Soldering Tragedy

[jdbailey1206]

Having been jelly of everyone on here that could solder I decided to give it a go last week.  As I had mentioned in my Fix It Felix build I ended up accidentally busting the male usb head off of the Minimus 32k AVR.  Feeling froggy I ordered 4 male usb heads from digikey.com and got to work.  It was ugly.  I ended up burning up the Minimus 32k AVR and barely got any solder to hold.  And that was just in the hooks connecting the head to the AVR.   

I have two questions.  Most of the area on my soldering tip was not hot.  Does this mean that the iron itself is bad?  I can understand if it is because I got the iron in a cheap kit from Comp USA 15 years ago.  And if my iron is bad can anyone recommend a good one for a newb?

My next question follows:  Does anyone know of anywhere I can get trained in soldering?  I tried the youtube videos but they get me no where.  Just some dude flying through soldering in under a minute repeating "It's just that easy."

Thanks for the help.

I feel like I just wrote a Dear Abbey letter.  I should have titled it Sadness in Soldering.   

[pbj]

Just a couple of tips... sand or scuff up the area on the board you're soldering to make sure you've gotten any clear protective layers off of it.  Melt some new solder onto the old solder before you attempt to bond anything.  It'll help the old stuff melt easier and lessen the time you spend heating the area up.

Make sure you're using rosin core solder, too:

http://www.radioshack.com/product/index.jsp?productId=2062715

[drventure]

Also, depending on the material you're soldering, you might need some flux (you can get it at any radio shack). Rosin core solder helps a lot, but sometimes, I've found I just have to use flux as well.

As for what's flux, its this jelly looking stuff that you dab onto the area you're about to solder, then put the solder and gun to the spot. The flux helps the solder stick better, quicker, so you don't overheat the spot.

[Nephasth]

Cheap tools are like cheap tattoos...

[05SRT4]

+1 for using Flux, I hated to solder until I learned about flux. It makes soldering easier everything starts to melt and stick together like it should.

[Nephasth]

I've never used flux. I use rosin core lead solder and set my station to 400℃. This heats ---steaming pile of meadow muffin--- up quick, and helps me work faster.

[yotsuya]

Cheap tools are like cheap tattoos...

^^^

Buy this and you'll never look back.

[HaRuMaN]

Meh, my cheapy 15W Radio Shack soldering iron is still going strong, and I use it all the time.  Save your money.  It's more technique than it is a $100 iron.

[Nephasth]

It's like sex without out a condom, once you've tried temp control, you never want to wear another one.

[404]

Having been jelly of everyone on here that could solder I decided to give it a go last week.  As I had mentioned in my Fix It Felix build I ended up accidentally busting the male usb head off of the Minimus 32k AVR.  Feeling froggy I ordered 4 male usb heads from digikey.com and got to work.  It was ugly.  I ended up burning up the Minimus 32k AVR and barely got any solder to hold.  And that was just in the hooks connecting the head to the AVR.   

I have two questions.  Most of the area on my soldering tip was not hot.  Does this mean that the iron itself is bad?  I can understand if it is because I got the iron in a cheap kit from Comp USA 15 years ago.  And if my iron is bad can anyone recommend a good one for a newb?

My next question follows:  Does anyone know of anywhere I can get trained in soldering?  I tried the youtube videos but they get me no where.  Just some dude flying through soldering in under a minute repeating "It's just that easy."

Thanks for the help.

I feel like I just wrote a Dear Abbey letter.  I should have titled it Sadness in Soldering.   

I have usb headers here and offered twice to fix the minimus for you free of charge and pay return shipping. 

Meh, my cheapy 15W Radio Shack soldering iron is still going strong, and I use it all the time.  Save your money.  It's more technique than it is a $100 iron.

yes. I think tools can only take you so far.

I've been soldering since i was about 8 years old and have done everything from soldering, desoldering, burning myself, getting shocked, causing massive short circuits etc. There is no replacement for experience IMO.



Best thing you can do is find some dead electronics and gut them. Practice on those boards. Start with soldering some junk wires on large vias and posts and then work from there to soldering to small exposed vias, fixing traces, solder smd legs etc in that order.

