Soldering stand DIY (the broke a.f. edition) - Page 1
Forum section: electronics / general

author: nunya
author_rank: Newbie
timestamp: November 13, 2023, 07:37:36 pm
content: DIY soldering stand.

author: RoGeorge
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: November 13, 2023, 07:57:13 pm
content: I like that

author: xfint34
author_rank: Contributor
timestamp: November 13, 2023, 08:21:32 pm
content: Iron stand + tip holders + nozzle holder + misc tool tray. A 4-in-1 unit. Bonus: made from sustainable green material. Retail it for $19.99.

author: nunya
author_rank: Newbie
timestamp: November 13, 2023, 08:29:40 pm
content: Well it gets the job done.

author: themadhippy
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: November 13, 2023, 09:09:36 pm
content: we must have gone to the same school of cheapskate bodgery,knocked this up the other day out of bits of scrapand in use

author: nunya
author_rank: Newbie
timestamp: November 14, 2023, 02:25:00 am
content: noice!!

author: Okto47
author_rank: Contributor
timestamp: November 14, 2023, 02:34:59 am
content: Nice , Self designed or with Fusion 360 generative design expansionMy tip holder is simply too , just burned them into hard foam

author: nunya
author_rank: Newbie
timestamp: November 14, 2023, 02:37:53 am
content: I have also made a step by step guide on DIY soldering flux a while back on hackaday. Also kind of a "broke a.f. edition".https://hackaday.io/project/187703-rosin-soldering-flux-diy

author: xrunner
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: November 14, 2023, 02:49:26 am
content: Quote from: nunya on November 13, 2023, 07:37:36 pmLOL let's see the projects coming out of this lab ...

author: coppercone2
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: November 14, 2023, 04:51:46 am
content: I guess you mean broke for time and patience? You could do alot better with those materials.

author: DavidAlfa
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: November 14, 2023, 05:01:25 am
content: I missed this espisode of The Flintstones

author: coppercone2
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: November 14, 2023, 05:12:07 am
content: Why do I think if fred flintstone got dimensional lumber and galvinized wire it would be in the louvre instead of museum of natural history? Probobly get pain stakingly scraped to a mirror finish with a beautiful contour etc. the bolt would be mirror polished by hand with a pebble and it would be in their area 51.

author: thm_w
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: November 15, 2023, 11:53:06 pm
content: You can 3D print a nice looking one. As long as you don't constantly jam the iron into the sides it will actually last a long time.Probably want an auto-sleep iron though just in case.

author: tooki
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: November 16, 2023, 09:42:03 am
content: Quote from: nunya on November 13, 2023, 07:37:36 pmAssuming that’s a temperature-controlled soldering station: make sure the tip isn’t in contact with the coil, or the iron will keep pumping heat into it to compensate for the thermal dissipation.Quote from: nunya on November 14, 2023, 02:37:53 amI’ve made flux by dissolving rosin in isopropanol (at various concentrations, from just a few % solids, to thick and syrupy, probably around 50% solids, and concluded it’s not useful for most purposes. It’s just not active enough. I have used it as a protective lacquer for bare copper on PCBs to preserve solderability. But for serious use, like the more heavily oxidized parts that are what actually need extra flux, it’s just too weak.I would also strongly advise that you not suggest this flux is healthier to use. Rosin is a known respiratory hazard. Sure, the activators in commercial rosin fluxes (never mind the stuff in newer no-clean and rosin-free fluxes) are quite bad and perhaps feel more aggressive, but rosin fumes are quite bad on their own, despite having a somewhat pleasant smell.

author: SiliconWizard
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: November 17, 2023, 01:12:44 am
content: Quote from: coppercone2 on November 14, 2023, 04:51:46 amI've made soldering stands from aluminum heatsinks - drill to two diameters to hold the soldering handle (in a way that the tip won't get in contact with it). A few minute job, nice looking and sturdy.

author: nunya
author_rank: Newbie
timestamp: November 17, 2023, 03:52:12 am
content: Quotewell, I don't do heavily oxidized parts much. It's just rosin flux. And of course it's less harmful for both the environment and ones health compared to many of the commercial variants, I never said it was harmless, I also stated one should use proper ventilation. I think people will do just fine.

