How To Tin Wires Before Soldering

[@Rchelicopterfun]

Want to learn more about the hobby of RC helicopters? Please visit my website: www.rchelicopterfun.com

[@LiPo5000]

What soldering iron heat setting is perfect when working with 12 to 10 gauge silicone wire? Personally, I love the EC3 & EC5 connectors, along with the XT30 & XT60 connectors. I have them "pretty" well mastered. I also have used the "Solderless" Anderson plugs. They work great especially if your in tight places and don't want heat around certain components. FWIW, I "don't" like the Dean Connector's. I do use them in my smaller Heli's, but never on 500's on up. When soldered correctly, they do hold up. I have never had a "separation", but I have separated them pulling them apart! This happened after I had cycled them 10 to 15 times. It's a personal thing with me about just soldering wire to a "flat" pin. I have done many of them, and I have tried many ways to separate them after soldered! Their very delicate, and I have to watch to make sure I don't get the "Plastic" to hot while soldering. It will change the position of the flat pins. Sometimes, I have used the XT90 connectors, just depends on the project. I also have used "Butt Connector's" when tolerances are just too tight. I was taught the more "solder" that's used, it raises the "amp" usage a little. Same with using an oversize plug for the project. On my dual battery tray setup's, I use what ever plug that takes the less space (Example: T-Rex 700). I have them set up where I can charge both batteries separately on my Duo 406. I do my best to make sure the Neg & Pos wires are as close to the same length possible, just to keep the electrical flow even. One of my Pet Peeves. I have extended the wire length just using a one piece solid butt connector with waterproof heat shrink. If I don't have any "waterproof" Heat Shrink, I will put a longer piece of regular heat shrink on the wire (maybe a size larger) before soldering the butt connector. I will put a little silicone on the wire I just soldered (after it's cooled"), not skimpy, just generous, then I will push the "heat shrink" over the splice while twisting the heat shrink to make sure the silicone is even on the inside, then start heating "slowly" starting in the middle and working towards the outer edge of the heat shrink, just taking my time, and I make sure it shrinks evenly. The most important part is to start the heat in the middle and working out on both sides. The "excess" silicone will squeeze out during this process. Works great, then you have a "waterproof" connection. Hint: on the above, after soldering, make sure you clean your freshly soldered connection with the proper cleaning solution, then proceed with the heat shrink. I use an alcohol product. To all reading this, you use whatever cleaning product is recommended. Some recommendations I have read, well . . . I won't pass this information onto others. If this step is omitted, it will cause corrosion problems at the joint shortly. I have tried the clear "solderless heat shrink", and IMO it's great on the smaller wires, I just don't trust it on 14 gauge wire and up. Works great on 22 gauge wires. I wish we could post pictures on our responses on this site. Good Luck to everyone!

[@Jeffk114]

I just wanted to say, that I've studied manuals, taken courses, and even done electronics kits... in all my experience I've never seen anyone explain so thoroughly the how and why of tinning in 10 short minutes the way that you have. This is invaluable. You are a great teacher. Great video.

[@tekkhero9767]

I was really struggling with soldering my deans connectors and this sure was very helpful! Thank you!

[@Rchelicopterfun]

Glad it helped

[@matusknives]

Much appreciated! I am very happy I watched this before doing my first ESC soldering job. I am now off to your next video :)

[@gabrielgaby5840]

Hello John, and Thank you for the Demo, on how to Tin correctly, and the rest of the programs.❤

[@Rchelicopterfun]

Glad you enjoyed them - thanks for the view :)

[@EMTAirship]

Simple and straightforward tutorial! Helped me solder a new connector on my quadcopter!

[@sidharthadas4295]

I valued tinning a lot more, when I had to solder a 12 Guage silicon wire (exactly like the one you showed here) with my hako with the default/small tip. Am gonna retry the job with the tips and tricks shown in this video. Thank you so much for making this video.

[@rumlesj1]

Great video. I'm about to do a fuel pump conversion on a hybrid ATV and the fuel pump came with blade connectors and I really don't like that setup. I'm going to practice this and try soldering the connections and use deuche connectors for ease of removal.

[@loganfong2911]

Wow this answered my age-long question! Was always bad at soldering. Now I know why!

[@Rchelicopterfun]

Hope it helps you master it. 🙂

[@alexfrederick9019]

Watched a guy "tinning wire" by heating a copper pipe cap full of solder and dipping the wires into it.... never heated the wire before dipping, was using a torch. Thanks for a comprehensive video on proper tinning.

[@thor_4017]

You can get the wire tinning done inside the ec5 connector when heated with flame. I often pull wire out again and fill the ec5 cup with a bit more solder after tinning.

