Members tdempsey Posted October 18, 2005 Members Share Posted October 18, 2005 Hi!Never done this before but the wires in my Warwick Thumb control cavity have broken off the solder contact. I have very little solder experience - but I'm kind of in a bind because I procrastinated and now I have a likely audition Thursday and I'll want my Warwick - my main axe - to be the one they see (and hear) first. What's the worst that could happen if I botch this? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Gruven Posted October 18, 2005 Members Share Posted October 18, 2005 The worst that could happen is a 'dry joint' which can lower conductance and fail prematurely. Make sure that the wire doesn't move (at all) while the solder is cooling and be careful not to overheat the component that you're soldering the wire to. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members SA Rios Posted October 18, 2005 Members Share Posted October 18, 2005 Basic rule. Don't heat the solder, heat the metal that you want the solder to go onto. It will be much cleaner. Nothing bad can happen becasuse solder can always be re-done. I guess the worst would be a bad connection that will affect your tone. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Rusty the Scoob Posted October 18, 2005 Members Share Posted October 18, 2005 You could burn up your bass and/or burn down your house? Seriously... it's not all that hard. If you're a complete beginner I'd practice on some scrap wires first. The hardest part (assuming you know where all the wires go) is wiring ground wires to the bodies of pots IMHO... I have a special extra-hot iron I use for this. A very, very helpful thing is if you can have someone or something hold the wires in place for you. If they move while cooling it severely compromises your soldering joint. you can get by if you make such a good mechanical connection, but often times the heat causes the wires to move. I have a special little moveable arm thingy with two clamps, works great. A friend will do in a pinch. Otherwise, tin the wires ahead of time (coat with solder), bend them into hooks, make a nice mechanical connection, hold them in place, and just get the joint hot enough so that the soldier flows like liquid over both ends. Allow to cool without movement, and you'll have made a nice solder connection. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members lug Posted October 18, 2005 Members Share Posted October 18, 2005 Clean the iron with a moist sponge or washcloth after it comes to full heat. Take a piece of solder and "wet" the tip of the iron before you apply it to the solder joint Do not leave the iron on the solder joint any longer than neccessary to melt the solder joint and reinsert the wire As soon as the solder melts and the wire is back in place, remove the soldering iron but do NOT let the wire move at all for several seconds. This keeps you from getting the dreaded "cold" solder joint. Clean the soldering tip and re-wet it with fresh solder, unplug it, and let it cool with the tip covered in solder. edit: beaten like a red-headed stepchild. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members rikshaw Posted October 18, 2005 Members Share Posted October 18, 2005 you'll shoot your eye out! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members NineMinuteNap Posted October 18, 2005 Members Share Posted October 18, 2005 You could put your eye out. You could get cancer from breathing toxic fumes. You could catch your bass and/or yourself on fire. You could melt the insulation off of wires, leading to more troubleshooting & repairs. You could burn your fingers and not be able to play your backup bass at the audition. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Rusty the Scoob Posted October 18, 2005 Members Share Posted October 18, 2005 Lug's description is good too, a better step-by-step than mine. I've melted a soldering-iron shaped hole in quite a few carpets... somehow I'm always the "oh, crap, solder this, please Rusty" guy, even when loaded... Definitely watch your fingers, I've done that one more than a few times also. You kinda smell it before you feel it... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members lug Posted October 18, 2005 Members Share Posted October 18, 2005 Originally posted by NineMinuteNap You could burn your fingers Change that to "will burn your fingers" since it's your first time. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Gruven Posted October 18, 2005 Members Share Posted October 18, 2005 Originally posted by Rusty the Scoob Lug's description is good too, a better step-by-step than mine. Yeah... Mine too. It's become habit with me to 'tin' the tip of the iron, so I don't even think about it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Rusty the Scoob Posted October 18, 2005 Members Share Posted October 18, 2005 Oh, yeah, Lug left that out. Lug, you suck! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members tdempsey Posted October 18, 2005 Author Members Share Posted October 18, 2005 you guys rock. thanks, I'm going to try it anyway! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members pbass_groovin Posted October 18, 2005 Members Share Posted October 18, 2005 I get all my soldering crap at radio shack Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members lug Posted October 19, 2005 Members Share Posted October 19, 2005 Originally posted by Rusty the Scoob Oh, yeah, Lug left that out. Lug, you suck! Let me quote the great mind of Lug... *****Take a piece of solder and "wet" the tip of the iron before you apply it to the solder joint**** and *****Clean the soldering tip and re-wet it with fresh solder, unplug it, and let it cool with the tip covered in solder.***** That is what tinning is. