab on the end
> of your finger is enough for a whole DIY-WB circuit
> board.
>
>
> I hope this helps,
>
> Carter SHore
>
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