[@guisblacio]

Thanks for posting the video, I learned quite a few things. 👍

[@Rchelicopterfun]

Glad you enjoyed it

[@dalegregory3019]

Great video! Is the first tinning considered what I hear folks call a “cold” solder which will eventually fail? Also what are your thoughts on on using a tinning pot?

[@Rchelicopterfun]

A cold solder joint or failure is when the soldering connection is brittle and/or has poor metallurgical bonding. And/or because one usually causes the other. This brittle/poor bonding can be caused by not having enough heat or heat pentation, contamination/oxidation, poor quality solder and a big one for newbies - part/component movement while the solder is cooling back into a solid. Unleaded solder is much less forgiving to all the above and it's much more likely to get cold solder joints with unleaded than with leaded. It's why I and most only recommend using good quality 60/40 or 63/37 leaded solder. Never used a tinning pot so can't comment on it. Personally, I see need for one as a hobbyist which I am. If I was making dozens of wiring harnesses daily, then might likely look into getting one.

[@freshmaker5]

I have a soldering unit with digital temp. What temperature should I use ?

[@Rchelicopterfun]

Depends on iron wattage, type of solder, wire size, solder tip size/shape & your technique - in other words you have to experiment until you find the best temperature for your specific application. 🙂 As a coarse starting point however, if using good quality rosin core leaded solder and a decent wattage rated iron (70W or better) with medium sized wire & a chisel or wedge tip, I would recommend setting the starting temp around 370C/700F and adjust up or down as required.

[@freshmaker5]

@@Rchelicopterfun awesome thanks.

[@neurofunk2731]

Great tips that I'll definitely use 👍

[@DerekRC]

John do you put the tip of the soldering gun on the wire and feed the solder in on the wire?

[@Rchelicopterfun]

Into both the tip and the wire at the same time to wet both at the same time allowing good heat migration between the tip and the wire.

[@DerekRC]

@@Rchelicopterfun ty 👍

[@dfu1685]

Brill! Danika!

[@SeanMalter]

Great Video! thanks for making these

[@Rchelicopterfun]

🙂👍

[@bongers94]

Watching this in 2023😊

[@relectric720]

Thankyou for the video. What kind of brand of silicone wire do you recommend.

[@Rchelicopterfun]

Whatever you can find for the best price :)

[@mrmazlan]

Nice plier you got there

[@joshherrman3201]

What about using flux with rosin core solder? I'm having a hell of a time getting my wire to wick up the solder.

[@Rchelicopterfun]

By all means if you need more flux, use it.

[@joshherrman3201]

@@Rchelicopterfun so it wont hurt? I think I might have had my temps to low also.

[@uhfrc]

just stumbled on your video as i was struggling with some battery connectors for my RC planes. Why would you use a soldering gun vs an iron?

[@Rchelicopterfun]

I cover this question in detail on my soldering tools 101 video: kzbin.info/www/bejne/oILJp6SAf6iGbas And on my RC Soldering for Beginners page on my website: www.rchelicopterfun.com/rc-soldering.html The reason is power. Most irons simply don't have enough wattage to handle large gauge wire (12 AWG and larger) that we see in our RC powering systems. There are of course exceptions, such as the new direct drive soldering irons which will handle large wire and which I also discuss in detail on that website article. However, an average conventional 40W hobby soldering iron, can't hold a candle to a 140W soldering gun for large gauge soldering jobs.

[@uhfrc]

@@Rchelicopterfun thanks for the quick reply, looks like my issue is my 40w weller iron with the 12AWG wire i have, i'm having to leave the iron on for so long that its heating up the wire and connector too much rather than flash heating the area i want to heat!

[@Rchelicopterfun]

@UHF - yep, very difficult to pump enough heat into a 12 AWG wire with a 40W iron. The wire will pull and dissipate the heat pretty much as fast as the low wattage iron can create it.

[@Floatflyer1]

Nice and informative video. Also watched and enjoyed your video on soldering XT90's.

[@Rchelicopterfun]

Glad you enjoyed it

[@johannjohann6523]

I would recommend a small fan and set the fan so it draws the smoke not pushing it. Hopefully all you soldering experts are already aware of that. But it's rare that I see someone using a fan when soldering. And "specific" soldering fans I think are expensive so I just took a fan out of an old computer, connected a base to it and good to go using USB connection into my computer to run it. Someone smarter than me probably could figure out a way to have the small fan connected to your "helping hands" tool. I have found those to be more than handy when soldering.