author: tooki
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: November 17, 2023, 11:48:14 am
content: Quote from: nunya on November 17, 2023, 03:52:12 amSure you have the disclaimer, but you still make it sound like it’s far healthier — something you don’t actually know to be true. (We know rosin itself is an occupational hazard, because it affects workers that use rosin (not rosin flux) in other contexts.) I just think it’s bad form to suggest “my flux doesn’t have activators so it’s much healthier” when we really don’t know, because despite disclaimers, this might lull some people into complacency. It costs you nothing to tone down your claims.

author: coppercone2
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: November 17, 2023, 05:51:45 pm
content: The fact that the non rosin flux makes noxious choking fumes and eye watering might be a indicator it’s worse then rosin.

author: coppercone2
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: November 20, 2023, 08:33:53 am
content: i kind of want to make a nice version of this with the same materials and minimal tools because its slander on broke peoplealso be careful with cheap irons and overloading them with a shitty holder that sinks too much heat away because over a long period of time the lesser quality plastics and such will melt , then the body of the iron will drop out attached to the head by wiring, possibly disloding it from a shitty mount and then anything will happen.For instance my M12 milwakee soldering iron did this when I guess I was soldering too much thermal mass. But it should be tested for that! its like not doing short circuit protection for heat. The plastic threaded bit melted partially and it was weak enough that the soldering iron tip fell out of the thread and was basically dangling near the lithium battery! it happened right next to me after doing what I thought was reasonable soldering for its wattage. I repaired it with epoxy putty but I have not used it since, I have been meaning to make some kind of improvement but its a hassle....i think it happens when the iron is giving it 100% for a long period of time.

author: tooki
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: November 20, 2023, 12:37:13 pm
content: Quote from: coppercone2 on November 17, 2023, 05:51:45 pmWe don’tknowthat. Immediate discomfort is not a reliable indicator of long term health effects. Vinegar and hydrofluoric acid would both hurt on an open wound, but the HF will kill you and the vinegar won’t.

author: coppercone2
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: November 24, 2023, 11:55:11 am
content: maybe but the deep penetrating acid smell of the flux i am weary of. i doubt concentrated vinegar is good for you either.Usually the bad smells that are 'safe' are IMO 'putrid' and remind you of bad food. For instance nitrobenzene and whatever is in the new paint stripper has a rather putrid smell that makes you wanna gag, and it smells bad compared to toluene for instance, and its said to be safer. stomach churnerbut, 'burning acid' smells I am always weary of. that non rosin flux is alot worse then even the strongest culinary vinegar. i feel like i taste acid in my mouth and my eye burn with the non rosin flux. some how that makes me think its not very good for you. i don't feel it in my stomach like im not supposed to eat it, i feel like its burning me.

author: tooki
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: November 24, 2023, 12:13:05 pm
content: My entire point is that immediate discomfort/unpleasantness is not a reliable indicator of danger, but even more importantly, that the absence of discomfort/unpleasantness is not an indicator of safety, especially when it comes to long-term effects! Consequently, I think it’s irresponsible to strongly suggest rosin flux is safe to use when in fact it is a known occupational hazard.OP’s unwarranted confidence (“of course it’s less harmful for both the environment and one’s health than many of the commercial variants”) makes it clear they don’t understand the issue.

author: Okto47
author_rank: Contributor
timestamp: March 03, 2024, 02:06:42 pm
content: About that flux damps , any fan with a filter behind it helps a lot. (Would make it changeable , after 1-2 years there is a lot on it.).That one is from a dead GPU.If 100% it soaks up the smoke from 30cm away.

author: themadhippy
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: March 03, 2024, 02:25:28 pm
content: QuoteBest avoid the ballet then,especially if its got a live orchestra.

author: tooki
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: March 03, 2024, 11:59:53 pm
content: Quote from: themadhippy on March 03, 2024, 02:25:28 pmThe chances of me becoming a ballerina (or a string player) are somewhere between zero and nil, since I am entirely untalented in both of those things! :p