As many have said, get yourself some flux. Flux can be your best friend or worst enemy. Sometimes adding too much flux creates too much flow in small areas and will flow solder right over multiple pads causing a short. This all comes with practice.

[yotsuya]

Meh, my cheapy 15W Radio Shack soldering iron is still going strong, and I use it all the time.  Save your money.  It's more technique than it is a $100 iron.

I suppose the SUPREME SOLDER KING can make do with whatever, but an 888-D is the best thing for us mere mortals.

[Louis Tully]

.

[jennifer]

    Those R/S cheapies are what I learned with and they do withstand a lot of abuse up to and including throwing them in a fit of "Soldering sucks" rage... Practice is the only way to get good @ it, get a old radio or something, and burn some wire.

[jdbailey1206]

Just a couple of tips... sand or scuff up the area on the board you're soldering to make sure you've gotten any clear protective layers off of it.  Melt some new solder onto the old solder before you attempt to bond anything.  It'll help the old stuff melt easier and lessen the time you spend heating the area up.

Make sure you're using rosin core solder, too:

http://www.radioshack.com/product/index.jsp?productId=2062715

From what little I have soldered I have found the rosin core works a lot better.  My only other experience with soldering was having to solder resistor onto wires for GGG's Coin pushbuttons.

Also, depending on the material you're soldering, you might need some flux (you can get it at any radio shack). Rosin core solder helps a lot, but sometimes, I've found I just have to use flux as well.

As for what's flux, its this jelly looking stuff that you dab onto the area you're about to solder, then put the solder and gun to the spot. The flux helps the solder stick better, quicker, so you don't overheat the spot.

I know I have some flux lying around but in my haste I didn't use it.  I've heard both sides but if it helps me create a better solder I think I'm going to try it next time.

Cheap tools are like cheap tattoos...

I really think in the end I have a ---smurfy--- soldering iron Nephasth.  My wife is the only one with tattoos but she goes to one person, pays a hefty price, but he does some of the best work I have seen.  Ever.  I never pay for cheap tools but this was the only soldering iron I had so I think I am going to go with yotsuya's advice and get a nice one.

Cheap tools are like cheap tattoos...

^^^

Buy this and you'll never look back.

That is a nice looking set up.  Weller has a nice one that is comparable.  Guess I just have to bite the bullet.

Having been jelly of everyone on here that could solder I decided to give it a go last week.  As I had mentioned in my Fix It Felix build I ended up accidentally busting the male usb head off of the Minimus 32k AVR.  Feeling froggy I ordered 4 male usb heads from digikey.com and got to work.  It was ugly.  I ended up burning up the Minimus 32k AVR and barely got any solder to hold.  And that was just in the hooks connecting the head to the AVR.   

I have two questions.  Most of the area on my soldering tip was not hot.  Does this mean that the iron itself is bad?  I can understand if it is because I got the iron in a cheap kit from Comp USA 15 years ago.  And if my iron is bad can anyone recommend a good one for a newb?

My next question follows:  Does anyone know of anywhere I can get trained in soldering?  I tried the youtube videos but they get me no where.  Just some dude flying through soldering in under a minute repeating "It's just that easy."

Thanks for the help.

I feel like I just wrote a Dear Abbey letter.  I should have titled it Sadness in Soldering.   

I have usb headers here and offered twice to fix the minimus for you free of charge and pay return shipping. 

Meh, my cheapy 15W Radio Shack soldering iron is still going strong, and I use it all the time.  Save your money.  It's more technique than it is a $100 iron.

yes. I think tools can only take you so far.

I've been soldering since i was about 8 years old and have done everything from soldering, desoldering, burning myself, getting shocked, causing massive short circuits etc. There is no replacement for experience IMO.



Best thing you can do is find some dead electronics and gut them. Practice on those boards. Start with soldering some junk wires on large vias and posts and then work from there to soldering to small exposed vias, fixing traces, solder smd legs etc in that order.

As many have said, get yourself some flux. Flux can be your best friend or worst enemy. Sometimes adding too much flux creates too much flow in small areas and will flow solder right over multiple pads causing a short. This all comes with practice.