[@Rchelicopterfun]

Have one but generally don't use it in videos due to noise & space: kzbin.info/www/bejne/nX2qf2uabNdkm6ssi=Lv4_9_C11pXMnJ60 That little brushless fan I used was okay, but no question the larger fan works much better - by the way, it started working fine after I took it apart ( kzbin.info/www/bejne/aWTOg2OQh6poqM0si=PY4PI0hHKtfb1ZxT ); suspect something loose or binding in the fan motor and it's been working great to this day.

[@shazrifftan9919]

How many watt solder gun is that ?

[@solarstoned]

Thank you very much 🤓

[@Rchelicopterfun]

You're welcome - thanks for watching.

[@stephenblakey4913]

Hi i need to solder my daughters rc car its a toy hobby grade car the wires for the esc are rather short and it has a 6 point wired plug like a 6 point tamiya its weird so i want to replace the connector with a deans but i have 2 issues one is about an inch of wire and 2 is i have shakes from my disability is there any tips u can give to compensate n steady my soldering iron obviously im her dad i should be able to do this regardless of tremors.

[@Rchelicopterfun]

Have you looked into those helping/third hand things? They hold the parts as you solder them so you could perhaps brace your soldering hand with your other free hand that is no longer needed to hold the part. Here's one example, but there are all different types ranging in price from $10 to north of $50: amzn.to/3qzjKxL

[@troybelanger974]

Kester 44 on Amazon says "44 Is a High Activity Ra Core Flux " and "Classified As Rom1 Flux." Is this the correct Kester 44 solder used for tinning wires?

[@Rchelicopterfun]

It's a great all round, all purpose electrical industry solder and is easy to work with. That's why I use it. Good results every time :-)

[@waynemiller6070]

Yup. I need a hotter iron and more tinning.

[@Jerbrown]

thanks

[@Rchelicopterfun]

Welcome 🙂

[@williamcorsair2469]

Thanks so much for your informative videos. I'm a fixed-wing electric guy, but you have piqued my interest in helis and quads.

[@Rchelicopterfun]

Glad you found them helpful.

[@johannjohann6523]

ouldn't using a dab of flux be a good idea when trying to tin high strand wire to help pull the solder through the strands? I know flux core solder obvious has flux in it, but often if working with stranded high it doesn't seem to be enough. Not alot of flux, just a bit to draw the solder through the wires? I guess this is a rhetorical question. lol Thanks for the video, and maybe flux isn't needed, I think I'm to the point that it isn't me, or the solder, but how good (or cheap) of a soldering iron I'm using that is giving me the problem. Doesn't stay hot long enough.

[@Rchelicopterfun]

Plenty of flux in Kester 44 rosin core solder. Rarely do I ever have to add extra unless I apply the heat too long and it all boils off - then of course you do have to add more flux or just add more Kester 44.

[@Boemel]

i have 2 soldering irons and a station, all low watt...i think im getting a gun like this, looks so easy.

[@Rchelicopterfun]

@Tom Jacobs - Yep, if you are soldering larger gauge stuff, you need the wattage - yes, it is easy, but it takes practice and good quality leaded rosin core solder is a must.

[@Boemel]

@@Rchelicopterfun guess im ordering some stuff for xmas. im building a high power ebike and have lots of wiring to do. i tried some with my old 30w iron but the motor keeps cutting out under high load, i bet it doesnt get enough current through the cables or bad solder on the motor phases.

[@lac1260]

Why did you use the solder gun vs the soldering iron?

[@Rchelicopterfun]

Because that iron I had was not powerful enough (only 65W) for that larger gauge wire.

[@lac1260]

John Salt great video btw, was really struggling with that high flexible wire

[@sparks6666]

Is flux ever needed for tinning? Great video btw, really helpful.

[@Rchelicopterfun]

Flux is always needed for all soldering. Thus the rosin core solder I use :-)

[@markpulling12]

@@Rchelicopterfun hi John great video... so the rosin core solder I've just ordered means I don't have to get solder paste and dip the end of the wire in it ,I noticed you didn't do this ,the rosin core solder has the flux in it ? Many thanks

[@LiPo5000]

@@markpulling12 I have found in different projects, "rosin core solder" works good, but when working with 8 to 12 gauge wire, using the flux with just pure solder works perfectly. Also, when tinning, I always dip the wire in flux, then apply my soldering tip on the bottom side of the wire as heat rises and melts the flux on the top side of the wire. I just touch the solder on the iron tip at the bottom just so a little solder starts to penetrate the wire, then I put the solder on top of the wire, and it melts instantly throughout the wire, top to bottom, and as soon as this happens, I immediately remove the soldering iron tip from the wire. It works perfectly for me every time.

