Re: Couple of noob questions

dlenski@xxxxxxxxx wrote:
> Hi all,
> I've gotten into electronics thanks to a class I'm taking (only took
> until grad school to find out that I enjoy this stuff :-)) I've just
> built my first microcontroller project and am trying to get myself
> outfitted to do electronics work at home. A couple of questions:

> * What's the best way to solder to a DB-25 parallel port connector?
> I've done it successfully, but made a horrible mess of things. I
> started with some stranded 26ga (I think) wire and stripped off about
> 1/4" from the end, then put it in the little hold on the back of the
> pin, got out the soldering iron, and made quite a mess. Is there a
> good way to hold things in place for this operation?

You could get a "Helping Hand". The best way to solder stuff is

1) Get a good soldering iron. Preferably a Metcal, but at least something
thats ESD safe, heat controllable and designed for electronics work. Make
sure you have a good, appropriate sized tip.

2) Have the appropriate tools, including: helping hand, vise, flux (good
flux, not crappy RS icky golden crap), solder wick, good soldering iron
(see above), tweezers, pliers, brushes, isopropyl alcohol (and dispenser),
different types of solder, sponge, solder paste, heat shrink, etc. A good
clean workbench with magnifying light as well should go without saying.
These things aren't that expensive, so don't cheap out, get them all and
good quality stuff.

3) If you have stranded wire twist the wires together at the end before
you do anything. Always wet the tip of the soldering iron with solder and
make sure its nice and shiny and clean. If neccessary put some flux on
the wire (probably isn't neccesary in this case). Wet the ends you wish
to join with solder. (You can put them in a vise indepently to hold them
while you wet them). Then simply insert the wire in the pin as best you
can and heat it up with the iron which will reflow the solder as
appropriate. Seal with heatshrink if you feel its neccessary. Good
soldering skills take practice but it also takes decent equipment.

> * What's the best way to do home made PCB boards? Clearly breadboards
> and wire wrapping will only take me so far :-) I've seen the toner
> transfer method and a couple of others. What's the easiest one to get
> started with? I have access to either laser jet or ink jet printers...

The best way is to stop screwing around with nasty ass chemicals which are
incredibly toxic and will give you crappy results. You think any company
would seriously do this stuff? Even for prototyping? For prototyping if
it has to be done in house its usually done with a milling machine.
Otherwise, you could just design PCBs on some CAD software (Eagle for
instance) and then send them out to a board house. They don't charge that
much. Why would you want to expose yourself to those chemicals if you
don't have to? What do you plan to do with them once you've used them?
Please don't tell me you are going to dump them down the drain.

> * Are there any stores in the DC area that sell electronics components?
> The local Radio Shack is terrible and I feel guilty taking a diode or
> two from work.

You feel guilty about taking a part from work that costs a couple cents,
but not playing with nasty chemicals which you have no good way to dispose
of? Sheesh, I take pens from work which cost more than diodes inadvertantly
all the time. I can't imagine they'll miss it. However, it depends where
in the "DC area" you are. Mark Electronics and Electronics Plus (both in
Beltsville) are reasonably decent. There are plenty of distributors
(Allied, Active, Newark, etc) in this area, although they may not want to
deal with a hobbyist.
.

Relevant Pages

  • Re: REMOVING ENAMEL COATING
    ... product displays and stocks at NON-ham electronics stores. ... wire has ALWAYS been the same to this day. ... Amateurs who are in the know use solder ... this "Southgate Radio" you keep mentioning doesn't ...
    (rec.radio.amateur.homebrew)
  • Re: How Do You "TIN" a soldering iron?
    ... mechanical connection component other than solder? ... on solid core connection wires. ... A wire to a turret terminal, ... Lap splicing is more common in electronics, ...
    (alt.home.repair)
  • Re: My secret geek shame
    ... The Weller 25W iron is a good start. ... "delicate" electronics for things like shielding and heat sink joints, ... solder" items in there that are pretty good. ... Get a set of wires with alligator clips on the ends. ...
    (alt.sysadmin.recovery)
  • Re: How Do You "TIN" a soldering iron?
    ... You have inspected millions of solder joints. ... on solid core connection wires. ... As far as wire to wire, lap splicing is common in wiring, almost always ... Lap splicing is more common in electronics, ...
    (alt.home.repair)
  • KISS PF swap questions.....
    ... I'm not that swift with a soldering iron but I'm betting i'll be a lot ... The questions - Can i re-use the old ground braid wire or will it be ... Should I use a de-soldering wick to get the old solder off? ...
    (rec.games.pinball)