Suggestions on a Good Soldering station or gun

Ive got a Radio Shack gun. Works pretty good with 2 heat ranges. Heats up way quicker than an iron

IMO, 10 AWG should not be soldered.

18 on up I would get a soldering station. They are temp controlled and are about 50 to 150 dollars depending on your needs.

I would go with a Weller as there are many types of tips one can use. While most basic types are limited.

One thing... always turn off or place the range to minimum if not being used within 1 minute after initial soldering. And once shut off, heavly coat the tip with solder, as to ball it up. Tips last longer by taking such care.

I suggest obtaining no clean solder and no clean liquid flux. As it leaves no residue that requires cleaning. What little residue can be cleaned with alcohol.





Edited by 304-dude - Jan/25/2017 at 3:13pm

I've seen a good number of soldering stations in my nearly three decades in the electronics manufacturing industry. For my money you can't beat a good Weller station.

-Steve-

Oh yes, actually a wee easier since you have a nice sturdy holder if by chance you have only 2 hands. As long as you have a good extension cord, the unit can be placed on a flat board on the seat or in the floor, depending on where you need to solder. I use about a 3 x 3 sized 1/2" particle board panel. It is safe if solder should drip, and heavy enough to stay sturdy and can be lain almost anywhere, even on the engine area. You will find solder stations very nice, and will be spoiled to never go back to pencil or gun.

Edited by 304-dude - Jan/26/2017 at 6:26am

One of the most common mistakes made is touching the solder to the iron, then trying to apply the solder to the base material. This just won't work because the base material is cold and the flux will be burnt off by the time you get everything hot enough for the solder to flow properly. Twist the wire together as in the examples posted by AMXFSTBK39, heat the joint with the iron, then touch the solder to the wire.

Use heat shrink tubing to cover the joint. Electrical tape will eventually fall off exposing the bare wire. The tip of the soldering iron can be used to shrink the tubing. I've done that many times.

Use flux core solder or get some paste flux. This is essential for getting the solder to wet properly. An acid brush with some isopropyl alcohol will clean up the joint afterwards.

The heavier the gauge of wire, the bigger the tip you will need on the soldering iron. The mass of the wire will suck all the heat out of a small tip. Too big of a tip will melt the insulation on the wire.  It wouldn't hurt to practice on some scrap wire until you get the touch. Much like welding, it's not difficult, you just need to learn the technique.

304-Dude gave some good ideas on solder station care.