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Forum Index : Microcontroller and PC projects : A little bit off topic but I need to vent
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Mixtel90 Guru  Joined: 05/10/2019 Location: United KingdomPosts: 7505 |
I was watching a good video on youtube the other day about using solder paste without a stencil. HERE Mick Zilog Inside! nascom.info for Nascom & Gemini Preliminary MMBasic docs & my PCB designs |
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| lizby Guru Joined: 17/05/2016 Location: United StatesPosts: 3310 |
 "Now that's a soldering iron" (In your best Mick Dundee voice.) My father's, circa 1950. I have a metal tin of Rosin Flux like that pictured in the post above from about the same era. ~ Edited 2025-04-29 04:24 by lizby PicoMite, Armmite F4, SensorKits, MMBasic Hardware, Games, etc. on fruitoftheshed |
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OA47 Guru Joined: 11/04/2012 Location: AustraliaPosts: 982 |
Here is a review on the Laser cutter/welder/rust remover. https://youtube/f319mJl-Qt0?si=pkoxkY-KHw6TDgDn I do like the way he carefully disassembles the unit for examination. OA47 |
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| Mixtel90 Guru Joined: 05/10/2019 Location: United KingdomPosts: 7505 |
On the subject of smaller stuff - I've just got a low-end T12 clone soldering iron. They are brilliant! 75W, but all the available power is concentrated in a small element close to the tip together with a thermocouple at the end. All that lot is encapsulated into the tube and has excellent thermal contact with it. The system is very responsive. If it's on standby (I chose 160C) it will get up to 325C in about 5 seconds, possibly less, from the moment I pick up the wand. It will switch back down to 160C after about 3 mins of being left and will switch itself off (requiring a press of the encoder button to switch back on) after a further 5 mins. They are a lovely tool to use and I'm not sure that I'd be happy going back to a traditional system now, even a temperature controlled one as this is much more responsive. Now the irritating bits! Although it uses an IEC power inlet no lead is supplied (probably a good thing really, knowing the Chinese love of string and aluminium strands for wiring). The PE connection appears to go nowhere inside. It is soldered to the PCB, but I can't see a track going anywhere else. The important thing for the UK though is that the metal case isn't electrically earthed. I've had to fit an earth wire. I do wish the Chinese took electrical safety a bit more seriously. Something I didn't know is that the metal soldering tip is connected to DC negative (this is normal for this type of system) and I was seeing 300mV to PE. In theory you shouldn't connect it to mains earth, in fact it should really be via a 1M resistor but that's impractical when you are using a switching power supply. There's not really a problem with connecting DC negative to PE - just make sure that what you are soldering has no mains connection! Mick Zilog Inside! nascom.info for Nascom & Gemini Preliminary MMBasic docs & my PCB designs |
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