Lincoln Lights Posted October 1, 2012 Share Posted October 1, 2012 I am in the process of assembling 80 (28 left to go) dmx controllers ( 7.99 from holiday coro ones). I assembled 20 earlier in the year. My solderin skills were limeted at first, but due to some good old irish stuborness and you tube videos, I know enough to be dangerous now. Here is my question.In the process of soldering, I am on my 4th soldering gun ( 25 or 30 W miller from box store) and the tips keep wearing down, and the point becomes concaved. Any one else have these issues???At first I thought the first tip was defective. Returned it and replaced it. Same results. Second one returned and replaced it with a similar gin from a differenct store. ( Ace this time and not box store) Same result. Bought a $5 one from harbor freight, different brand, same result. Replace the tip on that one with a tip from radio shack, and this one lasted longer, but same result. I have a soldergun inthe package un opened from Radio shack, but I do not want to get it out yet. I will have about 80 rolls of 5050 leg rgb lights to assemble, and I want to make sure I have a fully function gun before I jump into that aspect of my fabrication for this year.I am using a sponge to clean the tip while in use, and I have it on for a couple of hours at a time when I am using it.Is this normal for the tips, and should I just sand / grind it back down to a tip and move on???? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LOR Staff Posted October 1, 2012 Share Posted October 1, 2012 Tips wear out, that's why they are replaceable. With all the soldering that you are doing, you may want to upgrade to a better iron/station. You don't need to spend a fortune. For example, I have a lot of time using this one and enjoy it. You should also order a spare tip or 2 while you are at it. Since you can adjust the temp with this station, you can set it just hot enough to do the job which also helps with preventing tip-burnout.Don't sand or grind a tip. You'll remove the coating and the solder won't 'flow' off the tip onto your work. Once they wear, just toss em.For cleaning, I prefer something like this. It does a great job cleaning the tip without cooling it off too much like a wet sponge does. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Santas Helper Posted October 1, 2012 Share Posted October 1, 2012 Lincoln,What temp do you use to solder?Mike pointed out some good tips (no pun intended )Temperature and keeping the tip clean (not sanding/grinding) is key.One other thing that can be overlooked is pressure. Some put alot of pressure on components thus wearing out tips. Use the right size tip for the job, the right temp and just touch the component to get it hot. Once the solder melts, back off and wipe the tip clean. Keeping that tip clean is the biggest issue of all.Spend that money on a couple good tips.Hope that helps and good luck.Tom Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lincoln Lights Posted October 2, 2012 Author Share Posted October 2, 2012 Thanks for the "tips" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Max-Paul Posted October 2, 2012 Share Posted October 2, 2012 I have a weller soldering pencil. This has a plated steel tip and I have soldered so many kits and other things and not a bit of wear. Now some of the cheap soldering irons have a solid copper tip. And resin which is a mild form of acid will clean both the wire and solder pad, but also the soldering iron tip. Slowly eating away at the tip. I highly recommend that you get a weller that has the iron tip. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CLD Kevin Posted October 2, 2012 Share Posted October 2, 2012 I have a weller soldering pencil. This has a plated steel tip and I have soldered so many kits and other things and not a bit of wear. Now some of the cheap soldering irons have a solid copper tip. And resin which is a mild form of acid will clean both the wire and solder pad, but also the soldering iron tip. Slowly eating away at the tip. I highly recommend that you get a weller that has the iron tip.+1I have a Weller and solder many of those 3ch DMX controllers as well as strips, string, ect. Still using the same tip and working perfect. Fact I used it yesterday and worked like like day 1 out of the box. Weller is the way to go! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
k6ccc Posted October 2, 2012 Share Posted October 2, 2012 I am in the process of assembling 80 (28 left to go) dmx controllers ( 7.99 from holiday coro ones). I assembled 20 earlier in the year. My solderin skills were limeted at first, but due to some good old irish stuborness and you tube videos, I know enough to be dangerous now. Here is my question.In the process of soldering, I am on my 4th soldering gun ( 25 or 30 W miller from box store) and the tips keep wearing down, and the point becomes concaved. Any one else have these issues???If you are really using a soldering gun (as opposed to a soldering iron) for almost any electronic construction, it is the wrong tool for the job. To clarify, a soldering gun is sort of shaped like a handgun with a trigger that turns the heating element on and off. A soldering iron (or soldering pencil) is sort of shaped like a odd shaped fat pencil with a power cord coming out one end and the tip on the other. A soldering gun is fine for soldering wires together, and really large stuff, but for just about ANYTHING on a PC board, a gun is too big. A soldering iron with interchangable tips is far better suited for the purpose. A soldering station (which consists of a generally small iron, and a base unit that controls it) is even better. Most soldering stations allow you to change temperature and tip size and shape to fit your particular job. Much better!And I agree with DevMike about using a shaved brass ball for tip cleaning. Far superior than a wet sponge.As I was finished typing this message, I realized that I might have an incorrect belief about what soldering you were doing as I am unfamiliar with the Holiday Coro DMX controller. So I looked it up and found that on those, the assembly was just soldering wires together - NOT soldering electronic parts onto a PC board (which is what I had assumed it to be). So, you can cancel the part about the wrong tool for the job as I did state that for just soldering wires together, a soldering gun is acceptable. I would still prefer a good soldering iron, but a gun would do fine. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jason Burge Posted October 2, 2012 Share Posted October 2, 2012 I have had the same problem with the Weller tips wearing out quickly. Picked up two cheap Radio Shack irons and had zero problems yet with around six kits. