How to use the electric soldering iron
1. When choosing a solder, go for low melting-point wire for joining electronic components.
2. As a flux, dilute 25% rosin in 75% alcohol (by weight).
3. Tin the soldering iron before using it. The precise technique is to heat the soldering iron, melt the solder, apply flux, then evenly distribute solder on the soldering iron tip, coating the tip with a thin layer of tin.
4. Use flux and fine sandpaper to clean the component pins and pads before to soldering. With the soldering iron's tip dipped in the right amount of solder, touch the solder junction. The soldering iron tip is gently removed away from the solder connection along the component lead once the solder on the solder joint has completely melted and submerged in the component lead.
5. It's easy to burn the components if the soldering process takes too long. If required, clamp the pins with tweezers to assist the heat escape.
6. Solder joints should have the shape of sinusoidal wave peaks, have a bright, smooth surface free of tin thorns, and contain a moderate amount of tin.
7. After the soldering is finished, clean the circuit board of any leftover flux with alcohol to stop carbonized flux from interfering with the circuit's normal operation.
8. The integrated circuit should be soldered last, and either the electric soldering iron should be securely grounded, or the integrated circuit should be soldered using the heat that remains after the power is turned off. Alternately, use a socket designed specifically for integrated circuits, solder the socket, and then plug in the integrated circuit.
9. The soldering iron stand should hold the electric soldering iron.
