Infernal problem- soldering.

[Drummer4gc]

Sure, you’re not wrong. I more meant trying to scrape oxidation off with a knife - that’ll work for a minute but if the tip has already gotten that bad, it’s close to the end of its life.

I found better tip life cleaning with brass than I did with a sponge. That’s a quick plunge into the brass to remove excess solder after each joint, not scraping and sanding away the tip aggressively.

[galaxiex]

I like the brass “wool” rather than the wet sponge.
I just feel like the wet sponge kinda thermal shocks the tip.
Plus it cools it off just when I want it at its hottest for soldering.

[pdf64]

The sponge just needs to be slightly damp, not sopping wet, certainly not with water pooled up.
Bone dry isn’t helpful either.
With a hot iron in close proximity or steaming off its moisture with repeated cleaning, it’ll need redampening every few hours.

[DrGonz78]

I got the brass wool thingy a while back and honestly only use it when I am too lazy to go dampen my sponge. I inherited an old Weller 60 watt iron from my grandfather years ago and I changed the tip first thing. That was in 2015 and that same tip is working great. So I think it comes down to technique and what works best for each person. When I clean the tip I lightly and quickly drag it across the sponge. For the most part I rarely use flux since there is a strand of flux in the core of my solder wind. I agree with Pdf64 about only getting the sponge just damp enough.

[Sea Chief]

Well, isn't using brass wool to a certain extent scraping the tip? Maybe not so much, but more than a sponge. So I think they would shorten the tip life at least a bit?
I know lots of guys use them with good result but I just wanted to point out that there is some abrasion there.

The main reason I don't use them is I saw a video that showed the microscopic particles showering off the brass wool when wiping the tip, and my lungs are already poor. Then again, for all I know it could be the exact same thing happens with the sponge.
Don't recall where I found the link to that video, could have been this forum or another, but I've been unable to find it again. Anyone have the link?

This is what I was thinking.. surely ok on a high quality coating to a tip, but a disaster waiting to happen for mediocre irrons-?

[Sea Chief]

The sponge just needs to be slightly damp, not sopping wet, certainly not with water pooled up.
Bone dry isn’t helpful either.
With a hot iron in close proximity or steaming off its moisture with repeated cleaning, it’ll need redampening every few hours.

hi pdf.. yes I can tick this box, so my technique is ok on this. It just seems normal to have a sponge neither dry nor saturated at all, & to lightly swipe the tip across the edge: it's what I was taught: by a fastidious japanese technician (but no tip tinner involved).

Flux is n/a I think, as this is to do with making the solder flow easier onto the area to solder on the pcb or whatever/ wherever the place is to fix a component in. I've never once had any difficulty (once I have a working tip of course) with any kind of solder flow, with any kind of size of solder to do, with any kind of solder wire even the £1.99 ebay tubes to tidy you over.

So if that's me, a relative lowly amateur, I actually don't know why anyone else would use it.. so I don't understand why anyone would need to buy it.

[Sea Chief]

I like the brass “wool” rather than the wet sponge.
I just feel like the wet sponge kinda thermal shocks the tip.
Plus it cools it off just when I want it at its hottest for soldering.

It's worth me trying this instead of the sponge.. perhaps. I'll see how i go with this tip tinner stuff, which..

I found on ebay by putiing in 'tip tinner' I recall yesterday.. now I go to buy it I cannot for love nor money find it using these two search words. Godammit.

[galaxiex]

The sponge just needs to be slightly damp, not sopping wet, certainly not with water pooled up.
Bone dry isn’t helpful either.
With a hot iron in close proximity or steaming off its moisture with repeated cleaning, it’ll need redampening every few hours.

I knew someone would mention this after I made that post.

I do know the sponge should only be damp, not sopping wet.

I still like the brass wool.

[mozz]

Been soldering for over 40 years and I've never used one of those brass or copper things. Often the sponge is dry too. Have it set at the proper temperature, turn off when not using it, and buy quality tips.

[g1]

Flux is n/a I think, as this is to do with making the solder flow easier onto the area to solder on the pcb or whatever/ wherever the place is to fix a component in. I've never once had any difficulty (once I have a working tip of course) with any kind of solder flow, with any kind of size of solder to do, with any kind of solder wire even the £1.99 ebay tubes to tidy you over.

