Getting Started

Knowing your tools

There are many essential tools that you will get to know as you start developing your soldering skills.

Soldering iron

image via NY Times

The main tool used for soldering is the soldering iron. The soldering iron's tip gets hot enough to melt metal and join joints with solder. These tips are interchangeable as different jobs require different tips. The irons provided in the Mercer lab are toggleable to both Celsius and Fahrenheit. This guide is written with temperature in degrees Celsius.

<aside> 🚨

You do not need to run the iron above 380 degrees as you will only damage the tips from burning solder wire and increasing the rate of oxidation.
- 350 degrees is more than enough to produce good results. If you find yourself needing to increase the temperature, then you are either:
  - Using an oxidized or damaged tip
  - Using solder wire that’s too thick
- Temperatures within 360-380 should only be done by experienced users who are capable and comfortable working quickly while keeping the tip well-maintained. </aside>

Sponge

A slightly damp sponge is used to periodically clean off the solder tip (use the sink in the corner of the Mercer lab to wet the sponge as needed). When using the sponge, rotate the iron’s tip on each pass to prevent damage from oxidation or bending from uneven heat.

Flux paste/pen

[Via amazon.com](https://imgs.search.brave.com/o7PQtdYdE6FQw9TAqGBWuD3J3XEFOiyExRnI99IcYfU/rs:fit:860:0:0:0/g:ce/aHR0cHM6Ly9pbWFn/ZXMtbmEuc3NsLWlt/YWdlcy1hbWF6b24u/Y29tL2ltYWdlcy9J/LzUxeWYtYktYMDBM/LmpwZw)

Via amazon.com

Flux paste, pictured above, and a flux pen are tools that help improve the performance of your soldering tools. The paste, typically used for tinning wires, is useful for pulling solder into desired areas. Flux also helps when soldering to pads on a PCB. It helps direct the solder onto the pads and prevent leaking into unwanted places.

Solder

[Via SparkFun](https://imgs.search.brave.com/ReITe_v4FeRLPiQsoAaY_QIacQ9wCLYgo6CLsd-ihao/rs:fit:860:0:0:0/g:ce/aHR0cHM6Ly9jZG4u/c3BhcmtmdW4uY29t/L3IvNjAwLTYwMC9h/c3NldHMvNC9hL2Uv/Ni8yLzUxZDlhYzE0/Y2UzOTVmZDYyYTAw/MDAwMC5qcGc)

Via SparkFun