For sale.Cold fusion reactor.Home made.Not working.$2000 ONO
- Thread starter 120ThingsIn20Years
- Start date
Good call, It only cost $20 delivered to my door... and I was going on holidays, so it was a temporary win win. I too was thinking about building a feeder but it needs to be rain and moisture proof with a big hopper. Maybe we should start a community open source fish feeder projectOh cool, BjShed.
But I cant believe you actually bought a fish feeder from a shop when you have electronics in your brain's bag of tricks. Even I managed a fish feeder with a plastic fork handle glued to a switch, a little motor, and a drill bit
http://120thingsin20years.blogspot.com/2010/11/aquaponics-demand-fish-feeder-success.html
and even a pebble/blutak/string based analog data logger
http://120thingsin20years.blogspot.com/2010/11/aquaponics-string-feed-counter.html
Is string a dirty word here?
120ThingsIn20Years
Senior Member
Is that a thing? Do people do that in the real world?[stuff deleted]Maybe we should start a community open source fish feeder project
120ThingsIn20Years
Senior Member
Actually an even better way to restrict their intake would be to remove the lever. That way you get 100% re-enforcement of the press=feed. When I buy the bigger board, I'll buy a servo and whatever I need to run it. That way I can mount my switch on the actual servo disc so it rotates out of the water when they are not allowed to eat.
So cool.
I feel like a kid again.
But doing anything more than learning to solder is still a little way off.
So cool.
I feel like a kid again.
But doing anything more than learning to solder is still a little way off.
Why go to the trouble of rotating the lever out of the water, just add a time delay between allowed lever presses, as fish look to be somewhat smart then adding a red led near the lever for when they can activate it should teach them when they can press the lever for a reward and when they cannot.
120ThingsIn20Years
Senior Member
Nice. Much better. And I get to test to see if they can see in colour while I'm at it by using one of those LEDs that does different colours
fritz42_male
Senior Member
Just remember that fish have a 3 second memory
Just remember that fish have a 3 second memory
Just...
Just remember that fish have a 3 second memory
Just...
When that happens to me I try to remember to check in my mouth first.... Sometimes I do.
fritz42_male
Senior Member
I'm afraid that what mostly ends up in my mouth is my foot!
As a physicist, I would have thought you above all would have understood my point. I'm fully aware of the components to which you refer, but my meaning was more about the resistance than the device. Can a zero ohm resistor (conductor) exist? Even low temperature superconductors have some small resistance don't they?
I'm almost certain that ear-to-ear measuremet of many politicians would read 0.0000000
John
120ThingsIn20Years
Senior Member
Distraction is what I need I think. I can add solder to the component wire, but not to the board. I get to much surface tension and it doesnt wet the board at all.
I'm tinning the iron (25watt)
I'm adding solder to the wire not the iron
But I just watched a youtube video and it gave me some tips about how the flux flows so Ill try again.
Also I'm some old LEDs to an old circuit board. The video mentioned dirt and oxidation as a problem.
I think I might have to buy myself a sacrificial board.
Q...Is there a wire that would behave like components?
Q...Can I just use tinned wire to practice soldering, or what that give me false easiness? I can tin a wire and join tinned wire with ease, so I get the feeling it must be easy compared to joining components to boards.
I'm tinning the iron (25watt)
I'm adding solder to the wire not the iron
But I just watched a youtube video and it gave me some tips about how the flux flows so Ill try again.
Also I'm some old LEDs to an old circuit board. The video mentioned dirt and oxidation as a problem.
I think I might have to buy myself a sacrificial board.
Q...Is there a wire that would behave like components?
Q...Can I just use tinned wire to practice soldering, or what that give me false easiness? I can tin a wire and join tinned wire with ease, so I get the feeling it must be easy compared to joining components to boards.
120ThingsIn20Years
Senior Member
Zero resistance from a politician?
