how to avoid cold solder joints

[jake_xms3_punk]

last night i was rewiring my strat and most of it was fine but on some connections the solder went like jelly when i moved the wire and i had to hold the wire there until it finally dried. even when it did dry it was a dull grey not shiney silver. any tips? i've been soldering for years and get this problem from time to time. is it the solder? the iron? or my technique? thanks

 

[Silver777Guitarist]

Re: how to avoid cold solder joints

well I get this alot too its never affected my tone, but my guess says it comes from the soldering iron getting clumps on the tip from regular use, but my guess is as good as yours.

 

[GuitarDoc]

Re: how to avoid cold solder joints

And don't use an excess of solder. You don't need a puddle for the wires to go swimming in, just enough to flow around/over/through the wire and onto what you are soldering it to. For example, on the back of a pot, it should flow rapidly making a thin coat not a big thick drop/puddle/pile.

If it flows thinly, you know that you got it hot enough to stick and make a perfect mechanical and electrical connection. If you hold the wires very still while it cools, it should "dry" and still be shiney and silvery...not dull and grey.

 

[Ed Hunter]

Re: how to avoid cold solder joints

dont blow on the connection to make it cool quicker or have any fans going. and make sure your iron is at least 35 watts, i use a 45 watter

 

[ErikH]

Re: how to avoid cold solder joints

First, make sure the tip is clean and tinned before using the iron.
Second, make sure the iron is the right temp - 40 watters and up - I highly recommend a variable temp iron, not the cheap ones at Radio Shack.
Third, heat the components that will be soldered together, don't clump solder on one of them and expect it to hold with the other. In other words, heat the wire and tab at the same time, apply solder, get out. Done.

A way to keep the wire from pulling away from the tab on the pot is to first make sure no old solder is on the tab, put the wire in the hole and bend it to old it there. Heat the connection, apply the solder, get out. Done.

For the back of the pots, well, I keep it simple and try not to solder there at all. BUT, if you have to, again heat the connection, apply the solder (I use the iron tip to hold the wire down), with the solder flowing, grab a small flathead screwdriver, replace the iron with the screwdriver holding the wire down. Let it cool. Done.

It take's patience to solder and knowing to solder the connection and not to apply blobs of solder on the tip to the connections. Keeping the iron's tip clean is very important for efficient heat dispersion.

 

[idsnowdog]

Re: how to avoid cold solder joints

Like Eric said a higher wattage iron works well. I then clean the tip with a little steel wool to remove any residue. After cleaning I tin the tip in a little tinning compound before each joint and I make sure the solder has a little bit of flux on it. A combination of these methods makes the solder flow easily and harden fast and uniformly.

 

[King IzzO)))]

Re: how to avoid cold solder joints

Don't move.