Soldering to small tab on a socket? (NLJ2MD-V)

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Tim A · #16 Post by **Tim A** » Sat Mar 10, 2007 6:41 pm

Yes, but if you leave a good bit of solder on one of the pieces to be joined, you shouldn't need them.

I use them too if it's a weird angle and the wire won't stay put, or it's a hard place to a get a second hand in. But for soldering a wire on a driver tab or panel jack that's out in the wide open you usually don't need to.

Along the same lines, these work well too.

Sydney · #17 Post by **Sydney** » Sat Mar 10, 2007 9:05 pm

I have that model Tim Ard displayed - Extremely helpful
I agree w Bill - Keep tip clean & tinned - a stand w wet sponge is recommended. If you can afford it - a variable temp iron is your most flexible option.
Make sure you have the appropriate solder for the job. I find a flux pen to be helpful for cleaning metal that is reluctant to tin.
I have small 30wt pencil irons all the way up to an old Weller D550 325wt ( before wire nuts this was the way to join large wire )
For circuit boards & other situations heat sinks are necessary. I've seen alligator clips/paper clips and hemostats used
Hemostats are available @ http://www.sciplus.com/singleItem.cfm?terms=4425
( Also at most "head shops" - but if you went in asking, they might give you a weird look )

Frankenspeakers · #18 Post by **Frankenspeakers** » Sat Mar 10, 2007 9:51 pm

fender3x wrote:I am new at this soldering stuff, and had to look up "hemostat"... I hae some of these jacks, and have never seen a hemostat small enough to go between the plastic and the end of the tab where the joint would go... Any ideas where one might find a hemostat so small?

there are some "alligator" clips that might work These are usually found at a Fry's or Rat Schack. If want the really tiny size, ask for a 'roach clip' the sales critter will know what you want. The politically correct term is "micro-alligator clip". On the left coast they are hardly ever used for connecting small wires to test points... so be be prepared to quote Sir Paul McCartney' famous line " NONONONO, I don't .... no more!"

vexorgtr · #19 Post by **vexorgtr** » Sun Mar 11, 2007 2:48 pm

I normally use a 30W iron...... I find that the size tip used is a bigger deal than the wattage. A fat tip that can make more contact gets things heated up really quick. And as the other said.... tin your wire, tin your post, put them together, and put the iron on them.... watch it melt, take the iron away and DON"T LET IT MOVE....... it will be solid in just a few seconds.

David Carter · #20 Post by **David Carter** » Mon Mar 12, 2007 6:12 am

I'm even more of a newbie at soldering than anything else I've had to do so far on my Omni 10. In fact, until this morning I've never attempted it. I have a 25-watt iron that my dad bought once while visiting and left here.

So, this morning I went into the garage and figured I'd practice with a small bit of wire and a spare piezo I won't be using. I cleaned the piezo tab with a very fine sandpaper. I looped the wire through the hole in the tab and twisted it. I cleaned and tinned tip of the iron. Then I touched it to the tab and wire at the same time. At first I was trying to heat the joint, remove the iron tip, and then quickly touch the solder to the hot work area. No dice. Then I tried holding the iron to the joint and touching the solder to the joint (but not the iron tip). Still no dice. In both cases, I held the iron there so long waiting for the solder to melt and spread that the joint between the tab and the piezo got loose and wobbly.

Finally, after getting really frustrated, I decided to go ahead and do what I thought I had read NOT to do--touch the solder to the iron tip while it was in contact with the joint. The solder finally melted and I seemed to get a decent connection.

Did I do something wrong? How about this tip I've read about tinning both pieces? How do I do that?

Thanks for all the help!!!

LelandCrooks · #21 Post by **LelandCrooks** » Mon Mar 12, 2007 6:22 am

Heat the work, not the solder. Put the iron on the work, the solder on the opposite side. When it's hot enough, the solder will flow. Practice doing that. After you get a feel for how it works, you don't need the opposite side technique. But it always ensures a good joint. With the pizeos it gets them too hot. Be sure to be in contact with the wire and the tab with your iron.

Putting the solder on the tip and flowing it to the work can be done. It's much more likely to make a cold joint. Soldering is deceptively hard at first, but pretty simple once you get a feel for how the heat conducts.

Tim A · #22 Post by **Tim A** » Mon Mar 12, 2007 6:49 am

David:

Get a safety pin and a tin can. Practice. No kidding.

That's how my dad taught me when I was 8. After I became good enough at that, I got to solder some wires.

