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Pro Tips w/ Spyderz: Building Your First DIY Laser

Re: Pro Tips w/ Spyderz: Building Your First DIY L

FireMyLaser said:
Using a heatsink to cool the diode while soldering is a bit of a myth. What is the point of cooling something you want to heat? The key is to use a really hot iron. That makes it possible to make a joint quickly, without slowly heating the whole diode up.
Click to expand...

Well, it is a known real method but it does take longer to heat up the soldering point.  And I have no idea how useful it is or how much it would actually help, since you would have to heat up longer to compensate for the heatsinking.

Quote from Wikipedia

A heat sink may be used on the leads of heat sensitive components to reduce heat transfer to the component. This is especially applicable to germanium parts. (Note the heat sink will mean the use of more heat to complete the joint.) If all metal surfaces are not properly fluxed and brought above the melting temperature of the solder in use, the result will be an unreliable 'cold soldered' joint.
Click to expand...

Also, what temp is good enough for a quick solder?  Cause the one I got can go up to 950 degrees and says it has a 15 second heat up.   Obviously holding it there for 15 seconds would be too long, so whats the deal here?   How are people doing this?


lasersbee said:
[quote author=leukoplast link=1218324818/64#77 date=1238079207]
Q. Oh no!! But what about soldering and desoldering!?!?
A. Never leave your soldering iron on the diode for more than 2 seconds. They are very heat sensitive! Put a blob of solder on your iron, and carefully solder your wire/driver/pin in place.
Click to expand...

Ok, I have a question about this. Because I was at Home depot last night getting a soldering iron for my first DIY attempt. Although I talked to my dad about soldering, and with soldering you have to heat up both of the points you want to solder so the solder melts right onto the objects and secures them.

But apparently what he called 'cold' soldering is when you do what is mentioned here, which is incredibly unreliable. So is this what everybody here does? Cold soldering? Or do you guys have some kind of heatsink that you use with the diode to help control the heat?
Click to expand...

You took the first step getting the soldering iron...
Now you need solder... Rosin core solder would be best
Then you will need some Rosin paste in case your solder is not Rosin core
Then you will need Solder sponge to keep that Soldering tip clean

Then you need to practice a few hours until you get the hang of it..
There are a few Threads/Posts from members here that link to Soldering Tutorials

Before you have done all that... I would suggest that you not subject
a Laser Diode to any torture... ;)

Jerry
[/quote]

Yes, I got some rosin core electrical solder stuff (lead free rosin core). And I am planning on practicing, but only 2 second heat up time? This seems like a pipe dream. I guess everybody mostly cold solders here.
 





Re: Pro Tips w/ Spyderz: Building Your First DIY L

Rosin core solder is not enough.
Get some flux paste...
 
Re: Pro Tips w/ Spyderz: Building Your First DIY L

So cold solder + flux paste (whatever that does) is how you guys do this? Why are the answers around here so few and far inbetween with soldering? Since apparently there is so many strict rules about soldering with the diodes you would think there would be a little more info here on it.

Maybe I gotta make my own thread.
 
Re: Pro Tips w/ Spyderz: Building Your First DIY L

leukoplast said:
So cold solder + flux paste (whatever that does) is how you guys do this?  Why are the answers around here so few and far inbetween with soldering?  Since apparently there is so many strict rules about soldering with the diodes you would think there would be a little more info here on it.

Maybe I gotta make my own thread.  
Click to expand...
First of all, if you have hot iron, it heats up the components rapidly.
Second of all, most of the stuff we solder to is gold plated, which means it will bond with solder more easily...
 
Re: Pro Tips w/ Spyderz: Building Your First DIY L

Still I am unsure what I should do.

Either I cold solder, basically blobbing a piece of already melted solder on the connection points.

Or, try and solder everything in 2 seconds.

:-/
 
Re: Pro Tips w/ Spyderz: Building Your First DIY L

leukoplast said:
Still I am unsure what I should do.
Either I cold solder, basically blobbing a piece of already melted solder on the connection points.
Or, try and solder everything in 2 seconds.  
:-/
Click to expand...


You don't need a thread. You need practice.

Get an old electronics board of some kind and practice soldering stuff until you are faster and confident in your ability.  Get yourself some "extra hands" to hold everything in place for you.  Pre-tin your components.  Use flux paste.  

I'm a speech teacher with a shaky hand.  I do not work in electronics.  My iron isn't on a diode pin longer than .5 second.  It doesn't take talent.   It takes practice.

Peace,
dave
 
Re: Pro Tips w/ Spyderz: Building Your First DIY L

Ok, that does give me some incentive to practice more, cause the way I was seeing it as it was near impossible to do it within 2 seconds.
 
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Re: Pro Tips w/ Spyderz: Building Your First DIY L

great job Spyderz20x6 !!!!!

I have my ideas in order now.
 
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Re: Pro Tips w/ Spyderz: Building Your First DIY L

When I was learning to solder the last test was to take a length of cored solder and join the 2 ends together with the iron, I must see if I can still do it.... probably not ::)

Regards rog8811
 
Re: Pro Tips w/ Spyderz: Building Your First DIY L

leukoplast said:
So cold solder + flux paste (whatever that does) is how you guys do this?  Why are the answers around here so few and far inbetween with soldering?  Since apparently there is so many strict rules about soldering with the diodes you would think there would be a little more info here on it.

Maybe I gotta make my own thread.  
Click to expand...

There's already a sticky thread about soldering here: http://www.laserpointerforums.com/forums/YaBB.pl?num=1228338567
 
Re: Pro Tips w/ Spyderz: Building Your First DIY L

rog8811 said:
When I was learning to solder the last test was to take a length of cored solder and join the 2 ends together with the iron, I must see if I can still do it.... probably not ::)

Regards rog8811
Click to expand...
Hey rog...
  that's what we do every time we come to the end of one
spool of solder and start a new one.. ;)
I thought we were the only ones doing that... hate wasting solder... ::)

Jerry
 
Re: Pro Tips w/ Spyderz: Building Your First DIY L

^Sounds challenging.. I may have to try that.
 
Re: Pro Tips w/ Spyderz: Building Your First DIY L

leukoplast said:
Still I am unsure what I should do.

Either I cold solder, basically blobbing a piece of already melted solder on the connection points.

Or, try and solder everything in 2 seconds.  

:-/
Click to expand...
You don't blob anything on anything.
You take a wire, and dab a little solder on your iron. You touch the wire to the iron until the solder BONDS with the wire. Now, you tin your diode pins the same way (use a hot iron), then, you touch the wire to the diode pins, and touch them with your iron.
Walla.
 
Re: Pro Tips w/ Spyderz: Building Your First DIY L

That's not the proper way to solder with rosin core. When pre-tinning the wires you heat up the metal and then add solder while heating. If you put solder on the iron and then from the iron on the wire, the rosin/flux has already burned out.
 
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