Soldering for beginners?

[Katie Wasserman]

(01-12-2014 11:24 PM)Mark Hardman Wrote:  

(01-12-2014 11:12 PM)Sanjeev Visvanatha Wrote:  1. Are there any recommended resources to learn techniques? Online, or printed?

Dave Jones, a forum member and famous for his YouTube EEVBlog has a three part tutorial that should cover exactly what you need.

I was going to recommend the same thing. Heathkit used to provide a How to Solder guide with all their kits that was great back in the day. But the first thing that they told you "make sure you have a good mechanical connection first before you start soldering" went out the window with surface mount technology.

I've used many soldering irons and stations over the years and find that you pretty much get what you pay for. If you're going to do surface mount soldering you do need to get a decent quality station with good temperature control and a choice of fine point tips. You can get away with a pretty cheap stations if you're just doing thru-hole work.

I found this rechargeable Weller station on sale for half price a couple of years ago. While it's outrageously expensive it makes soldering a joy. It heats instantly, turns off when not used, has plenty of power for almost anything you need to solder with electronics work, allows you to plug in different tips in a second, weighs nothing, gives incredibly precise control -- and it's portable! The only downside is the user interface, -- it stinks, but you get used to the couple of functions you really need. I'm totally spoiled by it, but if you can afford it, I think there's nothing better