Time to buy a new soldering iron!

[Guest guest]

Once again LOR outdoes themselves with customer service and satisfaction, I had one controller have a Triac go bad and then found I had another channel in a second controller acting the same way, so I put in my support ticket and ordered two Triacs, one for each controller (V2 Boards, CTB16PC Controllers), the Triacs showed up today in the regular mail, well packaged.

But to my surprise there weren't two Triacs in the package but four. That's what I call going above and beyond, most companies would only send out the exact number of parts you requested, and many would also require you to pay for those parts after a year. LOR asked for no payment of any kind. Now that's definitely going above and beyond what most other companies would have done!

Now for the soldering iron, looks like I'm going to be going to the local radio shack and pick up an inexpensive soldering iron and do the replacement to the best of my ability and hope all goes well with the change out. Had a really nice temp controlled soldering station, but it eats heating elements faster than I could eat a plain Hershey's chocolate bar! And I have to special order the heating element handles when they go bad.

So here's keeping my fingers crossed that I successfully get this task completed.

Thanks Dan and LOR for such great service!

[WilliamS]

Radio Shack has a small soldering station with 2 heat setting and stand. Its about 50 bucks, it is also what I put together both of my current controllers.

[WilliamS]

Dang it no edit

http://www.radioshack.com/product/index.jsp?productId=2062750&filterName=Type&filterValue=Soldering+irons

That is the exact one I have that worked like a dream. Keep the tip clean, which is good advice for all walks of life and it was great for me.

[Guest guest]

GoofyGuy wrote:

Dang it no edit

http://www.radioshack.com/product/index.jsp?productId=2062750&filterName=Type&filterValue=Soldering+irons

That is the exact one I have that worked like a dream. Keep the tip clean, which is good advice for all walks of life and it was great for me.

I actually wore out 3 of those. LOL

I know all about keeping them clean and working. My former career before becoming disabled and unable to do the work was an Electronic-Mechanical Assembler, also worked as Tech and ProtoType Engineering labs. So I'm no stranger to soldering irons and stations, along with all the tools of the trade. Many of which I still have.

I'm just going to get something dirt cheap for the moment, like one of those $6.00 ones (if they still have them for that price). Last time I bought a cheap soldering iron I think I paid $2.99 for it, but think those days are long gone in the local stores. I have found them on-line for that price, but I'll just pick up something I can use at the local rat shack or maybe Wal-Mart.

[WilliamS]

I dont have that under my belt. Other than a speaker wire this is the first thing Ive actaully soldered together. Somehow they both worked! If you were closer Id pull them apart for you no problem. Im good with desoldering now as I attached all 4 of the lugs for the fuses backwards so had to pull them out and do it again. Failed on my part but still got use out of the desoldering bulb I bought before I started the main project as if I knew I would mess up!

[WilliamS]

pikadroo wrote:

GoofyGuy wrote:

Radio Shack has a small soldering station with 2 heat setting and stand. Its about 50 bucks, it is also what I put together both of my current controllers.

Do they finally sell the tips for that one? I returned the 20/40 watt one from them after putting together a few units. I couldn't replace the tip, cuz they didn't carry it.

Drew

I believe they do as I was going to buy a few last time I was in there. Ive kept the single one it comes with super clean so no issues there but I would like a variety of tips if I can get them or make them.

[Guest guest]

GoofyGuy wrote:

pikadroo wrote:

GoofyGuy wrote:

Radio Shack has a small soldering station with 2 heat setting and stand. Its about 50 bucks, it is also what I put together both of my current controllers.

Do they finally sell the tips for that one? I returned the 20/40 watt one from them after putting together a few units. I couldn't replace the tip, cuz they didn't carry it.

Drew

I believe they do as I was going to buy a few last time I was in there. Ive kept the single one it comes with super clean so no issues there but I would like a variety of tips if I can get them or make them.

That's my biggest complaint with Radio Shack, REPLACEMENT PARTS are far too often too hard to come by. Give me the ORIGINAL RADIO SHACK set up any day of the week. Back then when they started in the mid to late 70's you could find any kind of electronic component IN STORE, you could get replacement parts for ANY ITEM they sold IN STORE, now you're damn lucky if you can find an electronic component you need, let alone replacement parts for what they sell.

Sometimes I think these "store improvements" as they call them are far worse than if they'd left well enough alone.

