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Question about soldering

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ilan1

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So I have built some simple circuits involving the 16f628a in DIP packaging, and one thing is that my solder joints are always nasty. There's some messy substance of some kind (I guess the rosin core?) that gets all over the place and my soldering just doesn't look nice and clean like other joints I have seen.

Could somebody clue me in on why my soldering is so bad and ugly? It gets the job done and the circuits work, but I'd like to learn how to make nice looking joints before I get into the habit of just making crappy ones.

What I do is this:

0. clean copper board using iron wool
1. use press n peel and iron to put pattern onto copper board
2. etch using ferric chloride
3. drill holes
4. insert components
5. solder using a thin solder with rosin core

I don't do any cleaning of some kind. Am I supposed to?

Thank you for any responses.

Ilan
 
You should wash and clean the board after etching, cleanliness is essential to good soldering - and don't touch the tracks, grease from your fingers will make it more difficult as well.
 
yes, definitly keep it clean. I just recently made another pcb and I cleaned it very well with some acetone, it seemed to solder up really well.

What kind of soldering iron do you have?
 
Well theres a few things you can do to help yourself out mate, Ill let u in on the secret.

1) Before soldering, use a ruber (eraser) to lightly clean the copper.

2) Tin your iron before every joint, all you have to do is put a bit of solder on your iron and then clean it off, this aids heat transfere

3) To have immaculate joints, buy ureself some flux. Flux aids heat transfere and the solder will flow around the joint, instead of being a blob of sticky mess. Just apply a generous amount of flux to the joint and solder away

4) wait till it cools and then clean it with a paintbrush (stiff bristles) in IPA.

If you do this, after a bit of practice your joints will look profesional
 
Wrighty said:
4) wait till it cools and then clean it with a paintbrush (stiff bristles) in IPA.

If you do this, after a bit of practice your joints will look profesional

Clean in Indian Pale Ale Never heard of it being used for that. Ill stick to drinking the stuff
 
The components to be soldered must be clean.

The solder must be clean and of the correct type. 60/40 tin/lead alloy with an RA or RMA flux core.
Are you using one of the new lead free solders?, they tend to look a bit scabby I believe.

The iron must be the correct temperature, and clean.

When making the joint, touch the iron to the circuit board pad and the component lead, and touch the solder to the iron at the point where it is touching wire and pad.
That way both wire and pad are heated and the flux in the solder can act on both the wire and the pad.
When there is enough solder on the joint, remove the solder but hold the iron on for half a second just to boil off excess flux. (I prefer to remove the solder and the iron at the same time. But I have seen the technique of holding the iron on for a second recommended in various industrial/milspec texts).

JimB
 
JimB said:
The components to be soldered must be clean.



When making the joint, touch the iron to the circuit board pad and the component lead, and touch the solder to the iron at the point where it is touching wire and pad.


JimB

I do that slightly different, touch the track and component lead with the iron tip and apply solder to the opposite of the lead & track (where it emerges from the track). That way its guaranteed the track & lead temperature melt the solder rather than the iron tip temperature. You can also solder quicker this way as there is no need to hold the iron for the extra time Jim mentions.
I get very reliable solder joints this way and minimal leftover rosin gunk.

Klaus
 
Klaus said:
I do that slightly different, touch the track and component lead....

I also do it differently so I guess everybody doing it with minor differences.

You will find that the copper track is very easy to take solder and can often provide a visually good joint covering the "unsoldered" component lead.

So I mainly heat the component lead wire for a second first before applying solder to the lead. The solder will stick to the lead and excess solder will then gathered and flow out and touch the surrounding copper track. Before the copper track comes to temperature, the solder form a spherical shape but it will soon flattened out. This is the point I remove the iron and solder. Never has a bad/cold joint so I am sticking to my practice.

Like I said, everybody has his/her method that works.
 
actually, the way I learned soldering in school was to touch the tip of the soldering iron to the track and the component, and touch the solder to the track. The solder needs to be as close to the iron as possible without touching it. Since the track is a heating pad, it will smooth out the solder and make the connection shine.

Also, are you using brand new solder?
and does your soldering iron even work?
 
Wrighty said:
IPA is a alcohol solution that industry uses u idiot!

Yer I know IPA is an alcohol solution, what do you think Ale has in it to make you drunk? LSD.

And it is made on industrial scale. Greene king make it my the gallon in B.S.E
 
next time you try scouring your board with steel wool, take a paper towel and pour some rubbing alcohol on it, and wipe the board a bit... and see all the black dust and crap it will get off of it! that's all the same stuff that your solder would be picking up with its flux.
 
Wasnt aware of IPA being banned, im in the UK and its defo not banned here, I use it everyday!

Im only joking styx ure not an idiot. glad to see you know your ale from your LSD...
 
Wrighty said:
Wasnt aware of IPA being banned, im in the UK and its defo not banned here, I use it everyday!

Im only joking styx ure not an idiot. glad to see you know your ale from your LSD...

So was I ;) IPA is brewed in my hometown so whenever I see IPA I think of Greene King first, solvants second
 
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