I asked before what exact solder you use but you did not say. Please at least verify that you are using solder that has flux in it. The flux in the solder does several things, including aiding heat transfer, and helping clean the tip. You may not need extra external flux, but flux core solder is essential. Also, the composition (60/40, 63/37, etc.) is important.

[Sea Chief]

I asked before what exact solder you use but you did not say. Please at least verify that you are using solder that has flux in it. The flux in the solder does several things, including aiding heat transfer, and helping clean the tip. You may not need extra external flux, but flux core solder is essential. Also, the composition (60/40, 63/37, etc.) is important.

Hi g1. Sorry but I'm not understanding the point of the question, if I know that the solder I use, is perfectly fine. If I use the solder for the duration of my twin reverb build for 2 weeks flat out working, hundreds of solders, I touch the wire to the tip & it flows onto it.. surely it is up to par. For all intents & purposose, it works fine. And I do not in this example, need to use flux.

Flux is primarily to do with aiding your iron's tip's work as I know it, onto the solder whatever it is you are soldering, you use a flux to enhance the flowing of the solder onto this location. Why anyone would need to use it, is unfathomable to me, & an entirely different matter (I find it is has not once ever been needed as an aid, on any one of the thousands of solders Ive made).

Unless you are suggesting, that the composition of the solder I am using, regardless of whether I find it good or not, its composition is actually hindering the lifespan of the tip.. I can't see the relevance of the question. Apologies. Its mystery after mystery piling up up up & I'm so deluged I honestly can't cope! Thanks for trying to help tho.

[Pixel]

I asked before what exact solder you use but you did not say. Please at least verify that you are using solder that has flux in it. The flux in the solder does several things, including aiding heat transfer, and helping clean the tip. You may not need extra external flux, but flux core solder is essential. Also, the composition (60/40, 63/37, etc.) is important.

Sometimes flux is a bad thing...if it is the wrong flux. In high school I made an amp that worked really well up through most of college. Unfortunately I made a few of the joints using dad's acid core plumbing solder and that rotted away those connections.

Even though a connection may look good on the surface it is worth while to have that extra security of using flux to quite literally seal the deal. A lot of circuits will tolerate more than a few questionable connections. I've even had a couple circuits work really well for a long time and then realize a connection was just twisted and not soldered at all.

[DrGonz78]

The brand and type of solder is a very important aspect to understanding the problem with tips wearing out. Actually it might be one the most important aspects. It seems answering the question would be quicker than the longer post not answering such a simple question. Such as when troubleshooting you don’t want to create a reason not to check a possible problem.

[Sea Chief]

The brand and type of solder is a very important aspect to understanding the problem with tips wearing out. Actually it might be one the most important aspects. It seems answering the question would be quicker than the longer post not answering such a simple question. Such as when troubleshooting you don’t want to create a reason not to check a possible problem.

I find this patronising. If my solder told me whether it had 25 % flux in it.. Id have said so. It says nothing on it. Its solder, it works very well, so nothing has pointed at this being the cause. It is by far more likely as cause to be the inferior coating on the tip rather than blaming my choice of solder surely.

Many reviews on the 'tin tipper' stuff, the user reviews on the amazon page, say it prevents greyed unuseable oxidised tips that reject solder sticking, even resurrects old grey oxidised tips back to life. So finally I found the other folks' examples that I was desperately searching for, for vindication, solidarity, exactly thevsame has happened to others. If this gubbins stuff - so they say- immediately remedies their tips, & no mention of flux numnums, its surely a pretty certain bet that type of solder isnt the factor here, nor my technique.. but the absence of tip life preserver numnums.

But proof is in the pud. I await my pud in the post.

[nosaj]

75 posts later of stubborness. Buy Kester solder https://www.amazon.com/Kester24-6337.../dp/B08YPBCW81
Flux is a chemical cleaning agent used before and during the soldering process of electronic components onto circuit boards. Flux is used in both manual hand soldering as well as the different automated processes used by PCB contract manufacturers. The main purpose of the flux is to prepare the metal surfaces for soldering by cleaning and removing any oxides and impurities. Oxides are formed when metal is exposed to air and may prevent the formation of good solder joints. The flux also protects the metal surfaces from re-oxidation during soldering and helps the soldering process by altering the surface tension of the molten solder.

Good luck with the tip tipper stuff but as usual you are missing the forest for the trees.

Definition of miss the forest for the trees

US
: to not understand or appreciate a larger situation, problem, etc., because one is considering only a few parts of it
nosaj