I would have said infinite resistance, to anything they didn't say first.
fritz42_male
Senior Member
Normally it's easy to solder stuff to a board - just use a good quality resin cored solder. If you have trouble soldering to the board it usually means that what you are trying to solder to has a layer that is preventing it from 'wetting' - this could be oil, dirt, corrosion (oxidation) or even a lacquer coating. Try scrubbing with very fine wire wool at first making sure you then clean the board of any wire wool traces by holding upside down and brushing with a new paint brush.
I use a special 'eraser' from RS Components designed to clean copper and tinned pads - it's also good for cleaning gold connectors when they get dirty (not too abrasive)
I use a special 'eraser' from RS Components designed to clean copper and tinned pads - it's also good for cleaning gold connectors when they get dirty (not too abrasive)
Sounds to me that you are not getting enough heat into the pad on the board, you need to have the tip of the iron touching the pad and the component leg, then a short pause to allow the heat to transfer to both parts then apply the solder to the junction of the 3 (the iron tip, the component leg and the board, it should flow and wrap around forming a nice joint.
What you are experiencing is what i think is the result of a crappy soldering iron, as they take time to transfer the heat, i know years ago i had a cheap crap iron and yes it worked but when i bought a good weller soldering station i could not belive how fast and how neat i could solder.
What you are experiencing is what i think is the result of a crappy soldering iron, as they take time to transfer the heat, i know years ago i had a cheap crap iron and yes it worked but when i bought a good weller soldering station i could not belive how fast and how neat i could solder.
For the sanity of the forum members, and due to your keenness to want to learn being infectious, and your current ability being zip, i think it might be best if you can leave the board assembly to next week, and i meet you in at AZtronics and give you a lesson on soldering and we assemble the board together there.
I also have several boards that was made wrong ( i have a lot of junk) and can give you to take and practice your soldering skills on.
We all want to see you up and running with your picaxe projects but one step at a time might be the fastest way given your current knowledge level.
How do that sound to you?
I also have several boards that was made wrong ( i have a lot of junk) and can give you to take and practice your soldering skills on.
We all want to see you up and running with your picaxe projects but one step at a time might be the fastest way given your current knowledge level.
How do that sound to you?
The number will be rounded to the nearest 0.1 or 0.01 which is why it's 0. Resistors don't have enough stripes or colours for stripes to allow 0.0000000000000000000000000000000000000001 ohms.
Boriz, I assumed you meant the little resistor-shaped devices labelled commonly reffered to a "zero ohm resistor".
Maybe it was it said as a 'tongue in cheek' comment? If so fair enough.
Yes, haha, it does sound a little contradictory if you take it abs literally or pedantically but there we are.
120TI20Y... soldering requires practice and cleanliness and heat in the right places.
You need to head the track AND the wire/leg. I agree with SABorn.
And if you are soldering to a large area of copper it can be a nightmare , especially if your soldering iron is underpowered or cheap'n'nasty or has an unsuitable bit or your solder wire size is unsuitable or poor quality.
You need to get wire and track/pad (locally) hot enough to get the flux going and then melt the solder.
You may like to get some IPA solvent to clean the area and ,for tricky stuff (inlcuding repairs and reflow), a flux pen.
On a fresh home-made board I tend to have a rub with a brass wire (or fibre) brush and then clean with IPA.
And definitely have some practice on something not important.
Soldering iron performance -often related to price- is of great importance too.
Are you using lead-free solder?
Maybe it was it said as a 'tongue in cheek' comment? If so fair enough.
Yes, haha, it does sound a little contradictory if you take it abs literally or pedantically but there we are.
120TI20Y... soldering requires practice and cleanliness and heat in the right places.
You need to head the track AND the wire/leg. I agree with SABorn.
And if you are soldering to a large area of copper it can be a nightmare , especially if your soldering iron is underpowered or cheap'n'nasty or has an unsuitable bit or your solder wire size is unsuitable or poor quality.
You need to get wire and track/pad (locally) hot enough to get the flux going and then melt the solder.
You may like to get some IPA solvent to clean the area and ,for tricky stuff (inlcuding repairs and reflow), a flux pen.
On a fresh home-made board I tend to have a rub with a brass wire (or fibre) brush and then clean with IPA.
