problems with soldering

[t-maxxracer32]

hey well idk where to put this but i suck at soldering lol. idk if its the solder i have ro what but im using this really old weller soldering iron and it heats it up fine but the solder just wont stick!! im using some offbrand solder i think (has no label) lmk what kinda solder i can use and if i can buy it at lowes or something.

thanks!

[GorillaMaxx360]

any kink works good that is small. I am not a pro at sodering but when i do soder i uses the really thin sodering for small wires and the thicker stuff (ehich as thick as pencil lead) for bigger wires seems to work for me but i might be using the wrong stuff and i dont even know it. It to have a plug in off brand sodering gun i like the plug in ones more than the gas cuz the gas runs out and the only disadvantage with the plug ins is the warm up time and i dont mind waiting but any sodering gun and anything between .5mm to like 3mm should be fine at least it works for me.

[t-maxxracer32]

well today is my first day trying lol so i guess that might have somethuing to do about it... haha


ima just keep going i guess! my main question was to make sure there isnt an offbrand solder!

[GorillaMaxx360]

i dont quite understand about the offbrand soder mabey someone else can help you with that. but good luck on sodering dont give up or get frustrated keep trying i have had about 3 hours sodering time behinde me and i am still not great but practice make perfect.

[t-maxxracer32]

im hittin 2 min right now! lol ill give it more time this weekend! my mamba is out to be fixed to i got time to do some projects (lexan chassis =D)

[glassdoctor]

To make things easier, you need to use an "electrical" rosin core solder. There are some different mixes... but basic 60/40 works well. But make sure it's rosin core.

Radio Shack brand 60/40 is good stuff, and easy to find. I would buy that before something from Lowes... but if it's marketed as "for electronics" it's probably fine.

You can also pick up a can or tube of flux paste to help even more when the solder isn't sticking like you want. You can get this at Lowes or Radio Shack, etc...

Tin the hot iron with a bit of solder each time before you do a wire, etc and that helps too. The bit of hot solder helps transfer the heat from the iron efficiently to whatever you are working on. Try using a "dry" tip vs a "wet" tip and see how long it takes to melt a soldered joint and you will see how much better a wet tip works.

[BrianG]

Maybe it's obvious, but DO NOT use acid core solder!! :)

[glassdoctor]

Yeah, I meant to say that too :)

In general I prefer not to buy from the plumbing dept also (except for the paste flux) .... just doesn't seem right.

[Tom F]

I don't think it's a solder problem...what wattage is the iron?

For solderring connectors and stuff it's best to have a 40W+ iron, an 18W PCB iron will just heat everything up rather than letting the solder flow.

Everything needs to be properly hot for the solder to stick.

Is everything clean? (Tips, surfaces etc...)

[t-maxxracer32]

well its a fairly old soldring iron. but i heard its a very good one. its a weller... if anyone know what that is. i will head over to radio shack and pick some of that stuff up! hopeflly it helps lol cause i think somethin has to be wrong.

[BrianG]

I just read this thread, and am wondering if the problem is simply the method of soldering. You said the solder doesn't "stick". If you are using the right solder, the only problems I can think of is that 1) you are trying to heat the solder and drop it on the connection, or 2) there is a varnish layer on whatever you are soldering, or 3) you don't have enough heat for the job, or 4) your tip is heavily oxidized.

When soldering, you have to heat the items being soldered and let the solder flow into the connection.

If there is a varnish layer, the solder will not stick to it. Use an Exacto knife and scrape off the layer until you get to the bare metals.

It sounds like you have a decent iron - at least decent enough to do the job. I use a 40W Weller and it works fine, but it's a little small for soldering heavy gauge wire or other jobs where there is a lot of metal to solder. Heavy wires/traces/connectors act like heat sinks so you need a thicker tip so it doesn't shed it's heat as fast.

As you use your iron, the tip will get oxidized and turn black. You should have a damp sponge handy to wipe the tip off. You have to keep it clean or you won't have good heat transfer. You can use flux to help with this.

Also, when you get a new iron or tip, you should burn-in the tip. This is a process where you just heat it up and put solder on the end and let it coat the tip. Wipe it on the sponge every so often and re-tin.

Deans solder + hot iron (I use 320watt, but a hot 40 will work), and its easy. Solder is major part of it.

[t-maxxracer32]

o lol ya i just try to drop it on... hahah didnt know any of that other stuf... work rigth now ill read your whole thing brian. thanks!

[pinolelst]

Originally Posted by t-maxxracer32

o lol ya i just try to drop it on... hahah didnt know any of that other stuf... work rigth now ill read your whole thing brian. thanks!

You have to make sure the receiving surface is clean and hot enough to let the solder flow across the surface but not so hot as to damage anything else surrounding it.for instance when soldering deans connectors only heat the metal part long enough to see the solder flow onto the surface...use heatsinks or another matching deans plug as one to help keep the connectors from heating the plastic too much.
Tin all the surfaces first...wire ends...connector blades..battery ends..whatever and let them cool,then when you reheat it to solder the wires on all you have to heat is the solder which will keep everything else cooler.when soldering nickel cells I always run the dremel across the ends to brighten up the metal and facilitate good flow of the solder.
All this is for anything we generally use except for aluminum lipo tabs..for those I've been told we need special aluminum flux for the joint.


hope this helps

pinolelst

Soldering is an art that only gets better with experience.

Make sure you have atleast rosin core solder, an iron that gets hot enough (40W or more), and a number of different sized tips depending on the soldering job.

When soldering heavy gauge wiring or round cell packs you will want to use a thick solder tip. Smaller jobs are easier with a smaller tip. If your tip is too small for the job, heat will not sink to the object being soldered fast enough. The result is that you will have to hold the iron on the object for a long time causing everything to heat up excessively. This is often a bad thing.

I bought some aluminium flux a while ago to solder Lipo packs and I've since found that the same flux works wonderfully on all soldering jobs. It makes soldering to anything very very easy. Chrome, nickel, aluminium, etc. I highly recommend getting some even if you're not soldering aluminium.