I need some sodering advice

[Large Filipino]

I figure this should go in the white zone cause sodering I would think is rarely done on our bikes but I have a special situation here.
I was cleaning out my tool pouch and I like to keep everything I could think of in it. Anyway my brand new spare magneto got mixed up in the shuffle and when I took it out of my tool pouch I find that the blue wire came off.
Now I could run to Lowes and get a soder gun,some flux and some soder. I saw a kit there the other day.
Here's the thing. I've never sodered before.
Do I need to completly take the old soder off? How much flux should I use? What type of flux is best? Do I put the soder wire to the gun and allow the soder to drip on the work? Will the heat mess up the magneto?
If this thing was even slightly used I would just give Duane a call for a new one. But this puppy is brand new and I like to have it in my tool pouch for I regularly travel miles from home.
So if anyone can give me some advice I would be muchos gracias!

 

[Dockspa1]

Hey Large, Use fluxcore solder somewhere around a 60/40 lead. Put a wet washrag on the parts you are worried about. If you are just wiring a broken wire to the othe half of the broken wire you can use a cheap soldering iron. Clean the copper with steelwool or sand paper until it is shiny. strip a good 3/8ths inch of the wire insulation off each side. Tin the wires by placing the soldering tip under each one (one at a time) and place the tip of the solder on top of the wire until the solder melts like butter and coats the copper. Then hold both the tinned wires on top of each other and the soldering iron underneath until they blend together. you might want to put a little more solder on at this point.
Make sure the soldering iron is full hot before applying to the wire.
Thats it my friend!
Doc

 

[srdavo]

hmmmm... we could all use a soldering pictorial! hint...hint

 

[Dockspa1]

You could just clean the ends and twist them together then solder them both at once without tinning them first. Thats the way I usually do it unless its High Voltage and Amperage.
Dave, I'll see if I can get pics. Hint Taken.
Doc

 

[Large Filipino]

Well it snapped right from the magneto. The tab is still there but the old soder is on there too. Can you just melt off the old soder with the soder gun,or do you need to somehow scrape it off?
Thanks in advance!!

 

[ibdennyak]

just melt it off. Doesn't even have to be completely off, just shiny. Usually the wire goes through a hole in the tab. You can buy a desoldering tool (like a big rubber bulb syringe or do like I do and use a straw. Heat it up, blow (not suck ) the solder out of the hole, stick in the wire, and resolder. Big thing is to use the wire or tab to melt the solder, not the tip. Otherwise you will get what is called a cold joint. Looks OK, but there is a weak mechanical bond. That's about all there is to it. Oh, a small needle nose vise grip, or some kind of a locking device can be clamped on your part as a heat sink to prevent melting stuff you don't want to get melted. Just keep it far enough from your joint to allow the joint to reach soldering temp. Good luck and have fun....now you're an electronic tech.

Denny

 

[fetor56]

On any job only keep the heat from the souldering iron on it for as short a time as possible...only to properly complete the job.Excessive heat for long periods of time melts insulation and evaporates too much flux making it weak and potentially unuseable(it's called a dry joint)
Practice on spare wire and similar connections till u get the hang of it.....you'll get there.

PS...a souldering iron of about 30watts should be fine...don't go crazy with power.

 

[HoughMade]

Use Rosin Core- never use the plumbing solder- go to radio shack and get it.

If you use an inexpensive soldering iron or gun w/ lower power- 40 watts or below, let it warm up for a good long time before trying to start. I picked up an ancient, but perfect 250 watt Craftsman from a thrift store for $4.75, so warm up isn't an issue for me.

 

[Large Filipino]

Wow this is all good stuff. I'm gonna do a lot of practicing before I get on with the real work. Y'all definetly gave me some stuff to go on.
So why is the rosin core better?

 

[cooltoy]

All good points, the only thing I would like to add is that solder flows toward heat, so it needs to be nice and hot.Tinning is also a good idea as this way you are sure of a good bond and you don't need to use as much heat when you do put the wires together to solder them. There is a glue/solder that conducts electricity if you would rather go that way. Maybe a hot melt glue gun could also be used after just to keep things in place, if you use the 'solder-glue".