Okay 404.  I used the best tool in my tool box (my wallet  ) and bought a new one.  I will send you the old one.  You saw how burnt the board was.  If you think you can fix it I have no problem sending it your way.  I just hate taking up others time.  I know how precious mine is and I don't like imposing on others.  I'll PM you in a few minutes. 

I was also going to mention the practice method 404.  I was thinking of just getting cheap resistors, boards etc. and practicing.  But I like your idea better.  I'm like you.  I tend to keep things in case anything goes wrong on my computers.  Which it almost always does.  Damn.  I just remembered I threw a couple of old dead ipods.  Oh well I have PCI cards up the wazoo that I don't use. 

Meh, my cheapy 15W Radio Shack soldering iron is still going strong, and I use it all the time.  Save your money.  It's more technique than it is a $100 iron.

I suppose the SUPREME SOLDER KING can make do with whatever, but an 888-D is the best thing for us mere mortals.

HA!  Solder king...   I think I can coerce my wife into getting me one for fathers day.  Since this year will be my first.  That just means I have to get her an awesome mothers day gift.  ---steaming pile of meadow muffin---.   

 

Meh, my cheapy 15W Radio Shack soldering iron is still going strong, and I use it all the time.  Save your money.  It's more technique than it is a $100 iron.

I'm in that boat. I hear the nice, temp control irons are badass though. 

THAT.  IS.  AWESOME!

    Those R/S cheapies are what I learned with and they do withstand a lot of abuse up to and including throwing them in a fit of "Soldering sucks" rage... Practice is the only way to get good @ it, get a old radio or something, and burn some wire.

I think that is my best bet Jennifer.  I tend to rage when things don't go my way.  An adult tantrum if you will.   

[yotsuya]

In all seriousness, while I agree that experience does trump all, the Hakko makes it easier for me to learn. I don't have to fiddle with worring about whether it's hot enough and it feels solid and not plastic-y like the cheap ones I've bought. Couple that with my 808 Desoldering gun, and I'm set.

[DaOld Man]

You crazy kids with all your fancy smancy soldering junkets.
Why in my day, we used a real mans soldering method.
The ole soldering pot and heat your irons in a real fire.

[jdbailey1206]

Welp upon a quick peruse of the internet I found a Radio Shack Flashlight tutorial.  Looks like it's easy for me to learn how to solder.  There are also a few more tutorials on creating simple things at Radio Shack DIY.  Both good places to start.  A journey of a thousand miles, right? 

[knave]

I still have a long way to go to feel as if I'm good at it but I'm at least comfortable in my mediocrity.

I practiced on old motherboards I got for free...took all the caps off...found out how long I could hold it on to a trace before it melts things etc.  Now while my joints are not always pretty they hold.

+1 on the flux and rosin core...also Tin everything you want solder to stick to before making your joint.

As far as the iron. I use the radio shack model...I started with a harbor freight piece of garbage...so now the RS one feels like luxury.

[Slippyblade]

Cheap tools are like cheap tattoos...

Buy this and you'll never look back.

Too bad it looks like it was manufactured by LEGO.

[Vigo]

About the only luxury I have purchased in the soldering world is a desoldering iron, and that was a $12 luxury. It has been great with both saving my butt on rookie mistakes, and cleaning out old soldering jobs. Better than using a separate pump or braid. I just love having everything sucked out for me, rather than needing to pump or rub it out with my left hand.

[BadMouth]

Start on this post of the soldering thread: http://forum.arcadecontrols.com/index.php/topic,129317.msg1322430.html#msg1322430
The ones before it are mainly about soldering big stuff.

Biggest thing is to clean everything and use flux.
Another common mistake is to try to use the pinpoint of the tip trying to be precise.
You're trying to transfer heat as quickly as possible.  More surface area contacted=faster & easier.

[jdbailey1206]

I just love having everything sucked out for me, rather than needing to pump or rub it out with my left hand.

[yotsuya]

Too bad it looks like it was manufactured by LEGO.

Use one after doing a full cap kit on a monitor and then tell me if that matters.

