28 replies to this topic

[Eddie Fleming]

I noticed on a current build thread some discussion on soldering heavier brass parts. It may be obvious to some and not so much to others but I find that putting something thin under the heavy brass I want to solder creating an air gap between the part and the jig or soldering block prevents the heat from going into the block and makes the job quicker. 

[slotcarone]

That is defeating the purpose of the jig. Personally I have never had any issues soldering parts such as guide tongues on. The most important part is the transfer of heat to the part being soldered and the solder.

[Mike Patterson]

It also helps to tin the parts beforehand.

[slotcarone]

It also helps to tin the parts beforehand.

Depending on what is being soldered yes it does. Always on a guide tongue.

[Larry Horner]

Thanks, Eddie, for moving this important discussion move out of Rick's build. I'm a huge advocate of tinning but in my particular case, I think Mike Swiss is dead on... time for me to get a new tip for my Hako. Thanks, Mike!
 
But going back to the discussion at hand, a butane torch can be very useful and I generally use mine when attaching guide tongues. I tin both the tongue and the brass piece to receive it, clamp them together with a couple of metal spring clamps then hit it with the torch... easy peasy. But these steps need to take place early on in the build as the torch heat can easily puddle existing solder joints.

[JerseyJohn]

What iron are you using? A Hakko 601 can reach almost 900 degrees F.

[Eddie Fleming]

I use a Hako 601 for everything and I never turn it all the way up. Works great.

[MSwiss]

Thanks Eddie for moving this important discussion move out of Rick's build. I'm a huge advocate of tinning but in my particular case, I think Mike Swiss is dead on ... time for me to get a new tip for my Hako. Thanks Mike!

Larry,

I added my response to you below.

 

Rick seemed fine with it in his thread, so I left it there also.

 

What I've noticed about the Hakko, it will go from a fire breather to a dud as soon as the tip of the tip splits.

 

I just went through that issue. 

 

What's aggravating is while the components are cheap enough to replace, heat and oxidation, frequently lock them into each other.

 

Hi temp Ungar's with the replacable tip suffer from the same malady.

 

If you haven't heard this tip before, if you are doing a project and you want max heat quickly without having to turn the iron, up and down, run a small fan on it while in the holder. The air flow will keep the tip from "torching" itself to death, as idling at full heat is the tips worst enemy.

[Eddie Fleming]

Another thing I believe helps tip life is to put solder on the tip after you finish soldering. If you look at my iron in the holder cold it will have a ball or blob of solder over the tip. I may spend as much extra for solder as I would for tips but hay that's the way I do it.

[slotcarone]

I have been using the tip fan for many years and also putting solder on the tip when I unplug it. Two good points.

[bbr]

also the ceramic heater on a hakko, keep it clean, any crud on it hampers the heat transfer to the tip

[Bill Seitz]

It pays with any soldering iron to keep it clean. Remove the tip and make sure the joint between the tip and heater is snug and clean. Also use the right size tip. When soldering heavy brass items with a Hakko 601, the preferred tip is the 6mm one. I've also noticed that after some use, the sleeve in side the tip can become loose and slides out when the tip is removed from the heater. When this occurs, performance degrades and requires a new tip.

 

Soldering technique requires that for maximum heat transfer from the tip into the work there needs to be molten solder between the tip and the work. Heating of the jig will require more dwell time, but the synthetic resin jigs have a low enough conductivity that this shouldn't prevent soldering even heavy brass pieces together. It does require some patience waiting for a large piece of brass to get to solder temp, but my Hakko 601 has never failed to do so on even a 1x3" piece of brass and using tin/silver solder.

[Bill from NH]

Ungar sold heat-transferring grease to put on the threads of aa heating element to prevent them from getting frozen in the handle socket. It also worked well with screw-on tips for some of Ungar's heaters. I found another brand of this grease at a local wholesale electronic parts store. 

[team burrito]

i thought i would throw in a couple of solder tips of my own:

1.  whenever i'm between solder joints, i turn down the iron to prolong the tip. i've had mine for at least a couple of years.

2.  to weigh down guide tongues & such, i use a alum rod & brass weights to hold objects down. 

3.  i use a honeycomb ceramic block on top of a piece of tile for heating up large pieces.

4.  finally, i use a creme brulee torch for soldering large pieces. i tack it first with my hakko 907, brush on some acid flux, heat up the piece until the solder flows & let it cool naturally. occasionally, i use a pocket blower to cool the parts down sooner.

[SpeedyNH]

hey Bill, 

what 'local wholesale electronic parts store' is that? 

thanks 

Speedy 

[Bill from NH]

I forget its name, but it used to be the big brick mill building on the corner of Queen City Ave. & the short street that goes into the Fisher Cats Stadium, WMUR's studio, & Dan's City Body Shop. A few years ago, they moved out on Wellington Road. They sold both new items & components as well as some used stuff. I haven't been on Wellington Road in a while, so don't know if they're still around.

[SpeedyNH]

ok thanks

[Mark Onofri]

Salammoniac

[Eddie Fleming]

Salammoniac

Is that a question or a statment?

[Bill from NH]

Block of tip cleaner. Recall the tiny cans Rat Shack use to sell? Some place I bought a piece the size of a bar of soap.

[Dave_12]

Eddie or put your job on a timber block  . For heavier parts plenty of heat is needed and make sure you sweat  the solder into the joint .

[SpeedyNH]

think Lucky Bob's used to carry the sal blocks. good stuff. 

[John Luongo]

i used 95/5 for some automotive ac repairs, it held up to vibrations and pressure

[Bill from NH]

The Harris Company's silver solders might be more readily available today. They work on most metals other than aluminum. They might have an aluminum solder too.

[Mark Onofri]

If it's too loose, The tongues float. If it's too tight, it might not flow to %100 penatration.
I drill a few small holes to facilitate the flow and penatration. A little for alignment too.