WOPL 400 Down Under

[MusicSteve]

What kind of flux are you using? and solder?
Thanks to Sniffer , I'm using the Kester 951 Liquid Soldering Flux No-Clean, which makes the solder flow better
and flow a lot smother and your still look like it is to thick, it should look like a triangle shape
I hope this helps.

 

[George S.]

Much improved. Good job. Thanks for the photos of the koala. Hope the little guy doesn't get run over!

 

[J!m]

I never see it mentioned, but it’s a good idea to clean the bare board prior to construction- alcohol or acetone (if the ink doesn’t come off) before you start populating regardless of your solder and flux choices.

 

[mr_rye89]

I used a 40w radio shack iron for the bulk of my build, and a big ass weller for the backplanes. I just soldered quickly and heatsinked the semiconductors before soldering. I’ve been soldering since I was 12 and the first PC board I did didn’t work……

 

[WOPL Sniffer]

This is what a good joint should look like. Nice concave volcano.

 

[George S.]

I've had this song in my head all morning.

 

[Vintage 700b]

That is a classic.
One to definitely get stuck in your head, singing it all day.
Thanks for sharing George.

 

[laatsch55]

What did you do to get it out of your head George?? I take it , it was a priority??

 

[George S.]

Still there. Don't they call it a ear worm or something similar. Thinking I need to listen to more Slim Dusty. Did so years ago, Maybe get a LP.

 

[Timmienator]

Lee
Perhaps an intellectual Aussie track will help you....

 

[MarkWComer]

What did you do to get it out of your head George?? I take it , it was a priority??

 

[George S.]

Lee
Perhaps an intellectual Aussie track will help you....

Excellent! I'm cured!

 

[Timmienator]

I finished work in a good mood today and the weather was amazing so I did a little more building on the front porch. I even managed to finish populating the control board!
My soldering is still not perfect but it is improving all the time I believe.
I guess my next question is what are the current hints/hacks for soldering the pem nuts?
To be honest that is the bit I am most worried about.

 

[laatsch55]

Lots of heat...

 

[George S.]

I use a screwdriver or chisel tip. These have a flattened tip end and hold ( more thermal mass) more heat than a pointed tip. I keep my iron set at 700 deg F., but others bump the heat up some. I wet a portion of the nut and board with solder to help transfer heat. Then start spinning the nut with the irons tip while adding solder. I keep adding solder until I have a nice fillet or meniscus around the nut shoulder, then add some more to aid penetration to the opposite side of the board.
Here's some photos of 700 backplanes I bid last November.

 

[WOPL Sniffer]

I finished work in a good mood today and the weather was amazing so I did a little more building on the front porch. I even managed to finish populating the control board!
My soldering is still not perfect but it is improving all the time I believe.
I guess my next question is what are the current hints/hacks for soldering the pem nuts?
To be honest that is the bit I am most worried about.

I hope that solder job doesn't cause you issues. It's pretty bad.

 

[Gepetto]

I finished work in a good mood today and the weather was amazing so I did a little more building on the front porch. I even managed to finish populating the control board!
My soldering is still not perfect but it is improving all the time I believe.
I guess my next question is what are the current hints/hacks for soldering the pem nuts?
To be honest that is the bit I am most worried about.

TImmie
There are pictures and hints in the assembly instructions. A good idea is to thread in one of the 6-32 x 1/2" screws into each right up to the kapton lid which you must leave on. That added weight will help keep the nut flush and square during the soldering process. I use conical springs that are also pictured in the assembly instructions as a hint. Folks that do a lot of the backplane assemblies often use the conical springs as well.

Using those make it a lot easier.

 

[Gepetto]

I finished work in a good mood today and the weather was amazing so I did a little more building on the front porch. I even managed to finish populating the control board!
My soldering is still not perfect but it is improving all the time I believe.
I guess my next question is what are the current hints/hacks for soldering the pem nuts?
To be honest that is the bit I am most worried about.

Remember to solder in the 3P Phoenix connectors on the backside of the control board.

 

[MusicSteve]

Timmienator
when you have time, you might want to takes some high quality pic's of the front of each control board
so the forum can double check the components.

 

[George S.]

And some "in focus" photos of the solder side. Hard to really tell much from what you last posted. Try backing off away from the board before taking the photos. With hi-rez we can zoom in. You most probably did good!