Want to cut and make my own patch cables

[ptensioned]

I went through this process not long ago when I got frustrated that I couldn't buy a short (<6") patch cable with one end straight and the other a 90.

Soldering cables is about as easy as soldering gets, and is great practice.

I'm not sure how experienced you are with soldering in general, but maybe you or someone else can learn from my mistakes with learning the basics:

- Do NOT cheap out on the soldering iron. You can get away with one of those crappy hardware store units that plug straight into the wall for cables, but as soon as you want to do anything bigger (like pots, or anything on a board), the little ones don't have the juice to get that instant heat you need. The best move I made to make soldering less frustrating was to get a decent iron with a power box and a thermostat. It wasn't crazy expensive, it just took a little effort to find over going to a big box hardware store.

- Make sure to tin your tip regularly. It should be nice and shiny. If your tip goes black and rough, just toss it and put a new one in. I just melt some solder all over the surface every few minutes and then shake/wipe it off, though I'm sure there's a less wasteful way.

- Don't ever succumb to the temptation to leave a cold solder. If it cools to a whitish cloudy surface, start over. You're in there already, save yourself the headache of going back to fix it later. The easiest way to avoid them is to not let things move after pulling away your iron.

- tin everything first, including pots and cable ends, not just the wire

- turn down your iron if you're not going to use it for a bit. I lost a tip because I let it sit hot for too long.

- don't use too much. Especially with cable ends that are in close proximity to one another. Just enough so you can't see the individual strands in the wire.

Some of this may seem obvious, but it wasn't to me when I started. And I'm not a soldering expert by any stretch, so whatever works for you...

 

[Rycebag]

I went through this process not long ago when I got frustrated that I couldn't buy a short (<6") patch cable with one end straight and the other a 90.

Soldering cables is about as easy as soldering gets, and is great practice.

I'm not sure how experienced you are with soldering in general, but maybe you or someone else can learn from my mistakes with learning the basics:

- Do NOT cheap out on the soldering iron. You can get away with one of those crappy hardware store units that plug straight into the wall for cables, but as soon as you want to do anything bigger (like pots, or anything on a board), the little ones don't have the juice to get that instant heat you need. The best move I made to make soldering less frustrating was to get a decent iron with a power box and a thermostat. It wasn't crazy expensive, it just took a little effort to find over going to a big box hardware store.

- Make sure to tin your tip regularly. It should be nice and shiny. If your tip goes black and rough, just toss it and put a new one in. I just melt some solder all over the surface every few minutes and then shake/wipe it off, though I'm sure there's a less wasteful way.

- Don't ever succumb to the temptation to leave a cold solder. If it cools to a whitish cloudy surface, start over. You're in there already, save yourself the headache of going back to fix it later. The easiest way to avoid them is to not let things move after pulling away your iron.

- tin everything first, including pots and cable ends, not just the wire

- turn down your iron if you're not going to use it for a bit. I lost a tip because I let it sit hot for too long.

- don't use too much. Especially with cable ends that are in close proximity to one another. Just enough so you can't see the individual strands in the wire.

Some of this may seem obvious, but it wasn't to me when I started. And I'm not a soldering expert by any stretch, so whatever works for you...

I'm a beginner on soldering and this will be my first time. I'm just tired of spending a boat load on parch cables and instrument cables. It's ridiculous. I Just got this little diy kit that someone posted online but I almost want to go down to the store and just get a little better one and just start making these cables already haha. I'm in San francisco and there's basically a bunch of ace hardware stores every where

 

[Killed_by_Death]

I got nearly all my stuff from Home Depot. I ordered online & came to pick it up in the store about 2 days later.

 

[spaz21387]

Its easy you can do it. I made my own patch cables for my board using mogami wire and the plugs from hosa pancake cables.

 

[Duder]

They have these "helping hands" at Harbor Freight for next to nothing.

I keep meaning to check out Harbor Freight. I hear they're not very high quality, but who cares at the prices they charge?

 

[ptensioned]

I'm a beginner on soldering and this will be my first time. I'm just tired of spending a boat load on parch cables and instrument cables. It's ridiculous. I Just got this little diy kit that someone posted online but I almost want to go down to the store and just get a little better one and just start making these cables already haha. I'm in San francisco and there's basically a bunch of ace hardware stores every where

I got everything from a local independent electronic supply store, including an iron, good quality solder (important!), the cable itself (top quality), all the cable ends (Neutrik), the 'helping hands' clip thing (makes cables in particular soooo much easier), and various strippers, pliers, and other tools. All in, cost me maybe $120. Most of that was the iron, and it's been used on so many projects since that it's paid for itself many times over.

