Gas or electric soldering irons?

[guerney]

Which do you use? I have two electric soldering irons - one very old one with one wide tip, and this one which I suspect occasionally switches itself off while I'm trying to solder something:

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Soldering-Embedo-Adjustable-Temperature-Electronics/dp/B08Z74LB4Q/

Are gas soldering irons better? Is there one you'd recommend?

Does anyone use use soldering flux of some sort? If so, which one? I recall flux being used in Metalwork lessons at school, in what seems like lifetimes ago.

Does anyone crimp plus solder connections? Or does that loosen the crimp through metal expansion?

Is wrapping some of the plastic insulation with a bit of damp cloth a good idea, to stop it melting while soldering?

 

[guerney]

 

[StuartsProjects]

Gas soldering irons are not 'better' just different. Very handy for portable use. Not as good temperature control as a modern electric one.

If you insist on Gas, the Weller ones are good, had mine for maybe 30years, still going.

 

[Deleted member 16246]

In my view,the only possible use of a gas soldering iron these days would be if you were obliged to do a soldering job outside without access to normal power sources. If you are soldering pipe work - that's a different matter altrogether - then a gas blowlamp.

If you are soldering heavy wires, you need a powerful enough iron.

 

[Nealh]

Electric iron, I use a £10 one with changeable tip sizes. No use using a flat or angled 5/6mm tip for wire connectors when a 2mm will be better. Also solder wire too thin and mostly it goes up as smoke fumes. Get one with adjustable heat temp, flux ( soldering not plumbing) can be used but if you wear gloves and don't add oils by touching bare wiring then should be no use for it.

 

[guerney]

Electric iron, I use a £10 one with changeable tip sizes. No use using a flat or angled 5/6mm tip for wire connectors when a 2mm will be better. Also solder wire too thin and mostly it goes up as smoke fumes. Get one with adjustable heat temp, flux ( soldering not plumbing) can be used but if you wear gloves and don't add oils by touching bare wiring then should be no use for it.

Cheers Neal - would you recommend something like 1mm wide solder? Tin or lead?

 

[StuartsProjects]

would you recommend something like 1mm wide solder? Tin or lead?

You use Tin and Lead, normally 60\40, with a flux core.

Avoid the lead free solder, it can be difficult to use.

However if your going to sell stuff the use of lead free solder is required.

 

[guerney]

An electrician dropped by just now to replace a smoke alarm, so I asked him about crimps and soldering - he said they never solder anything at all these days, just use push connectors.

 

[soundwave]

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watch some of his videos forget a gas powerd one they eat the stuff and no way to adjust temp on mine anyway.

if you do a lot of work then get a soldering station. just check the price of new tips!

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if you need to remove chips ect you need a hot air station.

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[Nealh]

An electrician dropped by just now to replace a smoke alarm, so I asked him about crimps and soldering - he said they never solder anything at all these days, just use push connectors.

The two uses are totally different house sparks are immobile once fitted they just sit there.
An ebike suffers all the vibes and rattles a road or off road gives, you want good connections that won't fail and cause a short on an ebike.

 

[JPGiant]

An electrician dropped by just now to replace a smoke alarm, so I asked him about crimps and soldering - he said they never solder anything at all these days, just use push connectors.

Why didn't you ask him to fix your cables while he was there?

 

[guerney]

Why didn't you ask him to fix your cables while he was there?

He was a young electrician, said he couldn't solder, then went on and on about the diagnostic equipment he had which shoots 500v through mains wires to find shorted circuits.

 

[soundwave]

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that should get you going and not cost a bomb

 

[Nealh]

He was a young electrician, said he couldn't solder, then went on and on about the diagnostic equipment he had which shoots 500v through mains wires to find shorted circuits.

He was of no use ..

 

[guerney]

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that should get you going and not cost a bomb

I've actually got that exact kit, except I also got a cool little storage box to keep it all in. I should have left it in the box.

 

[soundwave]

i only use it for small stuff just depends what you want it for but def no good for using every day.

imo a soldering station is what you want if thats the case.

 

[guerney]

i only use it for small stuff just depends what you want it for but def no good for using every day.

imo a soldering station is what you want if thats the case.

It's good, but I have a horrible suspicion that it switches itself off often, but it's hard to tell because I was using tin solder which doesn't stick to anything very well - I ended up melting the insulation further down the wire, I think, which may have shorted... causing a spark which killed the controller. Or it could have just been a fault on the power module, but I had an inline fuse, which I also soldered, which might also have caused an issue because my soldering was so useless... I'm looking into a decent tin/lead mix, quite thick guage next. I need solder that sticks! Also will experiment with dissolving rosin flux in isopropol, to apply using a dropper. I WILL LEARN SOLDERING!

 

[StuartsProjects]

Also will experiment with dissolving rosin flux in isopropol, to apply using a dropper. I WILL LEARN SOLDERING!

Flux cored solder is all you need, it was invented for a reason .....

 

[soundwave]

will experiment with dissolving rosin flux in isopropol, to apply using a dropper.

i did that and it drys out and goes rock hard again its ok for cables but not pcb work as then a pita to get off.

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it is not cheap but makes it so much more easy to work with.

 

[guerney]

Flux cored solder is all you need, it was invented for a reason .....

StuartsProjects, is there a brand and type you generally use or recommend, with the right mix of tin and lead, plus a rosin core?