And definitely have some practice on something not important.
Soldering iron performance -often related to price- is of great importance too.
Are you using lead-free solder?
Just started reading thru this thread. From the title though we were in for something interesting.
akin to Thermo Nuclear power or something similar.
Then found it was a call for help.
so, as already stated, please keep thread titles pertinent to the actual topic.
Makes it far easier when trying to search the forum at a later time.
akin to Thermo Nuclear power or something similar.
Then found it was a call for help.
so, as already stated, please keep thread titles pertinent to the actual topic.
Makes it far easier when trying to search the forum at a later time.
120ThingsIn20Years
Senior Member
120ThingsIn20Years
Senior Member
Advice taken, but I have no idea if I'm using a good quality resin cored solder.
Firstly I don't actually know what that means
And secondly, even if ?I did know, how would I know if my solder is that?
It behaves like the solder with flux on the youtube videos I'v watched, so I'm sure it have the flux component.
Q... is there a difference in thickness? One of the videos mentioned what thickness they were using, but didnt actually mention if it was important.
Firstly I don't actually know what that means
And secondly, even if ?I did know, how would I know if my solder is that?
It behaves like the solder with flux on the youtube videos I'v watched, so I'm sure it have the flux component.
Q... is there a difference in thickness? One of the videos mentioned what thickness they were using, but didnt actually mention if it was important.
120ThingsIn20Years
Senior Member
How hot is too hot for a component?
I noticed the resistor that I removed from the board, then resoldered (after it was cool) was quite hot to the touch after my hacking attempt to stick the sucker to the board.
I also noticed on the youtube videos that they often had a clip like a pair of pliers behind the joint (on the component pin), as a heat sink. Is that just a given that I need to have a heat sink, or is that just for special delicate parts?
120ThingsIn20Years
Senior Member
Sounds great, but what will AZtronics have to say about it? Do you own shares or something (here's where we find the real reason you sent me there
)? I cant remember the last time I gave pottery lessons in pottery store that ended well. There's the mess, the fumes, all the adoring crowds of young girls. etc etc. It never ends well.Why would that be an ok thing to do?
120ThingsIn20Years
Senior Member
I'm attempting to practice on a the board from a broken multi meter board. There are a few holse that havnt been used, and some that have that I removed the components from. The board looks clean (amazingly clean) as I opened it probably for the first time since it was made, but I understand there is clean, and there is clean.
Pete's idea might be best as this thing might be 20 years old and have a layer of oil or oxidation on it. I have no idea.
The fact that I can join two tinned wires together gives me a bit of hope
When I get it right, it seems to want to join all by itself.
As for the kind of solder I'm using, I have no idea.
Q... How do you tell what kind of solder you have, and does it matter what thickness it is?
120ThingsIn20Years
Senior Member
Yeah, sorry ValueAdd,Just started reading thru this thread. From the title though we were in for something interesting.
akin to Thermo Nuclear power or something similar.
Then found it was a call for help.
so, as already stated, please keep thread titles pertinent to the actual topic.
Makes it far easier when trying to search the forum at a later time.
But watch this space, with all the help I'm getting, perhaps the tittle will be right on the money within 20 years or so
Come to think of it, people have been saying cold fusion has been 20 years away for the last 50 years.
so, sorry again.
120ThingsIn20Years
Senior Member
I just discovered that one of the strangest things about studying various unrelated fields, one after the other, is having to look up a key word from a joke on wikipedia to see if the joke is funny on notOr Impedance
This is a first for me
Do people gather around screens, looking at tables of binary digits, or strings of machine code, pointing and giggling?
If so, I want to be in on that.
If anyone is making fun of me some time down the track, with some hilarious electron based joke, can someone PM me really quickly to let me know, so I respond as if I got it from the start
The debate about irons and solder and soldering methods have cropped up a lot.
It's about getting the right amount of heat in the right place for the right time.
And assuming your iron is up to the task then a lot of this is down to cleanliness, preparation and practice.
I use irons ranging from a £15 Antex to £Fing-Expensive Wellers, Pace and Metcal stations.