I have no idea where in the Bay Area you are, but here's a couple spots that Google turned up:

Master Electronics - Authorized Distributor of Electronic Components
Invalid Link Removed

Beyond what I listed above, here's a few more tips I can pass on:

Most importantly, you need to heat the parts you are soldering, not the solder itself. It's important they get hot enough to melt the solder to generate a proper bond. If you just drip hot solder onto a cool part, you end up with a cold joint, which *will* fail, especially on a moving item like a cable. So you hold the tip of the iron to the part you are soldering to, and then touch the solder to the part (NOT the iron) so it flows to what you want. Then hold it steady and first pull the solder away, then the iron. The hard part is making sure the part gets hot enough quickly enough so you get the solder on without melting adjacent bits like cable sheath or pot grease. Again, this is why a decent iron makes life so much easier. It is hot enough to get the heat in locally before it transfers to nearby bits. With an under-powered iron, you transfer the heat slowly, which then gets soaked up by anything close by and makes life much harder.

Sometimes, the iron needs a little help to make a good heat transfer connection. In this case, you can dab a little on the tip and use the melted solder to help heat the connector. Just remember to apply the joint solder (the stuff you'll leave behind to make the connection) to the connector, not the iron, and make sure the connector itself is hot enough to melt the solder.

When you hear the term 'tinning', it basically means applying solder to something without making a connection. You tin the components first to make sure you have a solid heat bond to both parts in a connection.

So let's use a cable and a 1/4" plug as an example:

- expose a short length of each wire in the instrument cable. Exactly how much depends on the design of the connector, but too much can be just as bad as not enough, as folded wire can cause shorts when you screw things back together. I find about 1/4" is a good starting point, though you may be able to get away with less. Do a dry fit with the connector to make sure it'll all fit together. You want it so the minimum of wire is exposed, and it all sits nice when the cable runs straight back from the connector. Ideally, if you tugged on it, both solders would be pulled on equally. You will need to leave a little slack, though, so that you can attach the second wire after soldering the first.
- heat the twisted, exposed wire end with the iron
- after a few seconds, touch the solder to the cable end (NOT the iron) until it starts to flow
- the heat will draw the solder in, so make sure the end has solder flowed right in between all the individual strands (no need to leave a big gob on the wire, just coat the strands)
- repeat for the other wire in the cable
- put the cable aside for now
- set up your plug with the cupped connector on the bottom (if it's anything like the ones I've used, there's one cupped on the outside and one smaller one with a hole on the inside
- touch the iron to the underside of the cupped connector
- if it's new, you'll probably see the sheen on the connector change as it heats. This is a good sign that it's hot enough
- touch the solder to the topside until it starts to flow
- flow enough in to make a small pool, but not so much that you will have issues with shorting to the other connector
- if the iron won't heat the connector enough, dab some solder between the tip and the underside to help transfer the heat better (remove after if necessary, though it'll probably come away with the tip and just need to be wiped off)
- repeat for the small connector with the hole. In this case, just flow enough to fill the hole with a tiny bit extra
- MAKE SURE TO SLIDE ANY THREADED CONNECTORS ONTO THE WIRE BEFORE THE NEXT STEPS. You will eventually forget to do this, and then swear and curse as you have to undo the two prettiest solders you've ever done to get those bits on.
- Magic time! Heat the connector until the pool of solder melts, insert the appropriate wire, let it sit for a second to make sure the solder on the wire melts into the pool, hold steady and pull the gun away. Hold for a few seconds, then let sit to cool for a bit. This will happen much faster for the smaller connector than the big one.
- give everything a quick eyeball to make sure no solder dripped anywhere to short the two connectors.
- I like to wait for everything to cool fully, then give it a bit of a torture test by wiggling the wire around and tugging on it to make sure the connections are solid and the wire is strong
- push on the clear insulator tube, and thread on the cap
- hook up a multimeter and check each side for connectivity with the other end and isolation from each other
- Voila! Top quality cable for less than half the price. And huge satisfaction to go with it...

I like to tin the tip of my iron before each use. For me, this involves melting solder onto the tip until it's entirely covered, then wiping it onto a wet sponge or copper scrubber. It should come out looking all shiny and clean. If any sections are black and pitted, or don't melt solder easily, you may be able to save the tip, but it's possible you will have to get a new one.