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members bassman1956 Posted October 19, 2005 Members Share Posted October 19, 2005 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Thexder Posted October 19, 2005 Members Share Posted October 19, 2005 And if the connection has been made but needs to be re-done because you know you moved the wire or something else went wrong, it may be better to add a little more solder to the existing joint you just made when you re-heat it, rather than just re-melting the joint and letting it set. This will get some fresh solder and flux in the joint and increase the chances of success. If you keep messing up a joint and re-heating it just like that, it will start to dry out and won't give a good connection. I always add a little more solder and if it keeps going wrong and I end up with a huge solder excess, I use de-soldering wick (copper braid to draw away the solder) or a de-soldering pump to vacuum it away when it's hot, and start over. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members boseengineer Posted October 19, 2005 Members Share Posted October 19, 2005 All advice seems very good but a few more tricks can help too. 1) IMPORTANT: pratice first on scrap wire, your first solder joint will not come wrong. Don't do the bass until your reasonably comfortable 2) Keep the iron clean. Use an iron and a tip that has the right size (you want a small point tip but not a needle point for that) 3) Before repairing a broken joint clean up (just like a paint job). Get as much of the old solder and gunk of both parts of the joint. Heat them up with the iron and use the tip to brush the debris away or use a wet sponge to get it off. 4) inspect the wire. If neccessary cut the old end off, strip the about 1/4" of insulation, twist the strands and put fresh solder on the exposed end. 5) Put a fresh coat of solder on both ends of the joint. Solder wire has "flux" in it that helps the both solder blips to flow together. This only works with fresh solder 6) Only when both ends are clean and freshly solder coated, bring them together. Melt the solder on the bigger part of the joint (if they are different size) and when that's liquid stuff the smaller part in there. Use some extra solder if neccessary (again, the "flux" helps making eveything flow together and avoids having two seperate blops) 7) You'll find that most solder jobs require 3-4 hands, but you only have two (I hope). Get a vice or in a pinch someone to help you. Don't fret, it looks worse than it is. All these steps are pretty simple but it helps if you follow them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Rusty the Scoob Posted October 19, 2005 Members Share Posted October 19, 2005 Originally posted by lug Let me quote the great mind of Lug... *****Take a piece of solder and "wet" the tip of the iron before you apply it to the solder joint**** and *****Clean the soldering tip and re-wet it with fresh solder, unplug it, and let it cool with the tip covered in solder.***** That is what tinning is. No, I meant to tin the wire too, if it's braided/stranded rather than solid core, which I assume this is. Bose Engineer's step #5. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Rowka Posted October 19, 2005 Members Share Posted October 19, 2005 Originally posted by Rusty the Scoob No, I meant to tin the wire too, if it's braided/stranded rather than solid core, which I assume this is. Bose Engineer's step #5. That's not how it reads. Originally posted by Gruven Yeah... Mine too. It's become habit with me to 'tin' the tip of the iron, so I don't even think about it. Originally posted by Rusty the Scoob Oh, yeah, Lug left that out. Lug, you suck! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Rusty the Scoob Posted October 19, 2005 Members Share Posted October 19, 2005 oops.... asleep at the keyboard again. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members mrcrow Posted October 19, 2005 Members Share Posted October 19, 2005 the most damaging thing is that you lay the solder iron down on your bass etc.. get an old piece of wood and lay it on that..i have a solder iron stand...but its easy to knock it off while soldering dont bring the iron near the joint till you are absolutely ready to make the connection...then you wont touch anything untowards... remove the iron immediately the joint is made...it cools quicker and re: touching anything still applies... be careful of nicking and melting the insulation on close wires dont overheat a joint...the heat travels fast so dont touch anything with your fingers..i use tweezers to hold the wire.. otherwise its common sense and self preservation... ermmmm...dont forget to wipe the iron right away when you are finished with a damp cloth..do it quickly...this removes excess solder and cools the iron a bit.. and switch off at the mains and REMOVE THE PLUG Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members lug Posted October 19, 2005 Members Share Posted October 19, 2005 Originally posted by Rusty the Scoob No, I meant to tin the wire too, if it's braided/stranded rather than solid core, which I assume this is. Bose Engineer's step #5. Got ya, I thought you were refering to Gruven's post above yours. If he is just re-inserting a wire that was previously soldered, it's probably aready tinned. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members tdempsey Posted October 20, 2005 Author Members Share Posted October 20, 2005 well, i lost my nerve. a postponment of the audition afforded me the time to have this professionally done, I figure this is NOT the project to learn soldering on! but i appreciate the responses and will use them on my son's train set! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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