[yotsuya]

About the only luxury I have purchased in the soldering world is a desoldering iron, and that was a $12 luxury. It has been great with both saving my butt on rookie mistakes, and cleaning out old soldering jobs. Better than using a separate pump or braid. I just love having everything sucked out for me, rather than needing to pump or rub it out with my left hand.

I was going to get one of these until I used a desoldering gun at a repair party. Then I though, "Why the hell would I use anything else?"

Oh, and mark your post NSFW next time.

[Slippyblade]

Too bad it looks like it was manufactured by LEGO.

Use one after doing a full cap kit on a monitor and then tell me if that matters.

Didn't say I wouldn't use it, I'd just feel goofy doing it.  It just looks like the, "So you wanna be an engineer, Jr." edition.

As far as desoldering goes, I love my:

[yotsuya]

Didn't say I wouldn't use it, I'd just feel goofy doing it.  It just looks like the, "So you wanna be an engineer, Jr." edition.

Them wacky Japanese designers. 

As far as desoldering goes, I love my:

Just curious, have you tried a desoldering gun before?

[ark_ader]

$4.99 30W iron, some flux and Wick.  Practice, practice, practice before you start work on the expensive parts.  I buy cheap stereo equipment, take apart and practice on the boards.  The more you practice the better the technique.  Take it from me.  I don't burn my fingers as much now! 

[lilshawn]

I've used everything out there... from the cheapie ratshack (back then archer), to some of the businesses finest (xtronic, hakko, weller etc)

i currently have the hakko 936 which is the unit the 888 replaced. (uses the exact same iron set, just different base)

It's wonderful. Best unit a c-note can buy. heats up fast, has good thermal capacity. Better than the weller this unit replaced. perhaps weller is better now, but certainly not the older unit i had.

I'm going to have to get another soon (and a desoldering unit as well) and hakko will be my goto. Thumbs up on hakko for me.

[Le Chuck]

I use one of little butane models.  I love it.  A nice station would be better and sometimes this iron is more of a hammer when I need a scalpel but it's just too convienant for me. 

[jennifer]

You crazy kids with all your fancy smancy soldering junkets.
Why in my day, we used a real mans soldering method.
The ole soldering pot and heat your irons in a real fire.

Jennifer listens all wide eyed, Just hang the gun from your Viking horn helmet???... Omg, at least fire had been invented.

[Howard_Casto]

Yeah that's when pcbs were made of elvish steel that glowed blue when Orcs were nearby and the components were forged on via the fires of Mt. Doom.

[yotsuya]

Seems topical, just got this in my email:

http://www.jameco.com/Jameco/workshop/TechTip/soldering-tips.html

[Howard_Casto]

Seems topical, just got this in my email:

http://www.jameco.com/Jameco/workshop/TechTip/soldering-tips.html

Good stuff, but here's one to add.  Don't solder in polyester blend clothing (jogging pants, track pants, or what have you).  A hot glob of solder will go right through those, while on something more rigid like blue-jeans it won't.  Almost burned something important one time.  You learn that lesson real quick. 

[Vigo]

Vigo tips - that were learned the hard way.

*Get into a comfortable soldering position that is well-lit so you don't have to hunch over your work and breathe in the fumes.

* A functional soldering job is much more important than a "pretty" solder job. The "pretty" simply part comes with experience, so mucking on a soldering point for a long time trying to make it pretty only give you more opportunity to royally screw up.

* If you don't have a soldering station, think about your cord placement before plugging in your iron. Make sure your cord will not overlap your work, and will not cause your iron to fall off the table.

* Those "helping hands" things can be awesome.

[Louis Tully]

.

[pbj]

I got that $30 Pana-Vise thing from Radio Shack.  Where the hell has that thing been all my life? 

 

[Howard_Casto]

I tend to agree on that one.  They are especially good when you are trying to solder something without a through-hole.  Clamp the pcb in one clip and physically hold the wire to the pcb with the other clip... you feel like a doofus for not having one after the first use. 

[yotsuya]

+1 for Helping Hands. Got a cheap one on Amazon using some leftover gift card points. One thing I did on mine was put heat shrink tubing on the clamp ends to pad the teeth.

[Vigo]

+1 for Helping Hands. Got a cheap one on Amazon using some leftover gift card points. One thing I did on mine was put heat shrink tubing on the clamp ends to pad the teeth.