And that's pretty much it, that I can think of. The above is far from a definitive guide, and I'm sure there are better ways to do things. But they've worked well for me, and I can now get a new connector on a cable in just a few minutes.

Have fun. I don't know about you, but I find soldering to be relaxing. There's something very satisfying about sticking all the bits together and having it work well...

 

[ptensioned]

I should follow the above by saying that a good solder should look shiny and smooth. If it looks dull, rough or whitish, melt all the solder again and see if you can shine it up. If it won't shine, it's probably because there's too much solder for the joint (seen most often on the back of pots). In that case, you can use a solder sucker or wicking thread to clean things up and start again.

 

[Killed_by_Death]

I keep meaning to check out Harbor Freight. I hear they're not very high quality, but who cares at the prices they charge?

Yeah, Harbor Freight is like Walmart for tools & electronics accessories.


I also have a clip-on heat sink, which is nice for holding onto stuff that's hot and to keep from damaging components that are heat sensitive.

 

[Rob22315]

Do it - your pedalboards will be neater, you'll get some great practice at soldering, and you'll know how to repair stuff when it breaks.

 

[ptensioned]

I also have a clip-on heat sink, which is nice for holding onto stuff that's hot and to keep from damaging components that are heat sensitive.

Probably no cheaper, but possibly easier to find:

 

[Rycebag]

I got everything from a local independent electronic supply store, including an iron, good quality solder (important!), the cable itself (top quality), all the cable ends (Neutrik), the 'helping hands' clip thing (makes cables in particular soooo much easier), and various strippers, pliers, and other tools. All in, cost me maybe $120. Most of that was the iron, and it's been used on so many projects since that it's paid for itself many times over.

I have no idea where in the Bay Area you are, but here's a couple spots that Google turned up:

Master Electronics - Authorized Distributor of Electronic Components
Invalid Link Removed

Beyond what I listed above, here's a few more tips I can pass on:

Most importantly, you need to heat the parts you are soldering, not the solder itself. It's important they get hot enough to melt the solder to generate a proper bond. If you just drip hot solder onto a cool part, you end up with a cold joint, which *will* fail, especially on a moving item like a cable. So you hold the tip of the iron to the part you are soldering to, and then touch the solder to the part (NOT the iron) so it flows to what you want. Then hold it steady and first pull the solder away, then the iron. The hard part is making sure the part gets hot enough quickly enough so you get the solder on without melting adjacent bits like cable sheath or pot grease. Again, this is why a decent iron makes life so much easier. It is hot enough to get the heat in locally before it transfers to nearby bits. With an under-powered iron, you transfer the heat slowly, which then gets soaked up by anything close by and makes life much harder.

Sometimes, the iron needs a little help to make a good heat transfer connection. In this case, you can dab a little on the tip and use the melted solder to help heat the connector. Just remember to apply the joint solder (the stuff you'll leave behind to make the connection) to the connector, not the iron, and make sure the connector itself is hot enough to melt the solder.

When you hear the term 'tinning', it basically means applying solder to something without making a connection. You tin the components first to make sure you have a solid heat bond to both parts in a connection.

So let's use a cable and a 1/4" plug as an example:

- expose a short length of each wire in the instrument cable. Exactly how much depends on the design of the connector, but too much can be just as bad as not enough, as folded wire can cause shorts when you screw things back together. I find about 1/4" is a good starting point, though you may be able to get away with less. Do a dry fit with the connector to make sure it'll all fit together. You want it so the minimum of wire is exposed, and it all sits nice when the cable runs straight back from the connector. Ideally, if you tugged on it, both solders would be pulled on equally. You will need to leave a little slack, though, so that you can attach the second wire after soldering the first.
- heat the twisted, exposed wire end with the iron
- after a few seconds, touch the solder to the cable end (NOT the iron) until it starts to flow
- the heat will draw the solder in, so make sure the end has solder flowed right in between all the individual strands (no need to leave a big gob on the wire, just coat the strands)
- repeat for the other wire in the cable
- put the cable aside for now
- set up your plug with the cupped connector on the bottom (if it's anything like the ones I've used, there's one cupped on the outside and one smaller one with a hole on the inside
- touch the iron to the underside of the cupped connector
- if it's new, you'll probably see the sheen on the connector change as it heats. This is a good sign that it's hot enough
- touch the solder to the topside until it starts to flow
- flow enough in to make a small pool, but not so much that you will have issues with shorting to the other connector
- if the iron won't heat the connector enough, dab some solder between the tip and the underside to help transfer the heat better (remove after if necessary, though it'll probably come away with the tip and just need to be wiped off)
- repeat for the small connector with the hole. In this case, just flow enough to fill the hole with a tiny bit extra
- MAKE SURE TO SLIDE ANY THREADED CONNECTORS ONTO THE WIRE BEFORE THE NEXT STEPS. You will eventually forget to do this, and then swear and curse as you have to undo the two prettiest solders you've ever done to get those bits on.
- Magic time! Heat the connector until the pool of solder melts, insert the appropriate wire, let it sit for a second to make sure the solder on the wire melts into the pool, hold steady and pull the gun away. Hold for a few seconds, then let sit to cool for a bit. This will happen much faster for the smaller connector than the big one.
- give everything a quick eyeball to make sure no solder dripped anywhere to short the two connectors.
- I like to wait for everything to cool fully, then give it a bit of a torture test by wiggling the wire around and tugging on it to make sure the connections are solid and the wire is strong
- push on the clear insulator tube, and thread on the cap
- hook up a multimeter and check each side for connectivity with the other end and isolation from each other
- Voila! Top quality cable for less than half the price. And huge satisfaction to go with it...

I like to tin the tip of my iron before each use. For me, this involves melting solder onto the tip until it's entirely covered, then wiping it onto a wet sponge or copper scrubber. It should come out looking all shiny and clean. If any sections are black and pitted, or don't melt solder easily, you may be able to save the tip, but it's possible you will have to get a new one.

And that's pretty much it, that I can think of. The above is far from a definitive guide, and I'm sure there are better ways to do things. But they've worked well for me, and I can now get a new connector on a cable in just a few minutes.

Have fun. I don't know about you, but I find soldering to be relaxing. There's something very satisfying about sticking all the bits together and having it work well...

thanks man. Im actually really pumped to do this! I'm spending as much as it would cost to buy one quality cable at a shop on all the tools that I need to custom make cables for my speakers, guitars, and pedalboard and be able to fix them if they go bad. I have my extra canare gs-6 cable and a bunch of switch craft ends so all I need is the shrink tube which i will probably get some 3/8" and 3/16" just incase. Here's the little kit I ordered yesterday Link Removed but I almost can't wait and want to go to the store and get everything now. I live in the city (San Francisco).

 

[Rycebag]

I have the embossing heat gun and shrink tube coming in on Friday. If that diy kit doesn't come in by then, I'm going to go to ace down the road and snag this thing
http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B00B3...ering+iron&dpPl=1&dpID=31xb1WHxcrL&ref=plSrch

 

[mrpackerguy]

OK, who's going to make me a 6' red xlr cable?

 

[Killed_by_Death]

I went a little nuts with it, make new speaker cables when I didn't need them. I now have 3 speaker cables, but could really get by with only one.

SpeakOn doesn't require soldering, and I nearly went too big on the conductors for those 1/4" plugs. 14 gauge is difficult to solder in w/o getting the shield wire really close to the center conductor.

 

[Rycebag]

Which kind of soldering wick should I get? I know it should be rosin core but what is 60/40 & 40/60? also should I get it lead free?

 

[Killed_by_Death]

Solder wick is the braided copper to de-solder stuff.

60/40 if fine, and I would be surprised if you can find solder with lead in it, due to ROHS.

 

[Rycebag]

http://www.amazon.com/Alpha-AT-3160...TF8&qid=1447964564&sr=1-12&keywords=soldering so is this lead free? im getting everything on amazon now

 

[Killed_by_Death]

Aven 20g 60/40 Solder Tube-17551 - The Home Depot

Now that I think about it, if it says 60/40, that 40% is lead.

 

[Killed_by_Death]

Here is the lead free version, but there are pros & cons:

Aven 20g Lead-Free Solder Tube-17551LF - The Home Depot

It's better for you, because breathing the fumes/smoke of lead solder is no good.

It's more difficult to use, doesn't stick as well.

 

[Rycebag]

I actually just went on Amazon and everything should be here tomorrow.
Shrink tube 48pc
Aoyue 469 60watt station
Desloder pump
Embossing heat gun
Kester pocket pack solder 60/40.

$65 including shipping