[@junezhang2128]

I like Hugh Jackman explaining techie things.

[@LiPo5000]

@John Salt , I have always been told to make sure I limit the amount of melted solder that enters the insulated part of the wire being soldered. Another words, when tinning or prepping the components being soldered, keep as much of the melted soldered out of the insulated part of the wire. As you know, when soldering, the solder will creep up the wire inside of the insulated wiring especially if you have the iron heat too high. I have seen this happen on 14 gauge up to 8 gauge silicone wire. It appears you let the melted solder walk up the wiring about a 1/4" inch or so in this Video. What is "your" goal on this subject. Personally, I will let it creep up maybe around 1/8" inch up the covered part of the wire. I can see benefits by letting it creep up a little further into the wire. I am interested in your procedure and thoughts. Thanks, and you definitely made a great Video on this subject. We need more similar Video's especially using large connectors, or just proper "Butt Connections".

[@Rchelicopterfun]

My goal is to have both a mechanically and electrically solid solder connection. I'm, therefore not overly concerned with how much solder may wick past the insulation. It has little impact. Most of the time it might migrate a few mm at most, but it all depends on the specific wire & gauge of wire, the amount of heat I apply and for how long, and how well my soldering mojo is firing.

[@tylercousins7779]

Exact same gun with brand new tip, same gauge wire, rosin core wire for electronics and exact same XT90 connectors. 30-45 seconds to melt the solder if i even get it to melt at all. WHY? 35 years i have been trying to solder rc connectors and its nothing but a nightmare. I think im on my 3rd gun, tried several other styles too and not once have i had decent results.

[@Rchelicopterfun]

Well, without seeing your technique first hand, it's pretty hard to nail down a single or perhaps combination of reasons. You never mentioned exact type of solder. Ie. lead content, rosin content and brand. That's a big part of the equation. You can have the best soldering equipment going, but the quality of the solder will make or break the job. I pretty much use Kester 44 60/40 rosin core exclusively, but any good brand such as MG Chemicals will work too - just as long as it's leaded solder. Stay away from unleaded solder at all costs if you want good results as a hobbyist. The fact it's taking so long to get the tip of the copper wire soldering element in the gun to heat up to melt the solder would indicate one of four things: 1. The tip is not being kept clean while working. Oxide won't conduct heat. A dirty tip will not only insulate, it also prevents proper "tip wetting" further contributing to poor heat conduction from the tip to the solder. 2. The nut or screw terminals that hold the two ends of the Weller solder tip into the gun are not tight. This will produce a poor electrical connection so not enough current can flow through the copper wire soldering tip. Loose screws/nuts on these soldering guns are a constant issue as they always loosen over time due to the expansion & contraction of the heating wire. 3. You are not first "wetting" the tip with solder so it's unable to conduct the heat into the part/wire you are soldering. 4. The gun is faulty, but since you say you are on your 3rd soldering gun, that can likely be ruled out. Especially when these Weller guns last forever. I still have my dads which has to be over 60 years old now and it works as well as this one which is now over 25 years old - both get hard use. I have more soldering tips on my RC Soldering page on my website which might also help: www.rchelicopterfun.com/rc-soldering.html

[@bretzeletouffeur7401]

Dremeling Pb solders is excellent for your lungs. :-)

[@Rchelicopterfun]

Yep, just one more good reason to wear a mask. 😄

[@willdodge7430]

For those of us with little soldering skill, do we need to worry about getting the wire so hot that it somehow ruins the battery?

[@Rchelicopterfun]

If you are asking if enough heat could ever migrate up the wire and get to the battery (even if held on for a long time) and damage the cell, that would be impossible with normal soldering iron/gun temperatures and normal 6" or so of wire length between the pack and the connector.

[@82sjmc]

Who is John Salt?

[@Rchelicopterfun]

www.rchelicopterfun.com/about.html

[@Daxdax006]

So where’s the tin?

[@Rchelicopterfun]

Not sure if this is a serious question, or just making a fun little joke? If it's an honest inquiry, as most know, solder is a tin alloy and thus that is where the phrase "tinning" comes from to describe the process of coating/wetting wires & components with solder.

[@boltonky]

Its all fine and dandy till you burn your finger tips....or worst is solder or weld yourself to the material lol

[@atticusrallye702]

I saw no difference between the way you did the good vs poor tinning job

[@chrisberry3048]

Are you saying 'soddering'?

[@25mfd]

everyone says sodder... the L is silent

[@arcadecarpet631]

Some people say soldering and some say soddering. Its a dialect thing

[@dagreekratking4694]

soldering aint for me i cant do it vids are great but just isnt happening