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Problem with soldering gun
Guys, electronics technology and densities have changed quite a bit
over the past 40 or so years. My first two soldering tools back in the 1950s were a 100-Watt American Beauty soldering iron, and a Weller Soldering Gun. By around 1965, both were too large and bulky to do precision work on the by then modern electronic, so I purchased a 37-Watt pencil iron (an Ungar Woodburner we called it at that time) which served my needs up to roughly 1989, when I added a miniature, variable temperature soldering iron to my collection which remains in use today. That original Weller Soldering Gun fell into disuse at least 25 years ago, except for emergency use in panic situation to light cigarettes, although I do take note of the fact that it was very useful for making quick-fix field repairs on the older, low-density, vacuum tube electronics, tinning the ends of power cords, etc. I continue to use the 100-Watt American Beauty through this day, but only for relatively heavy job like soldering the braid on RG-8U cables to the connectors. Works fine on that application, particularly since its temperature tends to remain rather constant so it doesn't either oxidize most solders or destroy the item that the cable is being attached to. Arguably, most of the soldering I do today is performed by my temperature controlled iron, generally at temperature settings of 625 or 720 degrees depending on the particular solder that I am using. Once or twice a year do I resort resort to the American Beauty. (It was a gift from my dad back in 1955 and remains in occasional use through this day.) Even years back, I simply can't remember any soldering iron tip that was pure copper (except for some of those antique iron that you heated on your gas stove). Soldering iron tips are usually plated with an iron coating, and for very good reason. The iron coating slow the pitting and eventual disolution of the tip in molten solder, which in turn extends the life of the tip. Kindest regards, Harry C. p.s., I now recall that the earliest Weller Soldering Gun tips were bare copper, which required you to replace them at the rate of about 1 tip per week in regular daily use. Those sold today are iron coated. Still, today I know of no one using Weller Soldering Guns for electronics, however, for the arts and crafts they can be very useful. |
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