Anyone know where to get a decent soldering in the UK, i'd like it to have quite a small end and be about 15 - 30 W
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Soldering Iron
- Thread starter mitpat
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Martin C
VIP Member
Maplins do a solder station for £30 (some stores are selling it for £20, or even £10 - I got mine for £10).
It's temperature controlled and is the mutts nuts. It ranges from about 10-15w to 50w. Perfect for all jobs. You can buy a pack of 3 replacement bits for a fiver too, although it comes with a fine tip anyway.
Martin
It's temperature controlled and is the mutts nuts. It ranges from about 10-15w to 50w. Perfect for all jobs. You can buy a pack of 3 replacement bits for a fiver too, although it comes with a fine tip anyway.
Martin
ahhh i have that very same Iron Martin!! Please can you tell me what heat setting / colour do you have it set at for xbox work? I assume not all the way round.
Martin C
VIP Member
I set my iron so it's just past the first colour block - plenty of heat there for Xbox work 
.
Martin
.Martin
yeah i was looking at something called coldheat which says you can't be burned, but the price of £30+ looked a bit ridiculous and i've never burn't myself anyway
thanks Martin C i think i'll buy the one you mentioned
thanks Martin C i think i'll buy the one you mentioned
BTW which solder should i get in your opinion that me let me solder parts onto all sorts of electrical parts (from maplins site)
Somebody on this board said that the cold heat sucked...mitpat said:
But I don't remember who so... I don't know how credible it is.
Cold Heat sux major ass... no... not the p*rn star. It's not good for electrical type of applications... There is no precision(sp) with what so ever. And you can't solder anything small.
It was me and it's just basic knowledge anything sold on tv sucks, or anything sold at ONLY $19.99!!!!
This soldering iron is bad news for any electrical work. First, as Dragonix.Lou said, it's tip isn't very fine. But that is the least of your worries:Dragonis.Lou said:
Know how it works? Basically, the tip is two very small tips with a gap in between them. When you put solder near them, it completes a circuit. It uses really high current and instantly heats up the tip very hot. When you pull the solder away, it breaks the circuit and cools down in a few seconds (aluminum wicks away heat quickly).
Now, lets look at this: so we have a charged tip on a soldering iron... placed near sensitive electronic. Newp, not for me! Besides, I've also heard it generates a lot of static electricity as well. It'd work fine for simple circuits (door bell, lamps, wires, etc.), but don't get one near anything sensitive.
- Greg
Martin C
VIP Member
I think the biggest problem is that the temperature which the iron reaches goes way over what's recommended for small solder jobs.
Martin
Martin
Martin C
VIP Member
get some lead-free silver solder. It has a lower melting point than normal solder (higher silver content).
If you're popping into the store, look for MultiCore(tm) Silver solder. I use it all the time and is nice n thin.
Martin
If you're popping into the store, look for MultiCore(tm) Silver solder. I use it all the time and is nice n thin.
Martin
Actually Lead Free solders all have a higher melting point.
63/37 is the most commonly used in electronics as of today.
http://www.tpub.com/neets/book4/12n.htm
Though the industry is moving to lead free processing, which the increased reflow temps is what presents the challenge.
63/37 is the most commonly used in electronics as of today.
http://www.tpub.com/neets/book4/12n.htm
Though the industry is moving to lead free processing, which the increased reflow temps is what presents the challenge.
Martin C
VIP Member
I was comparing lead-free silver to lead-free 'normal'!
I'm aware that it has a higher melting point than lead solder, but with the silver being added it compensates this somewhat.
Martin
I'm aware that it has a higher melting point than lead solder, but with the silver being added it compensates this somewhat.
Martin
Ok thanks i know exactly what to get (i accidently pulled the d0 point out and don't have a soldering iron to fix it)
True as well.Martin C said:
Ouch!mitpat said:
Good luck, although I'm sure you'll do fine...I just got a broken PS2. But, before I can test it, I need to repair their controller, too! I guess the owner is one of those people that get very angry when they lose. I've had no experience repairing them before, but I'll give it a whirl. I love that type of work.
- Greg
at least i can solder the d0 point to the back of the motherboard now, i originally used the older guide which had me solder the d0 wire in quite an annoying position
i picked up a 1.0 box last night for £30!! so i have an old wires set i had left over from my last install (good old xecuter giing you all the options when u buy a chip).
I am gonna try and solder it in tonight, seems the easiest way seeing as the lpc holes are filled, i assume i can just heat up this solder and drop the wies into it once melted. Can anyone confirm this is the right way to go, or will i need extra solder?
cheers
I am gonna try and solder it in tonight, seems the easiest way seeing as the lpc holes are filled, i assume i can just heat up this solder and drop the wies into it once melted. Can anyone confirm this is the right way to go, or will i need extra solder?
cheers