It's why I don't buy much from Radio Shack unless it's something cheap and expendable and easily replaced elsewhere if it breaks, like a cheap-o soldering iron.

[Guest guest]

Sorry, late 70's was a typo, it should have been late 60's(at least that's when they showed up in my area of Florida), as I was buying parts for projects from them when I was in Jr. High and building items.

[WilliamS]

Although Im from a much later generation I remember when Radio Shack was exactly as you explained it was a hobbiest store more than it is a retail store now. Most of the store was components to repair or build they hobbys we enjoyed, not sell us a crappy TV and RC car.

Late 60's is when you were in Junior High! Its sad to say but I believe my father was as well. This hobby spans many generations and its the guys like you that keep us young whipper snappers from doing it all wrong.

[shfr26]

GoofyGuy wrote:

Late 60's is when you were in Junior High! Its sad to say but I believe my father was as well. This hobby spans many generations and its the guys like you that keep us young whipper snappers from doing it all wrong.

I graduated in 1970, so does mean I'm old????

[Guest guest]

If I recall, believe it was 1969 when I entered Jr. High, what they now call "middle school", which is a term I despise and will not use. Jr. High should have kept that label, Middle School just (hate to put it this way) sounds like when we had specialized schools for kids with mental disabilities and other type problems that could not be dealt with in the Public School system.

1972 entered Sr. High and in 1976 when Radio Shack introduced the first computer, the old Model I, 4K Ram, Cassette Drive, B&W Monitor computer system. I was the 2nd person at the store in my area to buy one, paid a whopping $1,200.00 foir that beast (took out a loan to buy it since I was only working a menial fast food job at the time of it's origin). No color, no fancy graphics, no hard drive, no floppy drive, so in that respect, computers today are definitely much better! BTW: When I got my TRS-80 home, I ran out of memory coding my first basic program in less than 2 hours! ROFL

A lot of folks don't know or didn't that Radio Shack started out as one of the greatest resources for Electronic Hobbyists, it's just a shame there aren't any stores around like that today, well except for SkyCraft, but then they are a "surplus" outlet, so you don't always find what you need there either. Unlike the shack which has BRAND NEW components, some really nice electronic kits and projects to learn on. A lot of my learning and knowledge came out of many of those radio 100 in 1, 300 in 1 project kits they sold, where you could build, tear down and rebuild something else.

Its where I learned the majority of my electronics skills and started designing my own electronic projects for my Model Railroad to control signals and lights on the layout, build metal locators to find money, etc. I really miss the old way Radio Shack used to be, it was just a wonderland of components for any electronics hobbyist!

[Guest guest]

shfr26 wrote:

GoofyGuy wrote:

Late 60's is when you were in Junior High! Its sad to say but I believe my father was as well. This hobby spans many generations and its the guys like you that keep us young whipper snappers from doing it all wrong.

I graduated in 1970, so does mean I'm old????

I graduated Sr.High in 1976, so you got me beat by 6 years!

People when they ask me my age I tell them, oh about 4 or 5 'cuz I refuse to grow up, but in the real world I'm 55 {but try not to live there!:cool:}

Guess you might say I'm getting to be an ol' curmudgeon.

[WilliamS]

Orville wrote:

A lot of my learning and knowledge came out of many of those radio 100 in 1, 300 in 1 project kits they sold, where you could build, tear down and rebuild something else.

Its where I learned the majority of my electronics skills and started designing my own electronic projects for my Model Railroad to control signals and lights on the layout, build metal locators to find money, etc. I really miss the old way Radio Shack used to be, it was just a wonderland of components for any electronics hobbyist!

I also had one of these. Mind you only 20 years ago but it was a large breadbaord with little to no comonents on baord you just follow directions and build AM radio, noice generators and such. Very cool toy that kids in todays age will never understand.

[WilliamS]

Jeff Spooner wrote:

So does Radio Shack have any kits that you can still build fun things. I think I might want to try. Maybe build a speaker or pc?

Online they have a few, in store they have 2 and they take all of 8 minutes to solder up. Not like 20 years ago when I got a breadbaord, soldering iron, and a bag of parts to make an am/fm radio.