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LOR Staff Posted October 2, 2012 Share Posted October 2, 2012 We need Ernie!It has been my own experience that there are few things you can do to extend tip life:Don't over-heat themPrevent oxidation by putting a blob of solder on the tip and allow it to harden after unplugging. Clean it off next time you use it.Don't over clean them. I only clean my tip every 2-3 minutes of work, not after every joint. After a while you can just look at the tip and know when it needs cleaning.Use decent 60/40 (sn/pb) or 62/36/2 (sn/pb/ag) solder. Stay away from the Pb free stuff, it's much harder to work with, & requires higher temps.Turn it off when you are done. It's better to wait 10 mins for a reheat than leave it on for 20 and not use it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GaryM Posted October 2, 2012 Share Posted October 2, 2012 Hakko makes great soldering products. Check out the FX-888, or their cordless, the FX-901.I can't tell you the last time I've replaced a tip on either, and they both have a lot of hours on them. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Max-Paul Posted October 2, 2012 Share Posted October 2, 2012 A soldering GUN is usually the one that is rated at 100 and 140 watts. I see that the op was using something in the 30 watt range. I have seen a few of those that the handle is in the shape of a pistol grip. But I would not consider that to be a soldering gun per say. Reason is that the high wattage GUN actually has a two stage trigger to turn it on. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lincoln Lights Posted October 8, 2012 Author Share Posted October 8, 2012 thank you again...I was using a soldering "iron" and not a gun. All are assembled, and I will use your advice and I continue down the rabbit hole of lights. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DocBrown86 Posted October 20, 2012 Share Posted October 20, 2012 I am attempting to solder together RGB strips for the first time, and upon a trial run...well, I failed. I am decent at soldering, but I cannot get the solder to stick to the tiny little copper things that seem like thin sheets of paper. The solder melts right away on the tip of the soldering iron, but it seems to not get the strip hot enough to get the solder to stick to it, and is ruining the connections at the end of the strips the longer I leave the iron on it.Anyone else experienced this issue in the beginning? What should I do....? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tjflory Posted October 20, 2012 Share Posted October 20, 2012 I am attempting to solder together RGB strips for the first time, and upon a trial run...well, I failed. I am decent at soldering, but I cannot get the solder to stick to the tiny little copper things that seem like thin sheets of paper. The solder melts right away on the tip of the soldering iron, but it seems to not get the strip hot enough to get the solder to stick to it, and is ruining the connections at the end of the strips the longer I leave the iron on it.Anyone else experienced this issue in the beginning? What should I do....?The copper pads aren't clean. They may look clean, but from what you're describing, they're not. I scape them (gently) with a knife then use a small-fine wire brush to clean them. they should be bright and shiny copper. If they're clean, they will almost solder themselves... you'll see.tj Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LOR Staff Posted October 20, 2012 Share Posted October 20, 2012 TJ hit it, corroded pads. I personally would use no clean flux rather than scrape, but that's me. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Max-Paul Posted October 21, 2012 Share Posted October 21, 2012 I am with tj, just a xacto blade and with it at 90 degrees to the pad. Just give it some gentle scraps to make sure you have all of the clear rubber or what ever that stuff is cleaned off and no thin skin of it left behind. BTW make sure that once you have wetted the tip with a bit of solder. Not a big ball of it, just enough to wet it. Now touch the pad and give it at two count. Now touch the point where the iron and pad touch with just a bit of solder. If everything is right, then the solder should melt and spread across the pad. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SteveMaris Posted October 21, 2012 Share Posted October 21, 2012 I am attempting to solder together RGB strips for the first time, and upon a trial run...well, I failed. I am decent at soldering, but I cannot get the solder to stick to the tiny little copper things that seem like thin sheets of paper. The solder melts right away on the tip of the soldering iron, but it seems to not get the strip hot enough to get the solder to stick to it, and is ruining the connections at the end of the strips the longer I leave the iron on it.Anyone else experienced this issue in the beginning? What should I do....?No need to scrape and clean them. Get some rosin soldering flux from radio shack and place a tiny dab on the pad before soldering. It will flow instantly. Then take a paper towel and dab up the melted flux. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CaptainCook Posted October 21, 2012 Share Posted October 21, 2012 Use "no-clean" flux, not rosin. The no-clean flux is used by nearly all board houses now both for PCB assembly as well as rework. It is not as corrosive to the iron tips and does not leave behind a brown mess that needs to be cleaned off the board. For the pixel strips, a flux pen such as Kester #951 has a tip much like a magic marker tip that can be wiped over the copper pads with a very mild force to clean them without damaging the copper pad like scraping will. Tips on a good iron such as a Weller should last several thousand connections when used with no-clean solder and no-clean flux/flux-pen provided that the iron temperature is not too high. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Max-Paul Posted October 21, 2012 Share Posted October 21, 2012 No clean flux. Cant say that I have knowingly used this kink of flux. Maybe that is what is in the PC kits that I have built. But the whole purpose of flux is to clean the joint as the solder is melting and flowing. Ubber clean copper promotes solder flow and adhersion. And what I do to clean off the older type of flux is I take a 1" cheap ass brush and cut the bristles down to say 3/8" get a can of denatured Alcohol and give it a good scrubbing. Rinse by pouring some on the back of the board held at about 45 degrees and dry. Then I tape off the socketed ICs, RJ-11 & 45 jacks, the header, fuses, and quick connects. Then give it all a heavy spray of Kryon clear spray paint. Good to go in the box once all of the tape is removed. BTW this is top and bottom of board. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tjflory Posted October 21, 2012 Share Posted October 21, 2012 Wow... Lotsa good EXPERIENCED info here.tj Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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