Good idea! I'm gonna have to do that one.

[Slippyblade]

+1 for Helping Hands. Got a cheap one on Amazon using some leftover gift card points. One thing I did on mine was put heat shrink tubing on the clamp ends to pad the teeth.

I just wrapped the jaws with e-tape.  Helping Hands are truly a fantastic addition to any workspace. 

[shponglefan]

Not sure which YouTube tutorials you watched, but I recommend this series (below):

I used these videos when learning how to solder and they were very helpful.  It also helps to have proper tools, and that's primarily a clean soldering tip.  If yours has oxidized over the years, you'll either need to clean it or replace it.

(edited to add: Reading through the thread, looks like you are getting a new station.  I ditto the recommendation for the Hakko FX-888D.  It`s a great soldering unit.)

[Le Chuck]

This thread has gone from Tragedy to Strategy.

Boom!  That's a freebie.

[yotsuya]

[hypernova]

If you don't plan on soldering a whole bunch, I wouldn't recommend buying a $100 iron.  Mine's a cheapy from Lowe's or somewhere.

These tips I would heartily second:

* If you don't have a soldering station, think about your cord placement before plugging in your iron. Make sure your cord will not overlap your work, and will not cause your iron to fall off the table.

* Those "helping hands" things can be awesome.

I recently acquired a set of helping hands this past Christmas.  Haven't soldered anything yet, but I can imagine the way it'll make it easier.  I solder something maybe once a year or so, which is why I don't get an expensive iron.  And it isn't that hard once you get used to it.  Braid works fine for me...I just have to be careful and hold it far away from the end so I don't burn my fingers.  Of course a cloth-like glove would probably help there as well, but I prefer unencumbered digits.

Don't even think you will get it down to where you can finely solder willy nilly a wire to one of those chips on a pcb board with a hundred legs coming out each side.  Those take a decent amount of practice to not screw up. 

I also tend to have a soaked paper towel (folded over multiple times) to occasionally wipe off the end of the iron.

[mgb]

Meh, my cheapy 15W Radio Shack soldering iron is still going strong, and I use it all the time.  Save your money.  It's more technique than it is a $100 iron.

I agree. I don't doubt that the high end solder stations are great but I've got a lot of miles on my radio shack 15 watt iron.
If I do happen to lose it, damage it or lodge it in a customers head, no big loss.
I also use the 40 watt rat shack de-solder tool. Heck sometimes I'll use that to solder. I probably use a solder sucker more than the de-solder iron.
I also have a butane iron because often I'm soldering something on the spot and I may not have an outlet handy.
I also use the helping hands when I remember they're at the bottom of my tool box.

[Howard_Casto]

I think I'll be the be the voice of reason on this one.  (That's never happened before.)

Don't buy a 100 dollar iron, but then again don't buy a 5 dollar one either.  Rat-shack will have a good temperature controlled selection of irons that you can get for under 30 bucks that'll allow you to change heads... that's what you want.  Being able to control the temperature isn't required for most things, but when you are trying to fix a ruined trace or solder something you really aren't supposed to fool with, having a digital read-out of the exact temperature is pretty handy.  Also they usually come with a nice little sponge tray for cleaning and a holder that won't fall over from the weight of the iron, which is always nice. 

[yotsuya]

I think I'll be the be the voice of reason on this one.  (That's never happened before.)

Don't buy a 100 dollar iron, but then again don't buy a 5 dollar one either.  Rat-shack will have a good temperature controlled selection of irons that you can get for under 30 bucks that'll allow you to change heads... that's what you want.  Being able to control the temperature isn't required for most things, but when you are trying to fix a ruined trace or solder something you really aren't supposed to fool with, having a digital read-out of the exact temperature is pretty handy.  Also they usually come with a nice little sponge tray for cleaning and a holder that won't fall over from the weight of the iron, which is always nice.

Good observation, Howard. Let me just add this - I've met a lot of locals in this hobby with the Hakko FX-888D, and not a single one of them has said they regretted buying it. 

