Wire and solder spool holder recommendations  - Page 1
Forum section: electronics / general

author: larry42
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: August 14, 2014, 10:00:20 am
content: I've bought a bunch of different coloured wire (5-10m lengths) and need about 15 spools to hold them, anyone know of a place to a bunch of those, with say, 3 inch inner diameter?Also any dual solder spool holder recommendations (2x250g spools)? Most of the ebaay stuff is junk and the "official" hakko ones are 50 USD with shipping, which I consider a bit steep.I don't mind spending a bit of money - I have a serious electronics lab, but access to DIY materials here is really poor and expensive, and I don't have wood/metal working facilities.Based in Northern Europe.

author: sotos
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: August 14, 2014, 01:20:38 pm
content: Did you look here?http://export.farnell.com/http://gr.rsdelivers.com/http://www.rs-components.com/index.html

author: Kjelt
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: August 14, 2014, 02:18:49 pm
content: http://blog.mklec.com/small-2-inch-empty-plastic-wire-spools-solder-bobbins/

author: sotos
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: August 14, 2014, 08:56:50 pm
content: Quote from: Kjelt on August 14, 2014, 02:18:49 pmThank you my friend.I was looking for this.

author: zapta
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: August 15, 2014, 03:02:42 am
content: Holders for 250g spools are hard to find. You can buy a 500g holder from ebay and modify it like this. Works great for me.As for wire, Dave had a video about setting an electronic lab. This is what he recommended and this is what I use. Got it from Newark. Works great. I use just this thickness. For larger jobs I just user longer wire.

author: nanofrog
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: August 15, 2014, 05:00:18 am
content: Quote from: zapta on August 15, 2014, 03:02:42 amHow wide is the actual spool/bobbin used for 250g rolls?

author: nanofrog
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: August 15, 2014, 07:40:20 am
content: Quote from: larry42 on August 14, 2014, 10:00:20 amDo you mean dual 500g or 474g/1lb rolls, or genuinely mean the less common 250g/ 0.5lb rolls (i.e. Multicore)?Can't recall ever seeing a holder specifically for 250g/0.5lb spools (accustomed to 500g/1lb ratings), but 2x 250g should sit side-by-side on a single holder. FWIW, my holder measured at 80mm wide.I know you stated you don't have access to wood or metal facilities, but this should be a project you could do with a screwdriver or a couple of nails using very thin plywood and dowels for example (i.e. wood from R/C hobby shops or craft stores). Thinking something along the lines of this:Dual solder rolls holder. Plywood for the base, and nail or screw 2x pieces of dowel to it by one end.If you'd rather a kit of laser cut parts from acrylic sheet (need a little plastic model glue), the following might be of interest (they can stack):Solder Spool Holder - KIT(by SpikenzieLabs, and does ship to EU & takes Euro)

author: zapta
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: August 15, 2014, 03:55:52 pm
content: Quote from: nanofrog on August 15, 2014, 05:00:18 amMy 250gr (picture above) is 35.5mm outside width.

author: nanofrog
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: August 15, 2014, 07:33:18 pm
content: Quote from: zapta on August 15, 2014, 03:55:52 pmThank you.Figured 2x would sit on the same spindle in a dispenser/holder, but wasn't sure (perhaps a surprise gotcha @ 50mm or something).

author: larry42
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: August 16, 2014, 04:33:00 pm
content: Quote from: sotos on August 14, 2014, 01:20:38 pmYes. I have accounts with all of those and have bought tens of thousands of euros from them over the years. I've not found what Im looking for as described in my post and would be grateful if you send me a link, Farnell and RS have pretty terrible site searches.

author: larry42
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: August 16, 2014, 04:39:58 pm
content: Quote from: Kjelt on August 14, 2014, 02:18:49 pmPretty much exactly what I was looking for, thanks!

author: larry42
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: August 16, 2014, 04:42:30 pm
content: Quote from: zapta on August 15, 2014, 03:02:42 amYeah, I have one of those types of holders, they're pretty crappy, was hoping to find a nice solution for two small rolls - the "double-decker" holders are all pretty expensive.Hehe, 0.5mm is too big for what I do. I've just finished making an 8GHz PLL and the attenuator pads (0402 size, 4 solder points) - were hard enough to hand solder with 0.38mm solder...

author: larry42
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: August 16, 2014, 04:44:49 pm
content: Quote from: nanofrog on August 15, 2014, 07:33:18 pmI've tried the same thing - it was a tight fit (e.g. just about doesnt fit) and means that when you use one, the other also unrolls. I may try again, and have one spool unrolling from teh bottom, the other from the top and see if that helps prevent this problem.

author: nanofrog
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: August 16, 2014, 07:14:41 pm
content: Quote from: larry42 on August 16, 2014, 04:44:49 pmVariance in width from spool holder manufacturers (how wide is yours)? Or are your bobbins wider than the Multicorezaptameasured?Mine measures out at 80mm of actual width for spools (Weller Solder Mate). Based on the measurement of the bobbin used on the 250g roll of Multicore, that leaves 10mm of spare room for 2x running side-by-side.This particular combination would solve your problem.