Re: Returning beginner needs a bit of help.

On Thu, 02 Aug 2007 15:48:39 +0100, {R} <nospam@spam.nium.org> wrote:

>Any tips on my woeful small scale soldering would be welcome, my eyes are
>not as young as they used to be but I an most unsure how to even get this
>solder into the jig

Just to add to what the others have said, what solder is that? If
it's one of the lead free ones, then try and change to the old 60/40
lead/tin solder, which is still available in some areas. It's a much
better solder to work with.

And as Paul has suggested, a bit of flux on the joints helps a lot
and cuts down the amount of solder you have to put on. Cored solder
is fine for electronics work where the parts are pre-tinned, but in
track making, a touch of flux helps where the sleepers and rail are
not tinned. I use Templer's Telux flux or Fluxite. Both are paste
fluxes and leave no problem residues.

A screwdriver shaped bit also helps since you can get a lot of heat
onto rail and sleeper. The pointed tip designed for electronic joints
is not so useful. I find it handy to have one of the older, simpler
soldering irons around with the plain copper bits which you can file
to a good shape for the job in hand. It means that you have to keep
dressing the bit to keep the tip in shape, but it's worth it if you
can make good joints quickly.

You might also want to look at using something like solder creams
which can be placed on a join then have heat applied to make a join.
The creams available have fluxes which do not have long term
oxidisation problems - handy for trackwork where cleaning after
soldering is difficult. However, they are a bit pricey.

Solder paints can also be used, but they tend to have fairly
aggressive fluxes which can have longer term oxidisation problems.
It's worth having a look at Carr's solders and fluxes to give you a
choice of what is available. They are available from Brian Lewis at
C&L

http://www.finescale.org.uk/show_page.php?pid=101

And as Paul says, Nigel Cliffe will be along shortly with first hand
practical advice. :-)

Jim.

	#1
Jim Guthrie	Re: Returning beginner needs a bit of help. On Thu, 02 Aug 2007 15:48:39 +0100, {R} <nospam@spam.nium.org> wrote: >Any tips on my woeful small scale soldering would be welcome, my eyes are >not as young as they used to be but I an most unsure how to even get this >solder into the jig Just to add to what the others have said, what solder is that? If it's one of the lead free ones, then try and change to the old 60/40 lead/tin solder, which is still available in some areas. It's a much better solder to work with. And as Paul has suggested, a bit of flux on the joints helps a lot and cuts down the amount of solder you have to put on. Cored solder is fine for electronics work where the parts are pre-tinned, but in track making, a touch of flux helps where the sleepers and rail are not tinned. I use Templer's Telux flux or Fluxite. Both are paste fluxes and leave no problem residues. A screwdriver shaped bit also helps since you can get a lot of heat onto rail and sleeper. The pointed tip designed for electronic joints is not so useful. I find it handy to have one of the older, simpler soldering irons around with the plain copper bits which you can file to a good shape for the job in hand. It means that you have to keep dressing the bit to keep the tip in shape, but it's worth it if you can make good joints quickly. You might also want to look at using something like solder creams which can be placed on a join then have heat applied to make a join. The creams available have fluxes which do not have long term oxidisation problems - handy for trackwork where cleaning after soldering is difficult. However, they are a bit pricey. Solder paints can also be used, but they tend to have fairly aggressive fluxes which can have longer term oxidisation problems. It's worth having a look at Carr's solders and fluxes to give you a choice of what is available. They are available from Brian Lewis at C&L http://www.finescale.org.uk/show_page.php?pid=101 And as Paul says, Nigel Cliffe will be along shortly with first hand practical advice. :-) Jim.