I can say honestly that the more expensive ones are easier, but I can also say that with a little practice you can get perfectly good results with a cheap one. You have to choose a power and bit and solder that is appropriate for good, quick, high-percentage soldering.
Solder wire thickness can affect things, again you should choose appropriately.
Too high wattage and too thin solder wire often results in vaporisation and no solder joint.
A weedy bit+ weedy power+poor quality iron + fat solder = a waste of time.
Overheating or overtemperature can be a nightmare.
For practice I would certainly use a leaded solder, it's easier.
If you have a solder station you can run at a lower temp too. Overheating and/or leaving iron on too long usually results in a painful black tip which can be a bitch to clean.
You shouldn't need a heatsink clip for most components these days. Maybe 30 years ago you would.
For a typical through hole 1/2W resistor with 0.7mm diam lead-wire you shouldn't have to spend more than a second or so soldering.
A 15 to 20W good iron with a 1 or 2mm tip with <1mm solder wire (lead/tin/flux) should be fine for typical PCB soldering.
For larger components and/or large areas of copper (e.g. pads attached to ground-planes) then you might need more watts/bigger tip. This is why an adjustable soldering station is handy.
With practice a slightly-too-hot iron is OK - just do it more quickly and don't leave them on unused for hours
Cleanliness is important as is practice. Cleanliness of PCB and iron tip.
But if you've bought a 50penny iron that doesn't operate at vaguely the right temp then you may be peeing into the wind.
Good luck. Keep practicing.
It's about getting the right amount of heat in the right place for the right time.
And assuming your iron is up to the task then a lot of this is down to cleanliness, preparation and practice.
I use irons ranging from a £15 Antex to £Fing-Expensive Wellers, Pace and Metcal stations.
I can say honestly that the more expensive ones are easier, but I can also say that with a little practice you can get perfectly good results with a cheap one. You have to choose a power and bit and solder that is appropriate for good, quick, high-percentage soldering.
Solder wire thickness can affect things, again you should choose appropriately.
Too high wattage and too thin solder wire often results in vaporisation and no solder joint.
A weedy bit+ weedy power+poor quality iron + fat solder = a waste of time.
Overheating or overtemperature can be a nightmare.
For practice I would certainly use a leaded solder, it's easier.
If you have a solder station you can run at a lower temp too. Overheating and/or leaving iron on too long usually results in a painful black tip which can be a bitch to clean.
You shouldn't need a heatsink clip for most components these days. Maybe 30 years ago you would.
For a typical through hole 1/2W resistor with 0.7mm diam lead-wire you shouldn't have to spend more than a second or so soldering.
A 15 to 20W good iron with a 1 or 2mm tip with <1mm solder wire (lead/tin/flux) should be fine for typical PCB soldering.
For larger components and/or large areas of copper (e.g. pads attached to ground-planes) then you might need more watts/bigger tip. This is why an adjustable soldering station is handy.
With practice a slightly-too-hot iron is OK - just do it more quickly and don't leave them on unused for hours
Cleanliness is important as is practice. Cleanliness of PCB and iron tip.
But if you've bought a 50penny iron that doesn't operate at vaguely the right temp then you may be peeing into the wind.
Good luck. Keep practicing.
Here's a small clarification of a tech word used above, one suitable for those who would spend their time discussing cold fusion and the precise meaning of the digit zero:
I sure do love tech terminology.
As for actual soldering, one of the most important things most novices need to understand is that they need a bit of solder on the iron tip in order to make effective contact with the connection to be made, in order to transfer the tip's heat to the connection itself. A "dry" iron tip making contact only at tiny points on the connection just does not effectively transfer heat.
There you have it. Build your PICAXE projects using good quality "rosin" core solder, of which the "rosin" is made from "resin."
I sure do love tech terminology.
As for actual soldering, one of the most important things most novices need to understand is that they need a bit of solder on the iron tip in order to make effective contact with the connection to be made, in order to transfer the tip's heat to the connection itself. A "dry" iron tip making contact only at tiny points on the connection just does not effectively transfer heat.
