Sodering Need Help

Model Railroader Layouts and layout building
1

I am new at doing this and never did it before on a layout just getting started
can someone plz help me and give me some tips and what would work best
thanks have a great day

Craig

2

I think its just trial & error on doing sodering I’am still learning to soder getting better all the time.

3

Are you wanting to solder rail or wires? For rail joints, heat up your soldering iron and apply some rosin flux paste to the joint. Once the iron is heated, touch it to the top of the rail and wait until the rosin begins to bubble. Then touch some solder to the joint and wait until it flows into the joint. This should only take a couple of seconds and make sure that you don’t over do it. For wires, it doesn’t have to be perfect, just heat it up and touch it with solder.

4

Do a search of the forums. However it will work best if you use the word solder instead of soder (whatever that is?) You will find several threads with a great deal of information about soldering techniques. Some pointers:

  1. for most hobby work, a 25 to 40 watt iron will work best.
  2. pretin the work and the iron. (Put some solder on the parts before you join them)
  3. remove the iron as soon as the solder flows into the joint.
  4. work quickly so you do not melt things that shouldn’t be melted (like the plastic ties).
  5. practice, practice, practice.

Soldering is not hard but does take some time to master. Do master it because it is very commonly needed in this hobby!

5

Howmus, those were great tips.

6

Whenever possible, especially in electronics, stay away from acid-based fluxes. If cured joints are not THOROUGHLY cleaned, the acid residue will cause all kinds of problems later. Rosin-core solder works very well for most electrical applications. If you are soldering metal parts such as detail castings and brass parts, consider using TIX solder. It is very strong, with a fairly low melting point, which is a big help in keeping assemblies assembled. The TIX flux is easily cleaned after joints cure.
As you learn more about soldering and start using your skills more, you may want to consider a resistance soldering unit. These are similar to spot welders, where resistance to an electrical current is concentrated at the joint. The temperature reaches the melting point of the solder in a split second, and very precise work is made easy.
But the previous advice is the best: Practice, practice, practice.

Mick Enright

7

Try this, right here on the Trains.com website:

http://www.trains.com/Utilities/get_galleryfile.asp?idOLG={7AD6F621-0D50-407D-9856-50F10CF70E12}1

Looks like you will have to copy and paste that url since the forum won’t accept it as clickable. Sorry!

(Hint: Spelling correctly and using search engines like Yahoo and Google can get you a lot of useful information.)

Barry Draper