4 replies to this topic

[Websteria]

I've got a weller Soldering Iron which goes from 350 to 800 degrees farenheight (Weller WES51). It works great, but I wonder sometimes if I'm making it too hot. Before I knew what the know did (duh, it says degrees F x 10) I used to try it around 500 degrees, but it didn't seem to get hot enough to get the solder to flow within about 4/5 seconds and I was concerned about the components. When I kick it up to 600 or 650 it works GREAT, but things get really hot. I especially worry though when I'm soldering things like Capacitors and Diodes or transistors. How long does it take before these items get damaged by the heat? Is this the proper heat to use? Too hot? Not hot enough? I know some of you electronics types know this. :-) Thanks! Jeff

[greg]

I've got a weller Soldering Iron which goes from 350 to 800 degrees farenheight (Weller WES51). It works great, but I wonder sometimes if I'm making it too hot. Before I knew what the know did (duh, it says degrees F x 10) I used to try it around 500 degrees, but it didn't seem to get hot enough to get the solder to flow within about 4/5 seconds and I was concerned about the components.

When I kick it up to 600 or 650 it works GREAT, but things get really hot. I especially worry though when I'm soldering things like Capacitors and Diodes or transistors. How long does it take before these items get damaged by the heat? Is this the proper heat to use? Too hot? Not hot enough?

I know some of you electronics types know this. :-)

Thanks!
Jeff

Honestly, temp isn't the big deal - it's how long does it take to get a solid joint. You shouldn't be touching the components for more than a second optimally. If your tip is properly cleaned and tinned you should put the iron down, half a second later touch your component with solder and it should flow right away. If your tip is on the board for more than 2 seconds I'd say you're doing something incorrectly -- either not having a nice clean tip, not tinning, or have some kind of heatsink somewhere sucking heat away from your tip when you apply.

I personally use a Weller WP35 - a 35 watt iron and never have a problem. I just need to let it heat up for a good 5-10 mins so I know it's nice and hot, clean it with a wire brush, tin it and I'm off and running.

[Websteria]

Honestly, temp isn't the big deal - it's how long does it take to get a solid joint. You shouldn't be touching the components for more than a second optimally. If your tip is properly cleaned and tinned you should put the iron down, half a second later touch your component with solder and it should flow right away. If your tip is on the board for more than 2 seconds I'd say you're doing something incorrectly -- either not having a nice clean tip, not tinning, or have some kind of heatsink somewhere sucking heat away from your tip when you apply.

I personally use a Weller WP35 - a 35 watt iron and never have a problem. I just need to let it heat up for a good 5-10 mins so I know it's nice and hot, clean it with a wire brush, tin it and I'm off and running.

Maybe I need to get a finer tip. The tip I have is kind of flat on the sides, and round in the middle... I do use Rosin on it and make sure all the solder is off, but perhaps I need a new tip, or to clean it with a wire brush.

I know it's at the right temp cause the flashing light which indicates it is flashing... perhaps it should be off...

[greg]

Maybe I need to get a finer tip. The tip I have is kind of flat on the sides, and round in the middle... I do use Rosin on it and make sure all the solder is off, but perhaps I need a new tip, or to clean it with a wire brush.

I know it's at the right temp cause the flashing light which indicates it is flashing... perhaps it should be off...

Get a pencil tip. Fine point.

[dab]

I'd say it also depends a lot on the type of solder you're using. I learned to solder back when Pb/Sn solder wasn't considered hazardous , so my soldering habits have developed around that. I've found that about 350C works well for eutectic (63% Sn, 37% Pb) solder. I just recently started using lead-free solder, and found that I had to kick the temperature up to nearly 400C to get it to melt in a reasonable amount of time, and for it to wet/flow well. Maybe I just haven't gotten used to it yet, but I find the lead-free stuff harder to work with, and the joints never look nice and shiny like Pb/Sn. Instead, the joints have that slightly dull finish, which always makes me worry that I've got a cold solder joint.