Update: Began verifying my soldering iron heat with a separate meter

I kept getting shaky joints on tiny surface-mount parts. So now I use a basic thermocouple to check the actual temperature before each session. My solder sticks right every time, and I waste less board space. Do you test your tools regularly?

4 comments

4 Comments

wilson.joseph18d ago

A cheap meter saved me so much time and solder. It's wild how far off some irons can be.

sage3081mo ago

Read a forum post last week where someone ruined a board with a cold iron. Checking the temp like you do seems smart, stops the tip from oxidizing too fast.

anthony5121mo ago

Remember how frustrating it is when a joint just won't flow right? My buddy was assembling a tiny sensor board last month and kept getting those grainy, weak connections. He fought with it for hours, reworking the same spots. Turns out his iron was running almost 50 degrees cooler than the display said. Once he verified it with a meter and dialed it in, his next board went together perfectly in one go. He was so mad he didn't check it sooner, lol.

andrew_palmer1mo ago

Ugh, isn't that the worst? I totally cooked a board once because my iron was actually way hotter than it said, fried a tiny chip right off. Makes you just want to check the temp first thing every time now.