maniac mechanic

iTrader: (4)

I broke the positive wire lead off my Novak GTB ESC.

I just tried to remove what remains of the old wire from the ESC with my soldering gun ( HAKKO ).

It seemed like the material the ESC was made of was absorbing all the heat away from my soldering tip. So much so that I couldn't even remotely soften the old solder.

Has anybody tried to repair these ESC's before? If so what did you have to do? Or am I just that inept with a soldering gun?

Any tips are appreciated.

AreCee

iTrader: (1)

You need to use a soldering iron not a gun. Guns heat up fast but do not transfer heat well. An iron with half the wattage of a gun transfers heat more efficiently than a gun. All you need for soldering to ESC tabs is a 25watt iron.

Bigshades

iTrader: (28)

Here's a poor mans method:

1. Get a 30ish watt soldering IRON. Guns will not work. A trip to wally world will get you one for 5 bucks.

2. Heat/melt the solder/wire. Make sure you can get a good, clean place to transfer the heat. DO NOT APPLY HEAT FOR MORE THAN 5 SECONDS!!! You will fry your electrics if you hold the iron on too much.

3. When the solder/wire is molten, quickly tap the esc on the desk/table. if the solder is hot enough, it will fly out when you tap it. Then you should be left with a nice, clean hole to insert a new wire into. If it doesnt come out, let the esc cool for 5 minutes, and try again. Try taping it harder, or getting the solder hotter.

If you are in doubt, let someone else more experienced do it. Frying an ESC from poor soldering is inessicary.

Cheers!

maniac mechanic

iTrader: (4)

This is what I was using. Is this a gun or an iron. I'm assuming iron.
http://www.hobbyroom.ca/pm-54277-120...-adj-temp.aspx
I have a 30 watt cheapo special also. I'll give it a try I guess.

I was touching the iron directly to the solder on the bottom of the ESC so I should have had good heat transfer.
I did feel the body of the ESC get warm ( not hot ), so hopefully it's still OK.

WillS

iTrader: (32)

What a lot are forgetting to mention is the fact of using a non corrosive flux. Which you should find at any electronics store. The flux will allow for both sides of the solder to heat evenly allowing for quicker removal. If you are using that HAKKO set it around 690F. Apply a small amount ( a drop is good ) of flux to both top and bottom of the wire to be removed/replaced. Make sure to tin the wire you are putting back in. When you tin it make sure you only do the tip, solder will want to sneek up the insulation when you apply more heat to it. When all done make sure to clean the area up with a little isoprophyl alcohol. This will prevent any corrosion buildup.


Key thing when soldering is shiny solder is a good joint, dull is a dirty joint.

UltegraSTI

iTrader: (20)

the best method to fix this and any other solder issues is to start with the right equipment. as posted above. good luck

R

maniac mechanic

iTrader: (4)

Thanks for all the help guys (gals?). Very much appreciated. Going to try again later this week. Also been told to put a bigger tip on my iron. Hopefully post with my success later on.

On The Edge

The Hakko iron you have is awesome. I have one myself. When I remove old wire from my esc, I usually have the iron set to about 700-750 degrees F. That temperature works good for me at least. You say that the iron won't melt the solder? Well, I use to to have that problem too. I then found out that you have to tin the end of the iron with a little solder otherwise the solder on the speedo won't melt. Yeah. Try melting a little solder to the tip of the iron before trying to melt the solder on the speed control. I don't know if that will solve your problem. Sorry if it doesn't help, and sorry if I'm just repeating something that someone else said already.

AreCee

iTrader: (1)

The Hakko 936 is an excellent IRON.

You need to turn the temp up almost all the way to get good results on the heavier gauge wire and posts (they tend to be good heat sinks). Especially when using the small tip.

A larger chisel tip would help immensely to transfer the heat rather than the smallish chisel tip that came with the iron. However, if you tin the tip and keep it clean it should work well. Also use good quality 60/40 solder intended for use with electronics and have some soldering flux to keep oxidation to a minimum.

I know because that is the set up I use.