Tips on soldering

[ottoxf]

I am soldering my first keyboard, and are there any specific things I should be aware of that go wrong commonly or any tips in specific.

[jamster]

Practice on old scrap PCBs before jumping onto your keyboard

If you've not soldered before, then YouTube. It's very fast and easy once you get into the swing of it.

[yui]

to get good join, 1st put a bit of tin on your tip (not much, just to make good thermal contact) then apply the soldering iron to the join you want to solder and then put solder in that same join but if possible not on the iron, but near it.
but yeah practice makes perfect, depending on how comfortable you feel with soldering you can either 1st get a scrap piece of electronic or a few cheap kits off e-bay. some of them are 1$ and easy to solder and make for fun toys after the fact as well.
get yourself into a spot with good light and decent ventilation.
if you do not have one already getting a temperature controlled iron will make your life much easier, as is finding the right tip for you (i like slanted, others like conical or flat, to each their own) i usually recommend hakko 936 clones for amateurs such as myself but other options are available and valid.
and it also depend on the keyboard, if you fell like it is for you a cheap pcb and do not mind scraping it and likely some switches in the name of learning then you can also go and solder that directly, keyboard switches are not hard to solder at all, and de-soldering is where most problems arise.

[Maledicted]

All good advice. I went over the whole process I find works well here. I think that includes desoldering, so you can ignore that part unless you make a mistake and/or change your mind on anything.

There's a lot of good posts in this recent thread as well.

[econeuler]

I'd recommend to watch some videos, e.g., Youtube, and see how it is done.
Then there are some good electronics websites, e.g., Sparkfun is good, here is one of their tutorials:
https://learn.sparkfun.com/tutorials/how-to-solder-through-hole-soldering

There you see also suggested readings if you want to venture into pcbs etc.

This page is also good, I searched on it and here is another guide, doesn't seem to be as extensive though,
https://learn.adafruit.com/adafruit-guide-excellent-soldering

Also some recommended equipment: https://docs.keeb.io/docs/soldering-tools

[jamster]

This is the Geekhack soldering bonanza thread: https://geekhack.org/index.php?topic=42824.0

Full of good info. Many years old, but soldering is not exactly what you would call a rapidly evolving technology.

[jcoffin1981]

You will have more success I think with a temperature controlled soldering station instead of a pen.  I've had issues with pens getting way too hot or not hot enough.  You may not want to spend $100 - $120 on a Hakko or Weller station (well worth it in my opinion), there are plenty of Chinese alternatives available for around 20-45 dollars.  A good tip is also important and if the station does not come with a quality tip with the right shape they can be purchased.

[shs0913]

In my job, I've done a lot of soldering and the most important thing I've felt is flux.

If you have the correct and identical environment, the presence or absence of a flux is the most important factor in determining the quality and difficulty of soldering.


If you aren't skilled and quick work is not possible, the flux will be insufficient. Don't forget to buy the flux.

[Rob27shred]

In my job, I've done a lot of soldering and the most important thing I've felt is flux.

If you have the correct and identical environment, the presence or absence of a flux is the most important factor in determining the quality and difficulty of soldering.


If you aren't skilled and quick work is not possible, the flux will be insufficient. Don't forget to buy the flux.

This is actually a vital tip many overlook cause most solder comes with rosin core (flux core). Although like shs0913 said if you not skilled enough to work each joint quickly the small amount of flux released from the core of the solder can & will quickly burn off. Also flux comes in super handy for having to desolder which is something I'd say a good 85% of people need to do on their first KB build.

[controller-works]

Use a temperature controlled soldering iron. Flux also helps a lot. Watch Youtube videos with tips. It is surprising that soldering small contacts is often easier with a broad, flat, tip.

[Subdromat]

very good hints so far. Just tried to desolder  and replace switches of  an very hairy slimey anne pro 2 PCB. It has been a terrible outcome although using soldering lug and flux.
I think until now  iam  too afraid swap switches of my filco TKL. Seems Filco is even more harder than other PCB. But doing Filco 87 hotswappable would be  awesome

[jamster]

very good hints so far. Just tried to desolder  and replace switches of  an very hairy slimey anne pro 2 PCB. It has been a terrible outcome although using soldering lug and flux.
I think until now  iam  too afraid swap switches of my filco TKL. Seems Filco is even more harder than other PCB. But doing Filco 87 hotswappable would be  awesome

Uh, maybe clean out the hair and grease before doing the soldering work?!

Contact cleaners, IPA, duster gas. All good!

[Pretendo]

Most important thing: get a good soldering station from the start.

Any station you buy should have, at minimum:

- Adjustable temperature (analog or digital is fine)
- Dock and sponge for iron
- Heavy duty, heat resistant cable
- Fine chisel tip
- 50 Watts or better

I'd be leery of anything that costs less than $50 new. I bought a Weller WES51 years ago and it improved my soldering more than any primer on technique ever did. You don't have to go absolutely nuts here, but do NOT start with some cheap stick soldering iron with no temperature control. You'll drive yourself insane.

After you've invested in a good soldering station, you want to get the following at minimum:

- A nice, thin gauge (.032") 60/40 rosin core solder.
- Flux
- Suction solder removal tool
- Some braided solder wick (do NOT cheap out and get the lowest priced wich you can find, there's a huge variance in quality here)
- Flush cutters
- Needle nose pliers
- You SHOULD wear goggles.


Also nice to have, but depending on the job you might not immediately need:

- A good multimeter
- A "helping hands" setup to hold your work piece in place. I like the ones which are magnetic and allow you to reposition the hands.
- Magnification
- Insulated tools for poking around safely.
- Flux cleaner

Finally, you need to have a good environment to work in. This means adequate ventilation, decent lighting, and a large workspace which you don't mind getting solder in. If you can position yourself near a window or somewhere with good circulation that's probably acceptable. A fume hood or something similar is better, but not strictly necessary for a hobbyist who only does 1-2 jobs a year tops.

Once you have what you need, THEN start watching tutorials. With the proper tools you'll pick up the basic technique in no time. Keyboards are a good place to start because you have tons of identical switches which usually only go in one way. The best way to get good at something is with repetition.