Made a major stride in soldering

[Jedi Master Thrash]

This is in reference to my previous threads about the trouble I was having soldering:

http://forums.segaxtreme.net/index.php?showtopic=14192

My friend who's also done some conosle modding visited this christmas, and I had him check out my soldering to see if he could see what's going wrong. He said the tip on my soldering iron looked corroded. He couldn't get solder to melt with it either. So apparently it wasn't my skillz that were the problem, it was the iron.

He suggested getting new tips, though they sometimes cost just as much as a new iron. I got my iron at radio shack, becuase it's the only B&M place I know of that sells electronics supplies. So it's just radio shack brand. I read all the websites always recommend some specific brand... Weber or something? And you can only get it on-line. So I figured I might try a better iron.

But I thought maybe I could clean off the tip. I found some "sandpaper for metal" out in the garage my wife uses (she has a blow-torch and a big-arse soldering iron and makes jewelry and stuff), so I sanded down my soldering iron tip (I assume this is bad for it, but since I needed a new one anyway, it couldn't hurt). The silvery coating sanded away and it was coppery colored undneath.

So, I tried soldering again with my shiney new sanded-down tip, and to my suprise, it works now! I can melt solder on the tip without problems, and I can even melt solder on a wire the tip is touching (the way it's supposed to be done).

I had originally been using some silver-bearing solder before I bought some rosin-core stuff. My wife had also been using some tin-lead 50/50 and lead-free thick solders with my iron trying to solder copper foil. I wonder if any of these things may have been responsible for corroding my tip?

Thanks,

JMT.

 

[Scared0o0Rabbit]

first of all, the lead free solder is some of the worst solder you can buy from an ease of use standpoint. I had a radio shack soldering iron do the same thing though and used the same tactic to bring it back to life. I've since switched to a nicer one (the brand escapes me at the moment) but it's a lot nicer.

Just make sure you clean the tip after and while you solder and don't leave the soldering iron on for a long time without using it and you should stay in pretty decent shape.

 

[tp221]

I have a radio shack soldering iron too. The tip on it was kind of too large for small electronics, and after going through the same trouble to get a smaller part for it, I found one in radio shack of all places, for around $3.00. The tip is small, andthe point is much longer and narrower. The labelling says it is meant for a 15 watt model iron though, so it isn't easy to find if you own, a 30 watt say, because then radio shack will probably tell you they have nothing for that model(which is what happened to me). These are actually Nextech brand by the way, cause in winnipeg, canada the radio shacks are now called 'The Source By Circuit City' and all the stock is branded 'Nexxtech'. but it fits any generic 30 watt non-Weller iron. Ie., anything from Wal Mart, RS, or even Home Depot if they have a cheaper model. They all have a screw type thread for the tips, and this one i described is the only alternate size I've ever seen, apart from the original 30 watt tip which RS usually has.

I had similar trouble with wrong solder type too, and I definately break out sandpaper to clean the tip often, because I read that the solder can also make poorer joints when dirt and burnt junk get mixed in.

 

[ExCyber]

Originally posted by Jedi Master Thrash

I sanded down my soldering iron tip (I assume this is bad for it, but since I needed a new one anyway, it couldn't hurt)

For future reference, it is bad. The tips are plated with something (nickel?) to resist corrosion. Generally the best things you can do to prevent corrosion are to regularly clean the iron while using it and after you finish, and when you finally finish cleaning leave a light coat of solder on it.