[radioguy1007]

Radio Shack used to be my most favorite place. I knew all the sales people by their first names. They have sure changed, from a wall of parts on pegboard hooks to a drawer cabinet with a few things. My first stereo system I bought was a Realistic one. And now it seems when I walk in it is "wanna buy a cell phone?"! If you want to go back in time check out this site:

http://www.radioshackcatalogs.com/index.html

[Guest guest]

radioguy1007 wrote:

Radio Shack used to be my most favorite place. I knew all the sales people by their first names. They have sure changed, from a wall of parts on pegboard hooks to a drawer cabinet with a few things. My first stereo system I bought was a Realistic one. And now it seems when I walk in it is "wanna buy a cell phone?"! If you want to go back in time check out this site:

http://www.radioshackcatalogs.com/index.html

That's how it was with me. I don't recall what year they quit catalogs, but I was very surprised when I walked in to get one and be told, in a sort of hum drum way, "you gotta go on-line to see stuff, we don't do catalogs anymore."

Before, you'd get them in the mail for free, but you had to go in store and sign up for them, quite a few years later, you only BOUGHT them in store for a couple of bucks, then they just disappeared off the face of the planet.

The kits I had were ones that used spring tension to hold wires in place, they were 100 in 1, 200 in 1, 300 in 1 and I think the very last one they ever made like that was a 500 in 1 kit. I had them all, they taught me a lot from the projects in the book, but they DID NOT teach soldering as these were SOLDERLESS KIT BUILDING toys to learn electronics with.

Then I went into the P-BOX kits, remember those?

Had one that randomly flashed 5 neon orange incandescent 120VAC bulbs, required soldering and you built it on a PLASTIC box that was predrilled full of holes, taught you basic parts placement and soldering skills. And if you got the lead too hart, you had melted plastic!

These were always red bottom with the holes and a clear plastic lid. That was also the first kit I got my first electric jolt from, even though it only operated on a 6VDC Lantern Battery (the big square ones), it used a step-up transformer to get the voltage to 120VAC to fire the neon lamps.

And yes, the directions even said to NOT touch the exposed bare wires to the lamps, but, being a stupid kid around 13 years old when I built this, I figured, that's a lot of bahhoey, how can a 6VDC battery powering a circuit be that harmful?

Well, I touched that "exposed" wire and learned the hard way, after I picked myself up off the ground, I disconnected the battery and COVERED that wire, never to tempt fate or anyone else that might not beleive me.



Ah well, reminiscing is such fun, but I really do miss the way Radio Shack was in the beginning and wish there were stores still around like that today. It would make finding parts and fun kits to build for not only kids, but adults to learn electronics and even some electricity type criteria a little easier.

[Guest guest]

And if you got the lead too hart, you had melted plastic!

That should have read:
And if you got the lead too hot{NOT hart}, you had melted plastic!

Dang no edit button.

[Guest guest]

BTW: I even remember building a HEATH-KIT Digital Thermometer that used VACCUUM TUBES!

Now who remembers Heath-Kit and Vaccuum tubes?

As far as I know Heath Kit is long gone, but I think you can still, on occasion, find a vaccuum tube here or there.

[-klb-]

And Radio Shack is not the only place on the decline for hobbyist level electronics.

Altex electronics used to stock a lot of component level stuff. They still stock a full range of Weller soldering irons and parts, but they are not restocking much of anything at the electronic component level. They have gone more towards A/V, security, and computer parts.

While electronics was never a large portion of Fry's electronics, and they still have quite a selection at some locations, I'm underwhelmed with pricing, and I think they are reducing the selection that they restock.

Anybody in DFW, ought to look up Tanner Electronics some time. While they are largely surplus, and have odd turnover in what they carry from month to month, they do stock a surprising range of electronics components.

As for on line, I really like SparkFun.com for all the interesting, and unusual components that they bring to the hobbyist. From parts that you can't get from mouser, or digikey, to proto boards that bring SMD parts out to 0.10 inch headers, they have a really nice range of items.

[Guest guest]

The only place I have around me is Skycraft Surplus.

All the really great Electronic stores got shut out when the Rat Shack opened up. Prior to Radio Shack we had:

Olson's TV Repair/Parts and Service
Lafayette Electronics
And about 4 other Ma and Pa type stores that I can't recall the names.

But when Radio Shack came on the scene with all their components and parts, thousands of them, maybe millions?, all these stores ended up folding in or about 2 to 3-1/2 years.

The only survivor is SkyCraft Surplus Parts. Everyone else is long, long gone. Radio Shack killed them off, and then after they finally murdered off ALL their competition, then they{Radio Shack} decides to QUIT selling loose electronic components and kits like they originally did.