Society of Robots - Robot Forum

Electronics => Electronics => Topic started by: 123laurens on October 19, 2010, 11:50:46 PM

Title: HUGE soldering problems!
Post by: 123laurens on October 19, 2010, 11:50:46 PM
hello,i am going tru the 50$ robot tutorial and having some problems this you may need to know:
i got the protoboard rectangle "3" from sparkfun
when i bout the thing to solder the ATmega8 on the board it was to big so i just solderd it directly to the board
the resistor whas huge,like 3cm long

so here are the problems:
when i try to solder on the headers,they appear to be melting
there are black spots appearing on the board (is this bad?)
the ATmega seems to be getting really hot when i solder,now i wait 10 seconds before soldering the next pin (will it break)
and lastly,i dont know why but sometimes i solder the wrong hole accidentally and i cant get it off,some pins need to go there!

good news: it seems that ceeping the solder in the squares was easier than i thout,so im hoping there are no arks(the bad thing is,i cant brige like in the tutorial si i use bear wire)

can somebody tell me weather this will still work?is the chip going to work? can i unclog the holes?
what also whud be handy is a good soldering tutorial link to avoid more problems,i bout most from sparkfun for shipping costs,and i now have 0 spare headers! please help!
Title: Re: HUGE soldering problems!
Post by: garrettg84 on October 20, 2010, 05:43:51 AM
It sounds like you may be holding the soldering iron to the joint too long (You should only have to hold the iron on something like an IC pin for about 2 or 3 seconds. - http://www.instructables.com/id/How-to-solder-the-secrets-of-good-soldering/ (http://www.instructables.com/id/How-to-solder-the-secrets-of-good-soldering/)) or your iron is way too hot. It is also possible these 'black marks' are simply oxidization or other contaminants (grease, wire shielding...) from dirty wires/solder points. Either way, you should not be seeing black marks where you solder.

Some tips:
Get a fine tip for your iron.
Use flux core solder.
Lead solder is bad for you, but easier to work with (lower temps) - I am not advising you to use leaded solder, but it may be easier.
Make sure your iron is FULLY heated before you start.
Keep the tip clean - dry tip cleaner (steal or brass cleaning pad).
Clean your points with alcohol or other cleaner before you solder.
Try tinning the tip. (http://www.instructables.com/id/Soldering-101%3A-Lesson-1%3A-Tin-the-Tip/ (http://www.instructables.com/id/Soldering-101%3A-Lesson-1%3A-Tin-the-Tip/))
Title: Re: HUGE soldering problems!
Post by: blackbeard on October 20, 2010, 06:53:30 AM
tinning and proper handling are essential. remember that you're not trying to melt solder onto your iron and then glob it onto your joint so much as you need to heat th joint in a way that it will accept the solder. tin your tip by putting a little bit of solder on the end and then tap the joint at about a 45 degree angle touching both the pad and the leads from the part. keep it there only for about a second while you dab solder from the other side onto your joint. if done correctly the solder should flow on the entire exposed copper area leaving a cone shape with a tinned piece of the component's terminal. if the joint looks like a bubble or it is very round then re flow it. it is critical that you only use the solder you need to properly solder the joint. don't glob as much solder you can onto the thing! you will probably need to scrap this particular try and start again. you should get a jack for that chip too since it makes atmegas are expensive