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BetwixtBetween
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06 May 2017, 4:37 pm

I used to in school. I was good at it, and I really liked it.



Glflegolas
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07 May 2017, 6:19 am

Yes, I have indeed. Comes in really handy, let me tell you. However, it's even more fun to braze using a blowtorch.


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StephenBeets679895
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19 Jul 2017, 8:43 pm

I do, and I'm pretty good with it too. Though I would use it a lot more if I had money to buy stuff to build with it.



The Cat Ghost
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06 Aug 2017, 3:53 pm

NASA has some great guides that cover pretty much everything you would ever need to know:

NASA beginner guide:
http://www.sal.wisc.edu/docs/Soldering%20Basics.pdf
NASA student handbook:
https://protostack.com.au/download/NASA ... dering.pdf



michael517
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18 Aug 2017, 10:41 am

Another Hakko owner, bought it at least 7 years ago. I have not gone shopping for a soldering iron, but I would assume many other companies have replaceable temperature controlled tips now.

Back in the 1990s at some other job we had Weller brand desktop types with temperature-controlled tips but they would break and you would have to replace the whole wand.



BirdInFlight
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18 Aug 2017, 11:08 am

Yes, I started by soldering back a loose connection in a tiny transistor radio in the 1970s. I used to watch my dad in his shed.

Have gone on to solder guitar and amplifier electronics and other stuff. I had my own soldering iron up until a relocation.



Enigmatic_Oddity
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23 Aug 2017, 9:20 am

Yes. I use it on rare occasions for electronics, and initially bought it to install exhaust fans on my router to deal with the Australian summers.



Dear_one
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23 Aug 2017, 11:32 am

Irons are pretty handy. I use mine for various chores about once a month. I had a Weller 50 years ago, and just recently figured out that the tip does not get extra hot, but it does store a bit more heat. I used to ship all the special Ungar products, right down to the poisonous beryllium tips. However, I've done even more silver soldering, and now like using a butane jet torch where I can even for soft solder. I almost always add a dab of flux, even with an iron.

Silver solder is actually easier, but needs more clean-up after. Once I used it to replace the tip of an obsolete faucet stem, and saved someone from having to replace their entire sink-countertop area.



Dear_one
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23 Aug 2017, 11:46 am

Glflegolas wrote:
Yes, I have indeed. Comes in really handy, let me tell you. However, it's even more fun to braze using a blowtorch.


You mean a gasoline blowtorch? Those are fun to the point of thrilling at first.



Fogman
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02 Sep 2017, 6:21 pm

The Cat Ghost wrote:
NASA has some great guides that cover pretty much everything you would ever need to know:

NASA beginner guide:
http://www.sal.wisc.edu/docs/Soldering%20Basics.pdf
NASA student handbook:
https://protostack.com.au/download/NASA ... dering.pdf


Thank you for these! I've always been absolutely dangerous with a soldering iron.


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Hooj
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07 Sep 2017, 4:13 am

Yep, I have three. The cheap one frazzled the tip within a few months.

I took up amateur radio as a hobby and cannot live without the ability to solder.



Aristophanes
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07 Sep 2017, 7:43 am

I used to install mods in playstations and xboxes back in the day, so yes I've used soldering iron, but not in about a decade. Skills that require hand dexterity and precision are not for me, I 'm clumsy at best in that regard.



BTDT
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10 Sep 2017, 11:00 pm

I think soldering is easier if you are cross dominant.



Dear_one
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10 Sep 2017, 11:07 pm

BTDT wrote:
I think soldering is easier if you are cross dominant.


What's that? Evangelical Christian?



BTDT
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11 Sep 2017, 9:16 am

Having the ability to accurately feed in the solder with hand and moving the hot iron with the other.



kitesandtrainsandcats
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11 Sep 2017, 9:29 am

Yep. Several different wattages. And a torch too. I'm no expert but the train wires and train track do hold together, so I guess that counts as success.
The model boat rudders soldered with the torch are still holding together too.


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