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No i dont own shares in Aztronics but all the money i have spent there i should have a stake in the place.
I just have a very good working relationship with AZ, and have done some kit design work for them over time.
Basically you get back what you give in this world, and i help them and they help me.
Its nice to go to a store where the people actually know their stuff and not have some zit faced kid trying to sell you all the junk you dont need.
They have an area used for instructing teachers in a night class im sure we can use.
I will call and ask first but i dont think there will be a problem.
As for solder i use 0.71mm resin core solder, its nice and fine which melts quickly and only leaves a small amount of resin on the board compared to larger solder that has a lot of resin in the core and makes a big mess.
I have spare rolls of 500grams if you would like one, think they were $15.00 a roll which is cheap for 500g (i use about 1-2kg a year)
I have not used a heatsink on components since high school and feel they are a thing of the past, most heat sensitive components of today have a good 5 second soldering time on average.
If the colours are dripping off your resistors then you proberly have them a little too hot, but never known a resistor to be heat sensitive to soldering yet.
The use of IC sockets solves the problem with heat damage to delicate IC's, and most other common components are not that heat sensitive except for maybe a transistor.
There is a lot of wierd stuff on youtube, and a lot is posted by complete idiots looking for their 30 seconds of fame, you might say half is bull and the other half is $#!%. (IMO)
120ThingsIn20Years
Senior Member
Thanks Dippy.
From what you ( + everyone else + the combined wealth of knowledge of the net) say, and my successful joining of clean copper to clean copper (ie wire to wire) I get the feeling that my solder is within spec, and so is my crappy soldering iron (even if only just)
I think the majority of my problem is dirt and lack of practice. With extra emphasis on my lack of practice.
I figure 4 or 5 hours will tell me
So far I've spent probably 2 hours at it. I'm guessing that's not a lot compared to what everyone else on the forum does in a typical week
The youtube video talking about how the flux works/evaporates might be the key.
Then again, it's difficult to tell, because I have no idea how to judge what I'm looking at. But I figure, the guy on the video makes stuff stick, and I cant, so he must have mad skills.
Q... can a component like a resistor get uncomfortably hot to the touch, or does that mean it's fried? By "uncomfortably" I mean you wouldn't want to touch it to your eyelid.
Is that odd? Too specific? Is eyelid a little strange?
Don't forget, I'm new here
From what you ( + everyone else + the combined wealth of knowledge of the net) say, and my successful joining of clean copper to clean copper (ie wire to wire) I get the feeling that my solder is within spec, and so is my crappy soldering iron (even if only just)
I think the majority of my problem is dirt and lack of practice. With extra emphasis on my lack of practice.
I figure 4 or 5 hours will tell me
So far I've spent probably 2 hours at it. I'm guessing that's not a lot compared to what everyone else on the forum does in a typical week
The youtube video talking about how the flux works/evaporates might be the key.
Then again, it's difficult to tell, because I have no idea how to judge what I'm looking at. But I figure, the guy on the video makes stuff stick, and I cant, so he must have mad skills.
Q... can a component like a resistor get uncomfortably hot to the touch, or does that mean it's fried? By "uncomfortably" I mean you wouldn't want to touch it to your eyelid.
Is that odd? Too specific? Is eyelid a little strange?
Don't forget, I'm new here
The debate about irons and solder and soldering methods have cropped up a lot.
It's about getting the right amount of heat in the right place for the right time.
And assuming your iron is up to the task then a lot of this is down to cleanliness, preparation and practice.
I use irons ranging from a £15 Antex to £Fing-Expensive Wellers, Pace and Metcal stations.
I can say honestly that the more expensive ones are easier, but I can also say that with a little practice you can get perfectly good results with a cheap one. You have to choose a power and bit and solder that is appropriate for good, quick, high-percentage soldering.
Solder wire thickness can affect things, again you should choose appropriately.
Too high wattage and too thin solder wire often results in vaporisation and no solder joint.
A weedy bit+ weedy power+poor quality iron + fat solder = a waste of time.
Overheating or overtemperature can be a nightmare.
