My recently learned lesson about soldering.

[biggman100]

This is going to be a "toot my own horn", as well as a review-ish of a cheap soldering station. I needed some speakers wired for my winter beater, but, as a lot of you know, I have an issue that makes it hard to solder things. Well, after buying this soldering station, SREMTCH 100W Digital Display Soldering Iron Station Kit, Hot Air Rework Station with Lead-Free Solder, 5 Extra Iron Tips, Tips Cleaner, Tweezers, Solder Sucker, Auto Sleep https://a.co/d/gekpa7x (which actually cost me a whole $24, but is now unavailable), so that a guy who was supposed to solder the speakers for me would stop making excuses (his soldering station died, he couldn't find his solder, every day for 3 weeks it was something new), I finally said, whatever, ill try it myself on some old speakers, and see what happens. Well, after doing all 4 speakers, and how they turned out, I bought a cheap helping hands from Harbor Freight, and tried an old ESC just to see. So far, I have soldered 4 ESC's, and 5 lipo's, by taking my time and being patient. As for the soldering station, it seems to work really well. I wouldn't use it all the time, but, for a once in awhile when you need it, it seems to work well. The only issue I had was having to clean the tip after every connection (this is my first time using a soldering station, so that may be normal), but for not being able to do stuff like that for more than 15 years, I'm extremely happy with how it turned out. My only other minor issue was the caps for the connector's. Because one side wasn't covered, doing the batteries was a tiny bit stressful, because I was so afraid I would accidentally somehow touch both the positive and negative at the same time. I do have to admit to having a little bit of help from her, mostly by holding the solder, so I could switch hands when I needed to.

 

[majin]

waaaay better than my soldering

 

[WickedFog]

Looks like good solder joints.

When doing batteries, I do one lead at a time, and get it covered with heat shrink before I cut the other lead. Sometimes you can't do that, and you have to be careful. I have also stuck a thin strip of wood (popsicle stick) between the terminals when I was doing an XT60, just to be sure I didn't slip and cross the streams.

 

[DavidB1126]

Practice makes perfect

 

[Greywolf74]

Good job on those solder joints! Cleaning the tip and re-tinning it is normal after every task.

As for the lipos I used to do one lead at a time and thats a good way to do it but these days after having done sooooo many lipos, I just do them both at the same time and I try to just make sure that the leads never touch. That being said if they do, as long as its just momentary, it will not hurt the battery. The overwhelming majority of the time, they never touch but I do try and make sure I bend each lead away from the other one to help provent that.

 

[JustnWynn]

Hell yeah, bud! My hands shake so I feel you... great job!

 

[jimdavis577]

those joint look good .... and you'll get better the more you do it .... and learn what and when you do certain things and use different style tips , and use of higher/ lower temp settings. I would suggest getting you a small rotary tool .. with a sanding wheel on it .... i know Dremel makes one that has a smaller barrel wheel for sanding ... that is perfect to get in between soldered joints and usually sandpaper is enough to "shape" large solder joints .... its always better to have a little too much solder to ensure a good solid joint than not enough and have a weak joint .... only down side to too much solder is it can lead to a " cold" joint ..... but using a Dremel to clean up your joint after to make sure its not to big and it fits under any covers or inside heat shrink is a good thing .... and will make your joints look even more professional

and FYI a really good flux goes along way in helping keep things clean .... i use MG Chemicals 8341 flux in the syringe like this

https://www.amazon.com/MG-Chemicals-8341-Clean-Paste/dp/B00425FUW2?th=1

 

[CertifiedMike]

those joint look good .... and you'll get better the more you do it .... and learn what and when you do certain things and use different style tips , and use of higher/ lower temp settings. I would suggest getting you a small rotary tool .. with a sanding wheel on it .... i know Dremel makes one that has a smaller barrel wheel for sanding ... that is perfect to get in between soldered joints and usually sandpaper is enough to "shape" large solder joints .... its always better to have a little too much solder to ensure a good solid joint than not enough and have a weak joint .... only down side to too much solder is it can lead to a " cold" joint ..... but using a Dremel to clean up your joint after to make sure its not to big and it fits under any covers or inside heat shrink is a good thing .... and will make your joints look even more professional

and FYI a really good flux goes along way in helping keep things clean .... i use MG Chemicals 8341 flux in the syringe like this

https://www.amazon.com/MG-Chemicals-8341-Clean-Paste/dp/B00425FUW2?th=1

What the flux???
Its amazing how much difference a clean soldering job with clean cut shink wrap makes. Its worth taking a min to get it right.
If its a joint or part that won't get hot again, use marine heat shrink or a sliver of hot glue stick in the heat shrink too.
It keeps water out and gives a bit more strength too.

 

[Littlemotor]

those joint look good .... and you'll get better the more you do it .... and learn what and when you do certain things and use different style tips , and use of higher/ lower temp settings. I would suggest getting you a small rotary tool .. with a sanding wheel on it .... i know Dremel makes one that has a smaller barrel wheel for sanding ... that is perfect to get in between soldered joints and usually sandpaper is enough to "shape" large solder joints .... its always better to have a little too much solder to ensure a good solid joint than not enough and have a weak joint .... only down side to too much solder is it can lead to a " cold" joint ..... but using a Dremel to clean up your joint after to make sure its not to big and it fits under any covers or inside heat shrink is a good thing .... and will make your joints look even more professional

and FYI a really good flux goes along way in helping keep things clean .... i use MG Chemicals 8341 flux in the syringe like this

https://www.amazon.com/MG-Chemicals-8341-Clean-Paste/dp/B00425FUW2?th=1

I don’t usually do this-but…. this is dead wrong.

