Reddit reviews SRA Soldering Products Rosin Paste Flux #135 In A 2 oz Jar
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The ideal flux for electrical and electronic repairsContains 2 ounce in a "Hockey puck" JarFormulated for use with tin/lead and lead-free alloysDimensions: 2.5″ Dia x 1″ H (64 x 25.5 mm)Does not need to be cleanedActive temperature range: 93 – 315°c/ 200 – 600°Made in USA
I'm using a Yihua 936B (a Hakko 936 clone that is reportedly alright) and this Hakko tip.
Yes, I have this 60/40 solder and this rosin paste flux handy.
Parametrek suggested lifting the board off the heat sink before desoldering (seems obvious in retrospect), so I'll try that. Any other suggestions will also be appreciated.
Edit: Please make sure you turn off and unplug your power supply before cutting any wires.
Parts / tool list below, this what i used but there are substitutes out there.
Note: Main thing that is slightly challenging is soldering the XT60s, basic idea is to “tin” (soldering term) the wires and the XT60s first, then heat the connector with your iron as you put the wire in to get a good fusion. Decent video on soldering them:solder XT60s
My soldering Iron:
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00ANZRT4M/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1
Soldering Flux:
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B008ZIV85A/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o01_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1
Solder (60-40)
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B071G1J3W6/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o01_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1
New XT-60’s and Shroud:
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B074PN6N4K/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o03_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1
Helping Hands (not required, but def helpful)
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000RB38X8/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o01_s01?ie=UTF8&psc=1
Bought this a while ago, but any heat shrink will do:
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01MFA3OFA/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o02_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1
Wire - If you’re new to soldering and need practice, or you’re going to split your cables for Rasberry Pi, or other components, etc:
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01ABOPMEI/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o03_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1
You should be able to clean off the pads, re-tin them, and re-solder new wires to them.
 
You'll need a few tools:
 
Clean and tin the soldering iron tip:
 
Remove the solder from the pads on the heat bed:
 
 
Add some solder to the pads - you'll want a little bit of solder to cover the whole pad, with enough to make a small bump.
 
Tin the wires:
 
Attach the tinned wires to the tinned solder pads on the heat bed:
 
Also: You can use some isopropyl alcohol (rubbing alcohol) to clean up the excess rosin paste - it can get sticky.
 
Hope this helps!
This is the lead free solder I am using... https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01B61TWGY/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o04_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1
And here is my flux... https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B008ZIV85A/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o04_s01?ie=UTF8&psc=1
It wets the tip of my iron just fine, but if I hold the iron against the wire lead I'm trying to tin the wire lead never seems to get hot enough for the solder to flow. It's really maddening. I clean the tip of the iron frequently, and it always comes away from the sponge shiny silver. It's definitely getting hot (and I can show you the spot on the back of my right thumb where I learned that lesson the hard way). I will check for tightness of fit on to the iron whenever I get home, but I don't think it's loose.
Does this look good?
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0747KYF6S/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o00_s01?ie=UTF8&psc=1
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B008ZIV85A/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000G36BYU/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1
This is what I've been using to build my quads
Solder
Wick
Flux
I've done a few NES console builds and a few more NES cartridge builds. This album isn't mine, but for the port access I HIGHLY recommend using the decora keystone wall plate. You can get a gray one on Amazon that comes decently close to matching, and with some good glue work you'll barely notice it's there. Since you'll be using a dremel anyway to get rid of screw standoffs that are no longer necessary, cutting that opening should just take some patience.
I was a complete idiot with a soldering iron, and after getting some reps with it doing projects like these it's kind of amazing what you pick up. I found this site hugely helpful, since a lot of what I was doing was desoldering USB cables from PCB's (for the cartridge builds) and resoldering microUSB heads. You won't be doing a lot of desoldering, however everyone makes mistakes and sometimes fixing those mistakes involves removing solder. There are plenty of youtube vids out there for soldering, but all you need to get started is something like this. It's not the best iron in the world, but it's temperature controllable and something cheep to get you started. The only thing I'd add to that is a little flux, it will help tinning wire ends immeasurably.
Something else that's going to help you out a LOT for the console build: RELOCATE THE MICROSD CARD. Buy one of these, I routed mine to the left side of the cartridge opening, set vertically against the opening and at an angle so i can get the SD card in and out. You really don't want to rip apart 6 screws to open and close the unit, and if the SD card gets corrupted or you just want to change something on there that's exactly what you'll have to do. Move that sumbitch to the front and you'll never have to worry about it.
It comes in a wide variety of forms including wax and a liquid. It removes the oxidation that’s getting in the way of your soldering.
Thanks for the information. This is the liquid flux I ordered. Would you recommend something different?
bit of a newbie, but I have the same pen, and it does basically work like a paint pen requiring you to 'pump' the tip for flux to flow, which is problematic and annoying. The flux is also quite loose, I've found that I greatly prefer paste flux and a toothpick over this quick evaporating liquid that runs all over. pastier flux like this:
https://www.amazon.com/SRA-Rosin-Paste-Flux-135/dp/B008ZIV85A/ref=sr_1_3?keywords=flux+paste&qid=1572457035&s=industrial&sr=1-3
also, given your application, you may want to look into chip quik :)
what kind of flux do you recommend? is this good? how about what solder to use? someone said that .8mm is better than what i'm using.
I'm not sure what you mean by "...more controlled way to connect each button to ground".
As far as connecting wires to pins, soldering is often the best way. A tutorial on soldering would probably be useful if you've never done it before. I recommend lead free solder, some flux, and a cheapo soldering iron with a finer chisel tip. Such as, this one. Or, something comparable. Flux: Rosin Flux. You want to make sure it's a thick rosin based flux otherwise you may have to obsessively your joint and the surrounding area.
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Google images:
http://slagcoin.com/joystick/pcb_diagrams/gc_diagram1.jpg
http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Yy4Wdbp3cpM/VRYTb7T4fGI/AAAAAAAAAbU/AcAbPTgP05g/s1600/2015-03-27%2B17.22.34.jpg
http://gc-forever.com/mega/Ashen/Controller_Trimming/1.png
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The button work by closing the circuit to ground. Personally. I would just solder the wires to the corresponding contacts on the PCB simply because it would make trouble shooting easier on an unknown board. A daisy chain could be fine, but only if all those grounds are a common ground, but with signals I'm not sure that can be relied upon. If they aren't a common ground, linking them could lead to unexpected/undesired behavior. You could probably use a voltmeter to carefully explore if they are a common ground, and if you find that they are, your daisy chain idea would probably be fine. I would use solder and cover joints with shrink tubing.