Soldering and Assembly Thread

[meow a cat]

Wasnt sure the best place to post this, but i just finished my first ever soldering.

I soldered all the diodes on to my WIP, a HHKB B.Face.

Its very relaxing, you just get into a rhythm and fly right through them. It took me about 45 minutes but it flew right by!

So excited to finish this and then my B.Face!

I have the same questions as Bomble as well

Also what size solder do you plan on using on the switches and LEDs?

I find 0.032" diameter (22 gauge) works well for switches/LEDs/diodes/through-hole keyboard stuff. It's thin enough to give you good control, but not so thin that you need to use heaps of it to do one joint.

I use MG Chemicals 63/37 0.032". I've also used MG Chemicals 60/40 0.032", and that worked great as well.

[jaesen]

Wasnt sure the best place to post this, but i just finished my first ever soldering.

I soldered all the diodes on to my WIP, a HHKB B.Face.

Its very relaxing, you just get into a rhythm and fly right through them. It took me about 45 minutes but it flew right by!

So excited to finish this and then my B.Face!

I have the same questions as Bomble as well

Also what size solder do you plan on using on the switches and LEDs?

I find 0.032" diameter (22 gauge) works well for switches/LEDs/diodes/through-hole keyboard stuff. It's thin enough to give you good control, but not so thin that you need to use heaps of it to do one joint.

I use MG Chemicals 63/37 0.032". I've also used MG Chemicals 60/40 0.032", and that worked great as well.

Ah okay, thanks What do you think of the following solder? http://www.radioparts.com.au/product/38411190/29250mcs-60-40-250g-0.355mm-solder-60-tin-40-lead-multicore

It uses ersin core which I haven't heard of but I've heard good things about Multicore.

There's a 0.71 alternative as well, which would you personally use? I have a 25W iron that says its temperature range is 390 - 420.

I can find MG Chemicals 63/37 here in Australia which is great. Tried finding Kester 44 but had no luck. The MG Chemicals one is almost twice as much (61 dollars) as the Multicore one I linked above but it has a rosin core instead of ersin core. Which would you use give these prices?

Sorry for all the questions! I'm new to soldering and doing as much research as I can because I only want the best for my keyboard

[sitch]

Hi, which voltage soldering iron is recommended? Is there any way to check a component is working as normal? Eg cherry mx switch, diodes, resistors and so.. by using a multimeter?

[meow a cat]

Wasnt sure the best place to post this, but i just finished my first ever soldering.

I soldered all the diodes on to my WIP, a HHKB B.Face.

Its very relaxing, you just get into a rhythm and fly right through them. It took me about 45 minutes but it flew right by!

So excited to finish this and then my B.Face!

I have the same questions as Bomble as well

Also what size solder do you plan on using on the switches and LEDs?

I find 0.032" diameter (22 gauge) works well for switches/LEDs/diodes/through-hole keyboard stuff. It's thin enough to give you good control, but not so thin that you need to use heaps of it to do one joint.

I use MG Chemicals 63/37 0.032". I've also used MG Chemicals 60/40 0.032", and that worked great as well.

Ah okay, thanks What do you think of the following solder? http://www.radioparts.com.au/product/38411190/29250mcs-60-40-250g-0.355mm-solder-60-tin-40-lead-multicore

It uses ersin core which I haven't heard of but I've heard good things about Multicore.

There's a 0.71 alternative as well, which would you personally use? I have a 25W iron that says its temperature range is 390 - 420.

I can find MG Chemicals 63/37 here in Australia which is great. Tried finding Kester 44 but had no luck. The MG Chemicals one is almost twice as much (61 dollars) as the Multicore one I linked above but it has a rosin core instead of ersin core. Which would you use give these prices?

Sorry for all the questions! I'm new to soldering and doing as much research as I can because I only want the best for my keyboard

Someone else may be able to answer your questions better; I've only used rosin core solder. 0.71mm looks about right for diameter though, I'd pick that over the larger sizes. Just about 1mm thinner than 0.032". 0.355mm would be really small, better suited for really tiny stuff.

I know MG Chemicals is high quality solder, I can't speak of Multicore as I haven't used it - or any others really, I've been sticking with MG Chemicals as it works really well for me (and I can actually get it for a reasonable price in Canada), and I see no reason to use anything else. The higher quality your solder though, the easier it's going to be to work with, so keep that in mind. MG Chemicals 60/40 is a bit cheaper than 63/37, that might be a better choice for you.

Perhaps someone else who's used that Multicore solder can chime in and let you know how it is to work with.

[trees]

Wasnt sure the best place to post this, but i just finished my first ever soldering.

I soldered all the diodes on to my WIP, a HHKB B.Face.

Its very relaxing, you just get into a rhythm and fly right through them. It took me about 45 minutes but it flew right by!

So excited to finish this and then my B.Face!

I have the same questions as Bomble as well

Also what size solder do you plan on using on the switches and LEDs?

Wasnt sure the best place to post this, but i just finished my first ever soldering.

I soldered all the diodes on to my WIP, a HHKB B.Face.

Its very relaxing, you just get into a rhythm and fly right through them. It took me about 45 minutes but it flew right by!

So excited to finish this and then my B.Face!

That's really encouraging to hear ) I haven't soldered before but have considered owning a Cherry MX board again just so I can own a keyboard that I built myself.

Did you practice at all before starting? Or did you just dive right in?

Hi guys, I didnt do any practice! Just watched a lot of videos and was pretty confident in how it all worked.

I used 22 gauge 63/27 rosin core solder, the kind that meow a cat said. I think mine was i different brand, but i dont have the packaging any more so im not sure.

I also got all my switches soldered in, and it was easier than the diodes.

My HHKB B.face is complete!

[gabba-gool]

Wasnt sure the best place to post this, but i just finished my first ever soldering.

I soldered all the diodes on to my WIP, a HHKB B.Face.

Its very relaxing, you just get into a rhythm and fly right through them. It took me about 45 minutes but it flew right by!

So excited to finish this and then my B.Face!

I have the same questions as Bomble as well

Also what size solder do you plan on using on the switches and LEDs?

Wasnt sure the best place to post this, but i just finished my first ever soldering.

I soldered all the diodes on to my WIP, a HHKB B.Face.

Its very relaxing, you just get into a rhythm and fly right through them. It took me about 45 minutes but it flew right by!

So excited to finish this and then my B.Face!

That's really encouraging to hear ) I haven't soldered before but have considered owning a Cherry MX board again just so I can own a keyboard that I built myself.

Did you practice at all before starting? Or did you just dive right in?

Hi guys, I didnt do any practice! Just watched a lot of videos and was pretty confident in how it all worked.

I used 22 gauge 63/27 rosin core solder, the kind that meow a cat said. I think mine was i different brand, but i dont have the packaging any more so im not sure.

I also got all my switches soldered in, and it was easier than the diodes.

My HHKB B.face is complete!

Awesome that your board is complete! And you answered the solder gauge question I had so double points. I don't think I'm as confident as you so I will probably do a few runs on a practice board     

[ripwallet]

With this upcoming winkeyless group by i'm considering doing all the soldering myself i can borrow the equipment from a friend, but i have zero experience. If i don't get into the pre soldered units i'll have to consider doing the work myself i'm confident i could do it.