Newbie solder question

[Mikelamury]

Hey guys I'm attempting my first go at working on my electronics myself. I watched the videos in the course I just have a question. My iron isn't getting hot enough to melt the solder off of the back of the pots. I have it set at the appropriate temperature. 400C(752F) I noticed that when I changed the tip to the chisel tip the 5 tips that came with the soldering kit(which I got from eBay) don't fit snuggly against the inner part of the iron when I change them like there too big. Is this the cause of it not heating up properly? I bought this 'set' from eBay for pretty cheap I'm guessing these tips don't fit? Are there different sizes of tips(inner diameter)? How would I go about finding something that fits if that's the case? Thanks alot for any help!

[beaubrummels]

On mine, there's a set screw on the side of the iron that presses the back end of the tip into the heating element, so I haven't quite had the problem. I've been able to use replacement tips from other manufacturers without a problem.

[Mikelamury]

I turned up the heat to 450C and noticed that one side of the chisel tip was melting the solder but not the other side.(?) Do I worked with the one side of the iron and eventually got it done. Replaced a pot, capacitor, and output jack and took multimeter readings and Everything seems to work so bim thankful for that. It's kinda tricky just using one side (I'm just learning too) but at least it works. I've seen the same set of tips I got come with several other soldering kits on eBay so something's not matching up in my iron. I'm still not really sure on how to find the right size or even know what the 'right' size is. Has anyone else ever ran into this problem?

[eclecticsynergy]

Did the original tip fit correctly? If so, that one should work better.

[Mikelamury]

It did but it was a pencil point. I don't think that would work very well. Would it?

[Clint 55]

It depends on the iron. I got a cheapie on ebay with adjustable heat that gets pretty hot. Before that I would just do a dual iron attack with a 45 wat for the delicate lugs and a 100 wat for jobs which require lots of heat dispersion like pot backs. Since you already have a medium powered one, I'd suggest just doing the dual iron attack instead of getting a different do it all iron or improving your existing one. You can get a cheapie 100 wat iron on ebay for $20 or so.

[ThreeChordWonder]

What watts?

For pot casings you need lots of watts, say 80 plus, to provide a high intensity local blast of heat. If you use a low wattage iron all you'll do is gently warm the entire casing, risking cooking the internals or a bad solder joint. Or both.

[Mikelamury]

It's 60 watts, goes up to 500C(972F) after I turned it up to 450C it was working better but only on one side of the chisel tip.

[Clint 55]

It may be that the iron can really get up to the actual temperature that its set at and the bad contact with the tip is what is messing it up, or it may be that it doesn't have enough wattage to maintain that temperature. Since you have to spend money, I would just recommend getting a beastly one for the purpose of high heat scenarios like pot backs or soldering a ground to the bridge. It's easier that way. It's not much money at all.

https://www.amazon.com/Choice-CH-IRON-100W-soldering/dp/B00XK5RXKC/ref=sr_1_6?crid=3RXI7UWUQBGRF&keywords=100+watt+soldering+iron&qid=1642921991&sprefix=100+watt+soldering+iron%2Caps%2C202&sr=8-6

[Mikelamury]

I'm pretty confident that the one I have is reaching temp because when I had it all the way on 500C it was boiling and starting to crystalize the solder so I turned it down to 450C and it was working but only on one side. I guess because of the spacing issue. And no my iron doesn't have a F mode, it would be alot easier. If I feel I can't get by with what I have I also have a solder gun I might try out.

[Clint 55]

You don't have to worry about damaging anything for pot backs. Just crank up the heat, liquify that mofo, and create a solid connection. It's only pot terminals that you can possibly fry. You don't even have to worry about switch terminals.

[GuitarDoc]

If only one side of the chisel point is heating to temperature you HAVE a good connection to the heating element, it might be that the non-heating side is corroded or is coated with burnt-on rosin. If you have a fine file, file the sides of the tip until they are shiny. Then "tin"/condition the tip by heating it and coating with solder. Always keep the tip shiny coated with solder and wipe it clean continually (while hot) on a damp sponge or on one of these (my favorite because it doesn't cool the tip like a damp sponge)...

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00J66FSY2...dDbGljaz10cnVl

[GuitarStv]

What watts?

For pot casings you need lots of watts, say 80 plus, to provide a high intensity local blast of heat. If you use a low wattage iron all you'll do is gently warm the entire casing, risking cooking the internals or a bad solder joint. Or both.

I've been soldering to pot casings using a cheap old 30 watt iron that was purchased from Radio Shack from more than 20 years ago. Need to use the chisel tip to have enough heat to transfer over quickly enough, not the pencil tip . . . but it works. Best solution? Hell no. But I've done a fair bit of pedal building/pickup swapping and general electrical work and never cooked a pot. Bad solder joints I've certainly made . . . but the problem was always my own error rather than caused by the tools I used. :P

[alex1fly]

Solder gun works great for me. Won't go back to solder irons. They just aren't hot enough. Solder gun lets me get in and get out quickly.

https://www.amazon.com/Apex-Group-D550-Professional-Soldering/dp/B00002N5LO/ref=psdc_3207125011_t4_B00002N7S1

Since switching to the gun, I've fried exactly zero pots and have ended up with zero ground loop issues. Gamechanger for sure.

[alex1fly]

Your tip might be heating unevenly from being dirty on one side? Wipe it on a dry sponge after your session and a few times during the session.