ARGH! First try at DC jack soldering...

[Vicenarian]

Ok, so I want to learn how to do DC jack replacements (and yes, I have read through almost every thread on this site regarding it), but I can't seem to get it to work for me. I'm working on a Compaq v6000 series unit (practice unit), which has the DC jack on a separate circuit board. So, the DC jack has four "legs" which are just for mechanical attachment, and then like 3-4 actual electrical contact pins.

So, I first cleaned all the jacks contacts with isopropyl alcohol, tinned my iron, added some new solder to the old joints (to soften them), heated up each join one at a time, tried to use my solder sucker, but the thing won't suck up the solder! Is there a secret to this? The electrical contact pins are like 1 mm in size, crazy small. I'm also wondering if there are solder suckers that have smaller tips? Not sure if that would help anyway.

Edit: Here's a pic. The DC jack's contacts and legs are on the left. The rightmost ones are for the integrated USB connector.

Edit:The pic is just one off the web, not actual pic.

I know my equipment isn't all that expensive (hey, I have a budget to live with right now), but anyway, I'll list it:

45W Pencil tip Radioshack type Iron
Generic Solder Sucker
Lead-Free Rosin Core Solder
Sponge
etc.

Another thing I was wondering about, after trying to solder for about 20 minutes, part of the tip of my iron has kind of "chipped" or broken off. Do these irons have a thermostat or something, or do I need to unplug it every so often so it doesn't get too hot (assuming that was what broke the tip)?

I would love to spring for a more expensive iron, or even a hot air rework station, but right now, funds are limited. Maybe next month.

 

[14049752]

Here is 100% of your problem:

45W Pencil tip Radioshack type Iron

It probably doesn't get hot enough to even start to melt the solder.


Edit: From your picture, you also need to scrape off that resin covering the solder.

 

[Vicenarian]

Here is 100% of your problem:




It probably doesn't get hot enough to even start to melt the solder.


Edit: From your picture, you also need to scrape off that resin covering the solder.

Thanks for your reply.

I should have clarified, the picture is just a generic one off the web.


And I will buy a new iron pronto. I'm considering a Weller iron with an adjustable temperature setting. Maybe the WES51 which is 50 watts (not sure whether the digital model is worth getting). 50 Watts should be enough right? They have a 60 Watt Weller, but it's obviously more expensive too.


Thanks again.

 

[MobileTechie]

You want a chisel tip for desoldering I find. In all soldering I think you want the largest tip that is practical for the job. Chisel tips allow more heat transer.

Solder suckers are only so effective. The normal sized ones are just fine but it can be hard to suck up old solder. I have to say, my first jobs with an iron, sucker and braid were quite stressful to say the least. The hot air station makes all the difference and it was only like £80 or something.

Braid is very often required if you're using just an iron. But it's very easy to scratch the board or even lift the pads if you press hard. twist or scrub the braid on the joint and that can be very bad news.

The only way forward is to get an old mobos and desolder every single thing off it. By the end you'll have learned about the relationship between solder, surface area, component size and so on. It's one of those things you can only learn from experience.

One tip is that you can only really transfer max heat via wet solder. A dry iron on a dry joint has minimal surface-to-surface contact. A touch of solder on the tip will flow and create excellent thermal contact.

 

[DarDar]

Another thing I was wondering about, after trying to solder for about 20 minutes, part of the tip of my iron has kind of "chipped" or broken off.

Do you find that the tip is "eating" away? The tips are generally nickel coated copper so if the coating comes off or the copper is exposed then the tip will be "eaten" by the soldering process. It will cause a major headache and you might aswell just throw the tip away.

Someone ruined my gas iron tip once by using sandpaper to clean the tip

 

[AdamsAPlus]

Ok I have a question. Where did you get your solder sucker? I got a soldering iron from radio shack but they didn't have any solder suckers. What is a good brand and model?

 

[B Trevathan]

I've been using a vacuum desolder from radio shack (model: 64-2098) and I think the main thing is just as soon as your soldering iron gets the solder hot is to put the desolder tool right on the solder that very second and press the button, If you let the solder cool for even a few seconds or don't have the desolder right on the melted solder it won't vacuum it up.