For practice I would certainly use a leaded solder, it's easier.
If you have a solder station you can run at a lower temp too. Overheating and/or leaving iron on too long usually results in a painful black tip which can be a bitch to clean.
You shouldn't need a heatsink clip for most components these days. Maybe 30 years ago you would.
For a typical through hole 1/2W resistor with 0.7mm diam lead-wire you shouldn't have to spend more than a second or so soldering.
A 15 to 20W good iron with a 1 or 2mm tip with <1mm solder wire (lead/tin/flux) should be fine for typical PCB soldering.
For larger components and/or large areas of copper (e.g. pads attached to ground-planes) then you might need more watts/bigger tip. This is why an adjustable soldering station is handy.
With practice a slightly-too-hot iron is OK - just do it more quickly and don't leave them on unused for hours
Cleanliness is important as is practice. Cleanliness of PCB and iron tip.
But if you've bought a 50penny iron that doesn't operate at vaguely the right temp then you may be peeing into the wind.
Good luck. Keep practicing.
120ThingsIn20Years
Senior Member
I'm watching electronics educational videos from India on youtube, and I find myself wondering... are resistors that have only a 5% error margin made specially, or are they just selected to be within 5% range from the zillions of resistors coming off the conveyor belt, and banded accordingly?
ie: are gold banded resistors made differently to silver banded ones, or are they just graded as gold or silver?
ie: are gold banded resistors made differently to silver banded ones, or are they just graded as gold or silver?
Someone asked me to get him a solderig iron and solder for some PC board work. I got him the same inexpensive, adjustable-power iron that I've used for numerous boards (as in adding female headers to the 28X/40X PICAXE board for breadboard wiring connections) and his response was: "I'm lifting the traces from the PC board."
I'm not sure how he was doing that - he's not been available when I was, so I haven't yet watched him (try to) solder.
Maybe this week...
John
"...so he must have mad skills."
No, just skills and experience.
Keep at it. You'll get there.
Yes, components like resistors can get very hot and burn your fingers and still be OK.
Goodness knows why you's think about sticking it to your eyelid; but , hey, whatever form of s&m you're into then it's your business
Tell you what, solder 10 resistors in place, post the (genuine and in-focus) picture here, and if we think you've passed the test then we'll talk about tolerances. At the moment you need to do one thing at once.
But yes, there is a special machine which makes them badly so they can provide 5% tolerance.
No, just skills and experience.
Keep at it. You'll get there.
Yes, components like resistors can get very hot and burn your fingers and still be OK.
Goodness knows why you's think about sticking it to your eyelid; but , hey, whatever form of s&m you're into then it's your business
Tell you what, solder 10 resistors in place, post the (genuine and in-focus) picture here, and if we think you've passed the test then we'll talk about tolerances. At the moment you need to do one thing at once.
But yes, there is a special machine which makes them badly so they can provide 5% tolerance.
If you're solder has the following properties, it is leaded solder:
- Strong smell (don't sniff this a lot)
- Easy to melt
- Easy to produce nice shiny joints
- Soldering iron tips last ages
- The reel says '60/40 solder' or similar
- Weak highly unpleasant smell
- Doesn't melt so easily
- Destroys soldering iron tips quickly
- Dull-looking joints more common
- The reel says 'Lead free solder'
Be advised, if using both solder and tinned copper wire in a project and are in the habit of using that last two inches of solder, then you will be aware that the reason the solder isn't melting into the joint is because it is actually a short length of tinned copper wire.
I used to find that awareness of such things and the heat from the iron travelled at about the same rate . . . ouch!
I used to find that awareness of such things and the heat from the iron travelled at about the same rate . . . ouch!
It's even more interesting to speculate what would happen if one's zero ohm resistance with 5% tolerence drifted downwards. What would be the effect of negative resistance. Reversed entropy?
Would the wire drop to abosulte zero and you end up with getting more out of it that you are putting in?
Anyway - Adelaide, 15 years ago I could have helped you as I lived in Largs Bay. But I now call Brisbane my home nowadays.
Dave