[Howard_Casto]

I'm not knocking it.  I know a couple of people who have one and they are a good iron.  But a think it's one of those deals like ladies face creams. 

[things I shouldn't know]
Oil of Olay IS great. It's also identical in function and composition to the cold cream you get at your local discount store for significantly less.  Some people assume that it's better because you pay more, but that isn't necessarily the case. 
[/things I shouldn't know]

So yeah, it is good, but you can get something that costs less that's just as good.

[BadMouth]

I'm a cheap bastard and skeptical about most things.

I have the older Hakko model with the manual knob temp control.
It heats and is ready for use almost immediately.  After about a year of use, the main tip I use hasn't corroded at all.
The holder for the iron is powder coated metal. 
Both it and the main base are heavy and have a high quality feel.

It's not for everyone.  It's probably a little more than I need, but I hope to get farther into the hobby in the future.
If someone is just soldering wires together or to tabs on switches a few times a year, there's no point in buying something that expensive.
...but it is better IMO.

Same goes for the Pana-Vice.  It rocks if you work on boards regularly.
It's not the type of thing you buy just to do one or two jobs though.

Only mildly related, but I used to work in the warehouse of an OEM automotive electronics supplier.
They had little old ladies working there that had been soldering 30 years and damn they were good.
A couple times I brought in car audio stuff with burnt mosfets or a damaged input of some sort. 
Those ladies could swap out the parts and hand them back to me in about 20 seconds.

[DaOld Man]

You crazy kids with all your fancy smancy soldering junkets.
Why in my day, we used a real mans soldering method.
The ole soldering pot and heat your irons in a real fire.

Jennifer listens all wide eyed, Just hang the gun from your Viking horn helmet???... Omg, at least fire had been invented.

Helmet? I don't need no stinking helmet! And yeah fire was invented by my next cave neighbor, Trog. A pretty nice guy once you get to know him, even though most cromagons are a real nuisance at the Rock Concerts, his only vice was howling at the moon, of course back then we all thought the moon was some kind of mystically god in the night sky, so I think he was just airing a few gripes.
 

[Louis Tully]

.

[jdbailey1206]

shponglefan - Those are perfect.  Thank you.  I'll post a picture of my iron tonight but like you said I have a feeling the tip has oxidized.  It was a cheapo I picked up 15 years ago and I only started using it this year.  My tip pretty much looks like this so I'm thinking before I spend money on a nice unit I'm gonna get a new tip from RS and practice on that.  And if I can't replace the tip I'll replace the pencil.

Le Chuck - Why do I feel you are just Van Wilder in disguise. 

This thread has gone from Tragedy to Strategy.

Boom!  Write that down.

hypernova - I bought a pair of helping hands and they are worth their weight in gold. 

Howard - Like I said I think I should just replace my tip and practice on that.  Then when I'm ready I may purchase one of the high end ones.  Like you said most of today's products are made by the same manufacturer but they all come from the same factory with different labels.  So in the end the it is just a marketing ploy with all the consumers money being funneled into the same place.  If  you look into Dewalt, which is supposedly a company in itself  you will see that it is actually owned by Black and Decker. 

BadMouth - I don't plan on soldering a lot but the Helping Hands are a god send.  I have no problem working big but when I work with smaller components I tend to shake.  The helping hands keep everything steady and the magnifier helps immensely since my eye sight is shot.
I'm glad you mentioned the older women working in the factory.  Hell if they can do it so can I.

In the end I think I am going to scour ebay and see if I can find a used Hakko.  Until that time I'm gonna either replace my tip, or the iron itself.  I plan on creating a work station in the basement like Chance did here.  Having my tools spread all over our computer room is getting annoying.  And I really don't want to scar up my good computer desk with tool marks and solder burns. 

[PL1]

fire was invented by my next cave neighbor, Trog. A pretty nice guy once you get to know him, even though most cromagons are a real nuisance at the Rock Concerts

I bet he loved this one.



Didn't Bertha live a few blocks over?


Scott

[jdbailey1206]

[lilshawn]

you can just file/sand the tip until you are back to nice metal again. then coat the whole thing in solder. that way your tip will work nicer.

make sure you don't accidentally leave it plugged in, or needlessly leave it on... the tip oxidises fast.