You'll save an untold number of speakers from damage. On a cone driver a solder joint that becomes loose from overheating the tab can be rapaired easily, but the plastic piezos can't take the heat for that long.

I would also recommend a hotter iron. Bill stated earlier that a low-wattage iron takes too long to heat the area, the result being melted parts. He's 100% correct. By the time the 25w iron has the tab up to temp, the rest of the unit is getting there too. For a newbie such as yourself, I'd get no less than a 50w iron, and maybe even a bit more. I use a 140w gun on guitar pots because of their heat sink action. In and out in a hurry, no damage.

David Carter · #23 Post by **David Carter** » Mon Mar 12, 2007 6:54 am

LelandCrooks wrote:With the pizeos it gets them too hot.

Sorry, but I didn't quite understand this statement. What is it that gets them too hot? Trying to touch the solder to the opposite side? If that's the case, how should I do it?

Also, I'd like to understand more about the idea of tinning both pieces and then touching them together and joining them that way. Is that just a matter of applying the same "opposite side technique to each piece individually and then joining them and heating?

Thanks for the help.

Tim A · #24 Post by **Tim A** » Mon Mar 12, 2007 7:02 am

Tinning is simply heating the area without the connection and applying a bit of solder. Heat the tab and apply some solder. Heat the end of the wire and apply some solder. Then when you join them, both pieces are already covered. It ensures a good transfer of heat and speeds up the time to join them significantly.

What Leland meant by it 'gets too hot for the piezos' is that when using the opposite side technique it takes more heat than the normal method and can melt the plastic before it gets hot enough to melt the solder.

If you practice a bit with a safety pin and a tin can, you'll get the hang of it very quickly.

David Carter · #25 Post by **David Carter** » Mon Mar 12, 2007 7:19 am

Tim Ard wrote:Tinning is simply heating the area without the connection and applying a bit of solder. Heat the tab and apply some solder. Heat the end of the wire and apply some solder. Then when you join them, both pieces are already covered. It ensures a good transfer of heat and speeds up the time to join them significantly.

Thanks. I will have to try that and see how it goes.

Tim Ard wrote:What Leland meant by it 'gets too hot for the piezos' is that when using the opposite side technique it takes more heat than the normal method and can melt the plastic before it gets hot enough to melt the solder.

That's what I thought he meant, but I wasn't 100% sure I was interpreting his statement correctly. Thanks.

Tim Ard wrote:If you practice a bit with a safety pin and a tin can, you'll get the hang of it very quickly.

Thanks. This is good to know.

LelandCrooks · #26 Post by **LelandCrooks** » Mon Mar 12, 2007 8:37 am

Tim Ard wrote:David:

Get a safety pin and a tin can. Practice. No kidding.

That's how my dad taught me when I was 8.

My dad was way more fun than that.

I got a torch and copper tubing to learn with.

Though after learning I stood at the vise and soldered adapters for a customer for about a day. I only set the bench on fire once.

Tim A · #27 Post by **Tim A** » Mon Mar 12, 2007 8:43 am

Just once?

At 8 years old, I had to be reminded a few times that the pin is HOT.

An 8 year old wants to grab the pin and lift the can right away because it's neato.

Ouch.

DaveK · #28 Post by **DaveK** » Mon Mar 12, 2007 3:17 pm

This may be heresy to some, but you can also use crimp-on spade lug connectors. They make it a LOT easier to change out parts. The big worry is that they can work themselves loose, probably at the most inopportune time in a gig. Mine have not given me any problems, but I don't use my gear all that hard.

David Carter · #29 Post by **David Carter** » Mon Mar 12, 2007 4:00 pm

DaveK wrote:This may be heresy to some, but you can also use crimp-on spade lug connectors. They make it a LOT easier to change out parts. The big worry is that they can work themselves loose, probably at the most inopportune time in a gig. Mine have not given me any problems, but I don't use my gear all that hard.

Always a nice option to keep in mind

i_got_a_mohawk · #30 Post by **i_got_a_mohawk** » Mon Mar 12, 2007 4:21 pm

Tim Ard wrote:Just once?

At 8 years old, I had to be reminded a few times that the pin is HOT.

An 8 year old wants to grab the pin and lift the can right away because it's neato.

Ouch.

8? at 21 i still do stupid things like that!

DaveK wrote:This may be heresy to some, but you can also use crimp-on spade lug connectors. They make it a LOT easier to change out parts. The big worry is that they can work themselves loose, probably at the most inopportune time in a gig. Mine have not given me any problems, but I don't use my gear all that hard.

I dont think that would work with these, the reason i started this thread is because the connector bits are stupidly small!