I have been using a soldering iron that is 35W, you don't need a lot of wattage to melt a few small solder joints. The higher wattage irons just mean you will have heat longer, the tip on a high wattage iron will not lose its heat as fast and it will reheat faster. If you were going to do large joints or if you would be doing a lot of soldering then the high wattage irons would be better but for a few small joints a low wattage iron will work fine.

Pages you might find helpful:
http://www.aaroncake.net/electronics/solder.htm
http://www.aaroncake.net/electronics/desolder.htm
http://www.mediacollege.com/misc/solder/tools.html
http://www.epemag.wimborne.co.uk/solderfaq.htm
http://www.epemag.wimborne.co.uk/desolderpix.htm
http://www.ehow.com/way_5700484_wattage-iron-needed-electronic-boards_.html
http://www.mtechnologies.com/building/atoz.htm
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Soldering
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Desoldering

Things to avoid:
Cold heat or Cold Soldering
and
Radio Shack 45 Watt Desoldering Iron Model: 64-2060

 

[Martyn]

Yes solder suckers can be tricky to use but as pointed out you need to get it covering the joint in a split second after removing the iron. Another way of doing it is to cut the old jack off so you are left with the pins. Get access to both sides of the joints and apply the iron one side and the sucker the other.

 

[B Trevathan]

Ok I have a question. Where did you get your solder sucker? I got a soldering iron from radio shack but they didn't have any solder suckers. What is a good brand and model?

These Radio Shack part numbers may help you:

Vacuum Desoldering Tool $9.89 64-2098 Most Radio Shacks that I have been in have a couple of different models of these.

Desoldering Braid $3.99 64-2090

Desoldering Bulb $4.99 64-2086

45 Watt Desoldering Iron $10.99 64-2060 <----Avoid this, it didn't work well for me at all, I used it a long time ago and I like to have never got joints desolder with this.

Selectable Wattage Soldering Iron $19.99 Model: DSL-050 Catalog #: 64-094

Selectable power settings 20W-50W
Reaches maximum temperature of 900°F (482°C) Most solder used on PCBs melt between 200°F and 465°F​

 

[Snazzy PC Repairs]

I never had much success with solder suckers, the braid always seemed to work better for me. Try to use a chisel tip for desoldering. The larger the tip, the better it will hold the heat, but then again you will be limited in tip size due to the delicate nature of the work.

After a couple of years of doing this, I bought a very cheap hot air rework station. http://uk.farnell.com/duratool/d00671/soldering-rework-station-uk-eu/dp/1498360
It makes desoldering SO much easier, especially for the dc jacks with loads of pins like Dells. About 30 seconds to a minute moving the hot air gun over the various pins and the jack falls off the board.

 

[Vicenarian]

Do you find that the tip is "eating" away? The tips are generally nickel coated copper so if the coating comes off or the copper is exposed then the tip will be "eaten" by the soldering process. It will cause a major headache and you might aswell just throw the tip away.

Someone ruined my gas iron tip once by using sandpaper to clean the tip

Yeah the tip seemed to just be eaten away. Craziness.

Anyway yeah, thanks for the advice everyone.

 

[ATTech]

Another thing I was wondering about, after trying to solder for about 20 minutes, part of the tip of my iron has kind of "chipped" or broken off. Do these irons have a thermostat or something, or do I need to unplug it every so often so it doesn't get too hot (assuming that was what broke the tip)?

Cheap iron. My first one was a Radio Shack one that I threw away after the first use. My second one was a Weller from Home Depot that never had that problem.

 

[wimwauters]

Yes solder suckers can be tricky to use but as pointed out you need to get it covering the joint in a split second after removing the iron. Another way of doing it is to cut the old jack off so you are left with the pins. Get access to both sides of the joints and apply the iron one side and the sucker the other.

For big pins, like power pins, I have a a heated solder sucker (25Watt, metal tip obviously), and I hold it to the other side of the board, while I heat up the solder with my 50Watt soldering iron and a chisel tip.

For surface components, USB ports and repairing laptop power jacks I use a hot air station (just search on technib, I'm tired of linked to it: it's one of them 800 series on eBAY from China)

Replacing those 8 or 10 pin USB ports is so easy with a hot air station; but you do need to get a bit of experience with airflow, temperature, distance and timing.