You NEVER sand, or grind a finished solder joint. EVER.

Also it is NOT better to have “too much solder”… This can, and will cause unnecessary resistance in your circuit, which causes HEAT. It’s also highly frowned upon as it’s simply bad practice..

Less is more. Get in, get out. The only “cleaning up” of a solder joint is a mild wipe down to remove corrosion causing excess flux. That’s it.

Not trying to start an argument, but it’s misinformation regarding a topic that too many people struggle with doing properly as it is.

 

[CertifiedMike]

I don’t usually do this-but…. this is dead wrong.

You NEVER sand, or grind a finished solder joint. EVER.

Also it is NOT better to have “too much solder”… This can, and will cause unnecessary resistance in your circuit, which causes HEAT. It’s also highly frowned upon as it’s simply bad practice..

Less is more. Get in, get out. The only “cleaning up” of a solder joint is a mild wipe down to remove corrosion causing excess flux. That’s it.

Not trying to start an argument, but it’s misinformation regarding a topic that too many people struggle with doing properly as it is.

I have "trimmed" a joint or 3... wondering how it damages the joint though?
I'm not suggesting a deep dig to disturb the joint but if I get a pokey bit that stuck out... chop chop.
To be clear, we're talking about soldering wires to a connector, not on a board. Boards get soldered to a shiny ball. Not too little or too much and no shaping is required.
Same, no intent to argue.

 

[WickedFog]

I was thinking about this and I seem to remember that a solder joint will have a protective layer that helps fight corrosion. You wouldn't want to grind that away if that is true.

 

[CertifiedMike]

I was thinking about this and I seem to remember that a solder joint will have a protective layer that helps fight corrosion. You wouldn't want to grind that away if that is true.

If it provides a deox layer, this makes sense.
I learned how to mske sloder joints from a guy who was so smart, after he left mit and invented a few things, he decided to come teach us knuckleheads!
The guy was ultra smart but what I learned is from when Zues was teaching electronics with lightning!
We would pull our resistors( whichever component) thru the board, solder a nice bead, then chop off the tail to the component.
This was taught to us as correct and necessary to prevent shorts.
Maybe this is all outdated and wrong.

 

[WickedFog]

If it provides a deox layer, this makes sense.
I learned how to mske sloder joints from a guy who was so smart, after he left mit and invented a few things, he decided to come teach us knuckleheads!
The guy was ultra smart but what I learned is from when Zues was teaching electronics with lightning!
We would pull our resistors( whichever component) thru the board, solder a nice bead, then chop off the tail to the component.
This was taught to us as correct and necessary to prevent shorts.
Maybe this is all outdated and wrong.

My dad made his own PCB's for custom made electronics. He did the same thing.

 

[jimdavis577]

I don’t usually do this-but…. this is dead wrong.

You NEVER sand, or grind a finished solder joint. EVER.

Also it is NOT better to have “too much solder”… This can, and will cause unnecessary resistance in your circuit, which causes HEAT. It’s also highly frowned upon as it’s simply bad practice..

Less is more. Get in, get out. The only “cleaning up” of a solder joint is a mild wipe down to remove corrosion causing excess flux. That’s it.

Not trying to start an argument, but it’s misinformation regarding a topic that too many people struggle with doing properly as it is.

well for very precise board solder jobs, I could see your point. I was taught in the army yrs ago on this and was instructed this very way and have done so every since. I've never had an issue with "joints" creating too much resistance from too much solder or having a joint fail from being shaped. A joint with too little solder will without a doubt have more resistance than one with and will also induce corrosion into the wore quicker.

but this is just my experience, you can call it wrong if you like. I know what has worked for me.

 

[Greywolf74]

Not trying to argue either but here's my about what @Littlemotor said.

You're absolutely right that sanding or grinding a finished solder joint is generally not recommended. This practice can damage the joint, remove the protective layer of solder, and potentially weaken the electrical and mechanical integrity of the connection. It’s far better to focus on achieving a clean and proper solder joint during the initial process.

On the issue of 'too much solder,' I agree that excessive solder can be problematic. It’s important to apply the right amount of solder to ensure a good electrical connection without overloading the joint. Excessive solder can lead to issues such as cold joints, uneven heat dissipation, or even bridging between nearby connections, which could short the circuit.

That said, the concept of 'resistance' in solder joints may need clarification. Pure solder itself (especially common tin-lead or lead-free alloys) is a good conductor of electricity, though not as conductive as copper. While an overly large blob of solder might not significantly increase resistance in most cases, it can cause mechanical weaknesses or trap contaminants. The main concern with excess solder should be about practicality and reliability rather than resistance.

As for cleanup, wiping down flux residues is indeed a best practice, especially when using active or acid fluxes that can lead to corrosion over time. However, no-clean flux residues are generally benign if left on the joint, though wiping them off can improve aesthetics and ensure no interference in high-sensitivity circuits.

In short, achieving a properly formed solder joint with just the right amount of solder is key. Good technique eliminates the need for cleanup or modification after soldering, ensuring strong and reliable connections.

 

[HPIguy]

I always tape on lead backwards to the pack itself so there is no danger of them every touching. But we all have our way of doing things. Looks like you did a good job!!