soldering stuff

[shovenose]

with my new 40w weller iron and my 60/40 "fine electronics solder" (rosin core), why is it that it makes so much smelly smoke and mostly vaporizes instead of going onto the psu boar where its supposed to go?

this never was a problem with my old ecg 25w (now broken) iron and over-priced lead-free solder.

is it the wrong solder?

also, the iron tip already has a huge chip in it, and is already in lousy condition after 3 uses. is that because i dont clean it, or what do i do to prevent that?

sorry about the stupid questions

[dood]

Re: soldering stuff

The iron is too hot for the solder (and generally for most motherboard jobs).

I have a 40w Weller soldering station with temperature control. It actually just regulates the voltage to the iron, as it's a standard 40w Weller iron. For most motherboards I leave the control at roughly half to 3/4 power.

[seanc]

Re: soldering stuff

How new is new? It's chipped, what the hell?
My cheap, crappy digital soldering station isn't chipped, it just seems to oxidize quickly between tip cleans.

My 60/40 solder does the same when the iron is too hot.

[shovenose]

Re: soldering stuff

so what can i do to cool down te iron? solder on a heatsink? can i get different solder?
this iron is a few uses old (maybe like 1 week)

[Wrog]

Re: soldering stuff

Which model did you get -- is there no temperature control? I usually set my iron to 350C to desolder (using wick) and 300C to solder using 60/40.

[shovenose]

Re: soldering stuff

no, its the cheapo $21.90 900degree 40w one...

looks like that

[Wrog]

Re: soldering stuff

900 degrees?! No wonder... There may be replacement tips that operate at a lower temperature.

[shovenose]

Re: soldering stuff

can i get higher-temp soder? i mean on the package it said its for electric work?!

[ratdude747]

Re: soldering stuff

it is for thick wire work. not small stuff. if you ever get an imac board to do, one of those may be your best friend... but not for what you are doing. hardware store stuff is not for electronics 95% of the time...

i think it is 900 degrees F, not 900 C

there should be some smoke from the rosin core... how are you soldering? iron to item, solder to item? try not to go straight to the iron... it oxidizes and negates the rosin flux.

[Sparkey55]

Re: soldering stuff

Two things to try; wrap some #14 or #12 gauge solid copper wire a few turns around the tip and solder from the end of the wire. Or connect a regular light bulb in series with the soldering iron of about 75 to 100 watts (experiment).

[PCBONEZ]

Re: soldering stuff

That kind of iron will work fine for mobos with enough practice.

A longer thinner tip would be nice and you will probably have to clean it between every joint, but it will work.

Light bulb trick sounds like a grand idea.
.

[shovenose]

Re: soldering stuff

it is for thick wire work. not small stuff. if you ever get an imac board to do, one of those may be your best friend... but not for what you are doing. hardware store stuff is not for electronics 95% of the time...

i think it is 900 degrees F, not 900 C

there should be some smoke from the rosin core... how are you soldering? iron to item, solder to item? try not to go straight to the iron... it oxidizes and negates the rosin flux.

im not sure...i guess i just stick the soldering iron to the board/cap leg, and stick in the solder...if i touch the iron directly the solder will vaporize...

[stj]

Re: soldering stuff

i think your using the wrong solder,
forget lead/no lead for a second.

solder comes with many different fluxes.
it sounds like you have active flux (heat activated acid).
that type of solder *will* eat bits real fast if you dont clean the tip constantly.

[Agent24]

Re: soldering stuff

also, the iron tip already has a huge chip in it, and is already in lousy condition after 3 uses. is that because i dont clean it,

If you don't keep the tip clean then yes, it will become dirty and useless.

And yeah, never use acid core solder for electronics