Soldering Bass

Do a search. There is plenty of soldering information in the forums.

 

get soldering iron

get electrical solder with electrical flux inside

heat soldering iron

wet sponge

ring out sponge so it is damp

when soldering iron is hot apply solder to iron until it melts

wipe soldering iron tip on damp sponge

soldering iron tip should be clean and shiny

press wire to part

press tip of soldering iron to part and wire until part and wire heat up

press solder to hot parts on side opposite soldering iron tip so that solder melts due to heat of part and wire

do not apply solder to soldering iron tip so that it melts and drips onto cold wire and part

use only enough solder to lightly coat part and wire

continue to hold wire to part as solder cools

if part has internals that heat will ruin, only hold solder tip to part long enough for the heat of the part to melt the solder if solder does not hold do not do not heat up warm part again to solder wait until part is room temperature again to protect internals

 

Good step-by-step, tim99. I'd like to tweak two things slightly, though. "You" in these comments is a generic "you," not you specifically.

This will work, but if you can go at it another way you'll be better off, because: 1) you shouldn't rely on solder for structural stuff if you can avoid it, just on general principles; and 2) you have to hold the wire until the solder cools to solid, and it can be rather difficult to hold things that still for that long (especially if that wire gets HOT! )

If you can do it, it's better to make a solid mechanical connection that's self-supporting before ever applying the heat. Most 1/4" jacks have holes in the tabs; stripping enough insulation from the wire to slip bare wire through the hole and around the tab will do nicely.

That having been said, if you have no choice but to hold the wire in place and you can keep it still long enough, it will work okay.

This is a very wise statement, and it's the safest way to explain soldering to a newcomer. Still:

Heat transfers a little better when things have been "wetted" (coated with solder) first. But in lieu of that, if you press the tip firmly to both parts of the joint (jack tab and wire), wait a second or so, and then touch solder to exactly where the tip is touching the joint, the solder melted by the iron or gun will tend to "bridge" between the tip and the parts and will help transfer heat. But as soon as you can see solder is flowing onto the parts, you need to move the solder to a different spot away from the tip. This gives you good and fast heat transfer, but it also guarantees that the parts really ARE hot enough to melt the solder and you're not just fooling yourself.

Hope this is of some help. Good luck with the touchup, Funky.

'rick

P.S. Just for the record, you asked about doing it "by hand"... trust me, that's exactly how the people at your "Music Shoppe" did it... there's nothing magic there that you can't do yourself.

 

Wow, this may now be the best thread ever on soldering!

Thanks, Maverick Blues.