I unsoldered and soldered in the new capacitors on my Vizio Soundbar that didn't turn on.

It now works.

I bought this a couple of months ago, thinking it would be a step up from those cheap single tipped soldering irons. Too be honest, I heated it up, but the resin core solder wouldn't coat the tip, And it took a lot of holding the tip in place too loosen the capacitors.

I did change tips to the finest point that it comes. (Includes 3). That seemed to work better. But why does the solder seem to just ball up and not want to stay attached to the tip. Too Hot, Too ??

I should have taken a lesson in fine electronics soldering. Wish I could get this to feel right. I fixed a LCD TV a year or so ago, replacing the recommended cap from you tube, and Now this on the Vizio Soundbar. But I still don't like the way it feels. I should be able to put the tip on the bad capacitor lead, and have it melt in a second or two.

So let me know what I should buy for the next time, so I can get the job done. This unit from Harbor freight that I used, has great reviews.

[www.harborfreight.com]

Just need guidance, but it so nice to have fixed the Soundbar. Have it sitting on the dining room table where I did the fix, and have it hooded up to the bluetooth on my phone. Will place it back under the Samsung TV, next energy cycle for me

I have a 50-year-old Weller 25wt that I got when HeathKit was still around. Enough for most of what I need around the house.

You may want to lightly rough up the tip, but the solder should flow at 15wts or better, pretty quickly after a 3 to 5 min heat up.

A second or 2 is like 50wts, which maybe too much for the way pcb are made these days. A little heat with the tinned tip for 15 secs or so then a lil more solder and it should be loose enough.
So perhaps half power and an 1/8" spade tip.

I'd think that HF one would do you well.

[smile.amazon.com]

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Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 11/27/2021 03:14PM by Fritz.

Get a tub of rosin from Radio Shack and apply some to the tip of the soldering iron. It will be easier to tin the tip afterwards.

And yes, Radio Shack is still in business. I've ordered a number of things from them over the course of the past year.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 11/27/2021 03:11PM by S. Pupp.

Quote
S. Pupp
Get a tub of rosin from Radio Shack and apply some to the tip of the soldering iron. It will be easier to tin the tip afterwards.

And yes, Radio Shack is still in business. I've ordered a number of things from them over the course of the past year.

Yes, still in business but a fraction of what it once was. Only a mail order option in my area now, closest outlet is one of their Express stores in a HobbyTown nearly 50 miles from here.

1- heat up soldering iron
2- clean tip on a damp sponge or steel wool
3- coat the tip with solder to “tin” it

Then
Touch the tip to the broken component wire and remove the solder. A “solder sucker” device or a desoldering strip will do the trick. Remove bad component.

Then
Put new component into the holes on the PCB. Bend the wires so there is some mechanical pressure keeping the part on the board. A dab of super glue can also be used for electrolytic capacitors.

Then
Dab a little flux/rosin on the component wire and circuit board pad area. Just a tiny bit.

Then
Melt some solder onto the tip of your iron
Place the tip on the circuit board pad.
Solder will flow to the pad and component wire. Touch solder to the joint to add a bit more.

A ball means you didn’t heat the joint up enough. It’s been many years since I was aerospace soldering certified, but I remember some of it.

My brother is a new hire at Boeing. He'll be working on the Chinook helicopters.

He shared this about a recent test at work:

So, we had to solder the following connections without instructor assistance* for our practical this morning:

Gold-plated solder cup pin
Turret
Bifurcated
Hook
Pierced

* = all he can tell you is pass or fail; if fail, you have to figure out what's wrong and fix it

I got all five right the first time, but it took me an hour; had to rework all of them at least once before I felt they met criteria.

Now, the kicker is, all five are kept and marked with my name and employee number, as well as the date. This is for if issues arise with an employee's soldering quality; they're used as a reference.

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[www.youtube.com]

DIY L E A D E R !

I used to repair electronics for a living a long time ago.

I admit, I likely would have given up on that Soundbar, so congrats!

2- clean tip on a damp sponge or steel wool


This is most likely your problem in 'tinning' the tip of your iron.

It needs to be scrubbed clean regularly, at the beginning and throughout in the process.

If the tip isn't clean, you can't tin it.

I prefer a steel wool type of cleaning pad, though I've also used several folds of paper towel to wipe the tip clean before tinning.

Another problem is using solder too heavy and/or an iron too light to get the solder to flow without heating up the rest of the work too much.

I've never used separate rosin ever, having preferred rosin-core solder.

That with tinning as needed has worked well from the time of building Allied Radio Knight Kits (and Heath) 'till now, adding electrical doodads to my bike.

You need to heat the lead of a cap, resistor, SMD, or wire bit and the PCB traces at the same time with the solder touching them, not the tip.

When you're done, the solder joint should look slivery and shiny.

If it looks matte or grainy, no shiny, it's a 'cold' solder joint.

These can fail as it 'losing the grip' on the connected parts (usually from vibration) since unlike two connected lengths of wire, there's no real underlying mechanical connection.

But congratulations on your DIY success!

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I am that Masked Man.

Your boos mean nothing to me, I've seen what you cheer for.

Insisting on your rights without acknowledging your responsibilities isn’t freedom, it’s adolescence.

I've been to the edge of the map, and there be monsters.

We are a government of laws, not men.

Everybody counts or nobody counts.

When a good man is hurt,
all who would be called good
must suffer with him.

You and I have memories longer than the road that stretches out ahead.

There is no safety for honest men except
by believing all possible evil of evil men.

We don’t do focus groups. They just ensure that you don’t offend anyone, and produce bland inoffensive products. —Sir Jonathan Ive

An armed society is a polite society.
And hope is a lousy defense.

You make me pull, I'll put you down.

I *love* SIGs. It's Glocks I hate.

Paste in a metal can. Season the tip.

My solder school in Huntsville, NASA certified and they told you what was wrong and how you cheated.

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Staunton, Virginia

I did it but it seemed painful


Once you get the hang, it's a breeze.

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I am that Masked Man.

Your boos mean nothing to me, I've seen what you cheer for.

Insisting on your rights without acknowledging your responsibilities isn’t freedom, it’s adolescence.

I've been to the edge of the map, and there be monsters.

We are a government of laws, not men.

Everybody counts or nobody counts.

When a good man is hurt,
all who would be called good
must suffer with him.

You and I have memories longer than the road that stretches out ahead.

There is no safety for honest men except
by believing all possible evil of evil men.

We don’t do focus groups. They just ensure that you don’t offend anyone, and produce bland inoffensive products. —Sir Jonathan Ive

An armed society is a polite society.
And hope is a lousy defense.

You make me pull, I'll put you down.

I *love* SIGs. It's Glocks I hate.

I have a flux pen, kind of like a paint pen. I use it a LOT.

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“A sword never kills anybody; it is a tool in the killer's hand.” Seneca the Younger

The police have no duty to respond. See Castle Rock v. Gonzales, 545 U.S. 748 (2005) or Warren v. District of Columbia[1] (444 A.2d. 1, D.C. Ct. of Ap. 1981)

Judge Lee wrote that “we cannot jettison our constitutional rights, even if the goal behind a law is laudable." 9th Circuit Court of Appeals

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Quote
Bernie
My solder school in Huntsville, NASA certified and they told you what was wrong and how you cheated.

Is there an online manual for this? I would love to have a reference to recommend to newbies that covers all the aspects of soldering. It's brutal to get people to understand how thermochemisty (chemistry and thermodynamics), physics, and metallurgy all interact to make you suck at something that looks so easy when you see someone else do it.

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