soldering temperature question

[pro mod steve]

I got tired of my junk and bought a TK-950 soldering station. I have been on you tube for hours and still have 1 question. How do I know how much heat or tip temperature I need? I am just doing stuff like bullet connectors esc and battery connectors. Do I just set it to kill or what? My old junk was non adjustable so this is all new to me.

[bob1961]

I run my Hakko at 750 on the dial, then adjust it from there if needed....

[mrG]

How to solder correctly (a not so brief lesson) - R/C Tech Forums excellent thread

[Axish]

I use a 800 degree tip in my old school weller station if I am soldering esc wires. But for bullets and other connectors I use my 700 tip.

Be sure to keep the tip clean and tinned.

[87warrior917]

I have the same tk-950 setup and i like to solder around the 800 range. Def a killer solder station. Usually doing the bullet conectors ill crank it all the way to max heat to make it easier. But to much heat for a long period of time can make the joint brittle. Practice makes perfect good luck.

[pro mod steve]

THANKS everyone for the help. Time to practice and get it done.

[losikid]

I generally solder at 700*...If you have a good station, you don't need a higher temperature for a bigger joint. Your station should start spewing out heat to the iron to maintain the set temperature.

Old school, you use a big tip and higher heat for soldering big stuff because the station wasn't capable of quick thermal recovery. But modern stations can really pump out the heat, so a standard size tip and normal temperatures work just fine.

Also, get a flux pen, makes your life alot easier if you flux everything before soldering, The one sitting on my desk is a kester #186 flux-pen....