I'm also going to state something that may have been repeated... but since this thread has gone WAY off track and I can't bring myself to read through everything...

make sure you are not using ACID flux (like the kind you would use for pipes) it will eat through your components and traces. use a flux made for electronics... or in a pinch "acid free" flux. Most acid free fluxes are water based, so be sure to thoroughly clean the joint after soldering to remove any trace of flux residue to prevent shorts and/or corrosion later on.

[Monkeyvoodoo]

You crazy kids with all your fancy smancy soldering junkets.
Why in my day, we used a real mans soldering method.
The ole soldering pot and heat your irons in a real fire.

Jennifer listens all wide eyed, Just hang the gun from your Viking horn helmet???... Omg, at least fire had been invented.

Helmet? I don't need no stinking helmet! And yeah fire was invented by my next cave neighbor, Trog. A pretty nice guy once you get to know him, even though most cromagons are a real nuisance at the Rock Concerts, his only vice was howling at the moon, of course back then we all thought the moon was some kind of mystically god in the night sky, so I think he was just airing a few gripes.
 

Don't feel too bad, I started with one of those irons  in shop class.

Although, the school was massively underfunded and out of date now that I think about it 

[Howard_Casto]

you can just file/sand the tip until you are back to nice metal again. then coat the whole thing in solder. that way your tip will work nicer.

Yeah just for the record, I coat the crap out of my tips with every use.  For lots of small repairs you don't even have to get the solder out that way, which is nice. 

[DaOld Man]

Ahhh those videos remind me of the good old days, when men were men and women were glad of it.

[ChadTower]

One important thing I haven't seen mentioned is that whenever possible the joint should be physically secure before you heat it up.  If you're soldering wires then twist them well.  If you're soldering to a switch, wrap the wire around the tab.  You should be able to give the connection a light tug without undoing it.  Once you do that the joint heats up better, the solder flows into the joint better, and the odds of the joint breaking physically are pretty much zero.  Even with components on a PCB it works better if you give the lead on the underside a bit of a bend to hold the part in place while you solder it.

I have a nice Panavise on my bench but honestly I only end up using it if I'm doing something really awkward.  Most of the time I just lay my stuff on a piece of cardboard and get to work. 

I completely agree with the suggestion to practice on old stuff.  Grab anything from the mid 90s or older and practice.  Most stuff newer than that will be too small for decent learning and you don't want to even think about mini devices until you're really good.

[lilshawn]

Dave hilariously posted this today...

[404]

Having been jelly of everyone on here that could solder I decided to give it a go last week.  As I had mentioned in my Fix It Felix build I ended up accidentally busting the male usb head off of the Minimus 32k AVR.  Feeling froggy I ordered 4 male usb heads from digikey.com and got to work.  It was ugly.  I ended up burning up the Minimus 32k AVR and barely got any solder to hold.  And that was just in the hooks connecting the head to the AVR.   

I have two questions.  Most of the area on my soldering tip was not hot.  Does this mean that the iron itself is bad?  I can understand if it is because I got the iron in a cheap kit from Comp USA 15 years ago.  And if my iron is bad can anyone recommend a good one for a newb?

My next question follows:  Does anyone know of anywhere I can get trained in soldering?  I tried the youtube videos but they get me no where.  Just some dude flying through soldering in under a minute repeating "It's just that easy."

Thanks for the help.

I feel like I just wrote a Dear Abbey letter.  I should have titled it Sadness in Soldering.   

Just dropped you a pm with the results of fixing up your minimus.

[SavannahLion]

+1 for Helping Hands. Got a cheap one on Amazon using some leftover gift card points. One thing I did on mine was put heat shrink tubing on the clamp ends to pad the teeth.

Good idea! I'm gonna have to do that one.

I've had mine for I have no idea how many years. I used to use it when building scale models when I used to detail the ultra tiny parts on the spru. It's a little rusty, somewhat funky now and the mirror shattered and went missing ages ago but it's still a permanent fixture on my tool bench. Not once did that idea ever cross my mind and I was just futzing with some resistors that wouldn't stay clamped in the teeth.

Looks like I'm going to do an upgrade on it.