To drill or not to drill, that is the question

[stephen Farthing]

Gentlefolks,

        I did not explain myself very well in the previous post. What I did was to
use a very small drill, with a diameter smaller that that of the hole, and
twist it gently between my fingers. This was sufficient to remove enough of
the solder to allow me to insert the component leads without damaging the
through hole plating. I was lucky enough to find a small box of 50 or so PCB
drills in different sizes, from very tiny through to about 2 mm at a stall at
Dayton some years back for, I think, $10.


        I only resorted to this approach because my Weller de soldering station,
which i was given for free seems to have developed a fault and I had nothing
else to hand. It is a Model DS 801, The symptom is that whilst the tip heats
up, no matter what the temperature setting, it will not melt solder ;-(. The
green LED flashes at about 1 Hz which is possibly a fault indication.  if
anyone has a manual for one, or knows what the fault is i would be greatful
for some assistance.

        Of course the real answer is for me to pay more attention to the manual in
the first place. ;-). It is a beautiful morning over here in Norfolk,
England...do I melt more solder...or garden...that is the question.....
--
Stephen Farthing
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[David Pratt-3]

A far safer method, Stephen, is to position a pin on one side of the
board, held there with your index finger.  Apply the iron to the other
side of the board and as the solder melts gently push the pin through
the hole.  This then leaves a hole into which the component can be
inserted.

73 de David G4DMP

In a recent message, Stephen <[hidden email]> said....
>What I did was to
>use a very small drill, with a diameter smaller that that of the hole, and
>twist it gently between my fingers. This was sufficient to remove enough of
>the solder to allow me to insert the component leads without damaging the
>through hole plating.
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[Mike W-12]

I don't think drilling out a THP hole is a very good idea.

What I use is a wooden cocktail stick ( bought in lots of 1000 for a
quid from your local Pound Shop ) or a wooden toothpick that I have
previously preformed by gently pushing it through an empty THP hole
of the correct size.
I then heat the hole to be cleared until the solder melts and then
push the stick through the molten solder. Its easy, non destructive
and very quick to do.

I also use this wooden tool to prevent ingress of solder to ajacent
holes when soldering a component located close to other THP holes.

hope this helps someone.
atb Mike W, G8NXD qthr

On 16 Apr 2005 at 9:11, Stephen wrote:

> Gentlefolks,
>
>  I did not explain myself very well in the previous post. What I did
>  was to
> use a very small drill, with a diameter smaller that that of the hole,
> and twist it gently between my fingers. This was sufficient to remove
> enough of the solder to allow me to insert the component leads without
> damaging the through hole plating. I was lucky enough to find a small
> box of 50 or so PCB drills in different sizes, from very tiny through
> to about 2 mm at a stall at Dayton some years back for, I think, $10.
>
>
>  I only resorted to this approach because my Weller de soldering
>  station,
> which i was given for free seems to have developed a fault and I had
> nothing else to hand. It is a Model DS 801, The symptom is that whilst
> the tip heats up, no matter what the temperature setting, it will not
> melt solder ;-(. The green LED flashes at about 1 Hz which is possibly
> a fault indication.  if anyone has a manual for one, or knows what the
> fault is i would be greatful for some assistance.
>
>  Of course the real answer is for me to pay more attention to the
>  manual in
> the first place. ;-). It is a beautiful morning over here in Norfolk,
> England...do I melt more solder...or garden...that is the
> question..... -- Stephen Farthing
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[G3VVT]

 
In a message dated 16/04/05 11:11:43 GMT Daylight Time,  
[hidden email] writes:

What I  use is a wooden cocktail stick ( bought in lots of 1000 for a
quid from  your local Pound Shop ) or a wooden toothpick that I have
previously  preformed by gently pushing it through an empty THP hole
of the correct  size.
I then heat the hole to be cleared until the solder melts and then  
push the stick through the molten solder. Its easy, non destructive  
and very quick to do.

I also use this wooden tool to prevent  ingress of solder to ajacent
holes when soldering a component located  close to other THP holes.


Reply--------------------------------------------
 
What a good idea Mike.
 
I had the misfortune to solder joints that should have been done later  
particularly on the K2 RF board. This idea would have saved me the grief of  
removing the solder in a THP hole that was required later without affecting  other
joints in the area.
 
The builder who ended up having to buy a new board about a year back after  
clearing the THP holes with a Dremmel tool is a good testimony for not  using a
drill bit to clear solder.
 
Bob, G3VVT
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[David A. Belsley]

Stephen:
    I'm glad your operation worked.  But even a small drill can do more
damage to the plate-through than is necessary because you're not sure
if it is going down the center of the hole, and encountering only
solder, or if it is to the side, encountering both solder and
plate-through.  Using a stainless-steel pin or needle is a very safe
method.  Solder does not stick to the stainless steel.  If the hole is
partially open, you need only stick the tip of the needle in, use your
iron, either on the pad or directly on the pin, to heat the pin and,
with very gentle pressure let it slowly melt its way through.  Works
beautifully. Some larger stainless pins have nice large non-metallic
heads, which allows one to hold it and apply pressure even when hot.  
Most XYLs have stainless pins or needles floating about.  It seems to
go with the breed.

best wishes,

dave belsley, w1euy



On Apr 16, 2005, at 4:11 AM, Stephen wrote:

> Gentlefolks,
>
> I did not explain myself very well in the previous post. What I did
> was to
> use a very small drill, with a diameter smaller that that of the hole,
> and
> twist it gently between my fingers. This was sufficient to remove
> enough of
> the solder to allow me to insert the component leads without damaging
> the
> through hole plating. I was lucky enough to find a small box of 50 or
> so PCB
> drills in different sizes, from very tiny through to about 2 mm at a
> stall at
> Dayton some years back for, I think, $10.
>
>
> I only resorted to this approach because my Weller de soldering
> station,
> which i was given for free seems to have developed a fault and I had
> nothing
> else to hand. It is a Model DS 801, The symptom is that whilst the tip
> heats
> up, no matter what the temperature setting, it will not melt solder
> ;-(. The
> green LED flashes at about 1 Hz which is possibly a fault indication.  
> if
> anyone has a manual for one, or knows what the fault is i would be
> greatful
> for some assistance.
>
> Of course the real answer is for me to pay more attention to the
> manual in
> the first place. ;-). It is a beautiful morning over here in Norfolk,
> England...do I melt more solder...or garden...that is the question.....
> --
> Stephen Farthing
> _______________________________________________
> Elecraft mailing list
> Post to: [hidden email]
> You must be a subscriber to post to the list.
> Subscriber Info (Addr. Change, sub, unsub etc.):
>  http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft
>
> Help: http://mailman.qth.net/subscribers.htm
> Elecraft web page: http://www.elecraft.com
>

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