Meanwhile I've run into two problems with this approach:
unless I sand the connector pins before I solder, the bonding with the soldered wires is poor and the wires easily come off again..
the connectors do not seem to be very reliable and I have wasted hours debugging phantom
problems that were ultimately due to some loose contact in one of the connectors..
Any suggestions for more hassle-free connector alternatives?
You can also crimp on connectors to your wires, or use pre-terminated wires:
female-female, female-male, male-male examples
Can also find single terminated wires, pins, and crimp housings at www.pololu.com to make up any connector you want, such as a 2x3 female end to plug onto an ICSP header on a board.
...since it allows to easily cut off the exact number of pins needed.
I do that all the time with the male headers, but not the females.
unless I sand the connector pins before I solder, the bonding with the soldered wires is poor and the wires easily come off again..
I've done that too and I always add heatshrink which helps a bit. And you can get header pins with long pins on both sides for more soldering area. But, those connectors are not designed for direct wire soldering, they are designed to be soldered to a PC board.
[2) the connectors do not seem to be very reliable and I have wasted hours debugging phantom
problems that were ultimately due to some loose contact in one of the connectors.
The only trouble like that I've had is that the male pins sometimes slide part-way out of the housing and then I get poor contact. (If they are soldered to a board, of course that doesn't happen.)
I doesn't make a very good Arduino connector, and I've decided to use aprototyping shield board next time I build an Arduino project... Then, I can solder wires to the board or solder a different connector to the board.
Any suggestions for more hassle-free connector alternatives?
There are all kinds of connectors - Do you have a catalog from an electronic parts supplier? It's usually easier to browse a catalog than a website. I have the Jameco catalog, and unfortunately Digi-Key no no longer prints a catalog. Mouser still prints a catalog.
the connectors do not seem to be very reliable and I have wasted hours debugging phantom
problems that were ultimately due to some loose contact in one of the connectors..
There's nothing wrong with the connectors. The problem is your lack of experience with soldering makes it impossible for you to see the cold solder joints you are making. We have all been using the exact same headers you are for many many years and have not had any cold solder joints. The fact that you have not even mentioned flux in your post makes it obvious that you simply do not know how to solder , period and need to learn. If you use the correct solder (60/40 rosen core solder) and some form of flux, either a liquid squeeze bottle or a flux pen and know how to solder , you will not have any problem and will not need to sand the pins. I have been soldering those headers for 35 years and NEVER had even so much as ONE with a bad connection so don't tell me it's the connectors. That's just not true. Learn to solder. Post a photo of your soldering iron, your solder and a closeup photo of your soldering iron TIP. and a closeup photo of a connector that you soldered.
the connectors do not seem to be very reliable and I have wasted hours debugging phantom
problems that were ultimately due to some loose contact in one of the connectors..
That will put hair on your chest!
Not too good if you are a female.
60W says nothing... Just use a decent iron. I have a 15W Ersa which works a treat. But you can also buy a 60W cheapy which solders like crap. And I must say, the cheap/knock off soldering stations from China are pretty decent.
Correct iron temperature - use a temperature controlled iron, then it will work and you won't
oxidize and ruin the tips so quickly. The actual setting is higher than the nominal value for the
solder due to temperature drop along the tip, so experimentation required. If things are charring,
its way too hot.
Use rosin-cored solder - never ever use plumbers solder (these have acid fluxes that corrode
and destroy)
If you use lead-free (a good idea) then use the tin/silver/copper alloy, not tin/copper, because
the former is a true eutectic solder and works. tin/copper alloy is not eutectic and is horrid (but
cheaper).
All parts to solder must be free of grease - do not finger everything first, bare clean metal...
Always always always clean the tip and apply fresh solder immediately before use. Otherwise
you are just smearing oxides on everything. Dripping wet sponge for cleaning the tip works well.
Tin each item first (to tin is to wet with solder)
Then apply iron and solder to the parts to join, solder should melt and flow readily over both parts
and then remove solder, wait 1/2 second and remove iron. Allow to cool without movement (which
can cause a pasty dry-joint)
If you see any hint the joint is not wetted properly, or you see bubbles forming, you have a bad
joint. Look at the joint through a lens - compare with pictures of good joints. Any doubt, start again.
Practice on junk components and boards till you get the knack - it may take a little while, but you
don't want to junk valuable wanted boards and components while learning.
Luckily I finished my coffee before I read that line
And I still prefer lead solder wayyyyyyy better.
And btw, if you need to set the soldering station higher "due to temperature drop along the tip" you're calibration is just off. Okay, most don't calibrate it but the set temperature should be the temperature of the tip. And a small not for the Chinese stations, most of them are like 50C hotter then you set them (without calibration)...
raschemmel:
There's nothing wrong with the connectors. The problem is your lack of experience with soldering makes it impossible for you to see the cold solder joints you are making. We have all been using the exact same headers you are for many many years and have not had any cold solder joints. The fact that you have not even mentioned flux in your post makes it obvious that you simply do not know how to solder , period and need to learn. If you use the correct solder (60/40 rosen core solder) and some form of flux, either a liquid squeeze bottle or a flux pen and know how to solder , you will not have any problem and will not need to sand the pins. I have been soldering those headers for 35 years and NEVER had even so much as ONE with a bad connection so don't tell me it's the connectors. That's just not true. Learn to solder. Post a photo of your soldering iron, your solder and a closeup photo of your soldering iron TIP. and a closeup photo of a connector that you soldered.
I am indeed not using separate flux (eventhough - judging by the smoke/smell - there seems to be some kind of resin built into my 60/40 solder).. a friend had advised me against the use of flux - so as to avoid having its residues corrode the pcb..
here the photos that you asked for (I only use the thin tip when dealing with 1.27mm stuff..):
Your soldering iron, tips, and solder are garbage and your friend doesn't know what he is talking about.
You can try buyiing the correct solder, paste and flux and keep you're current iron but I would replace it with a Weller 35B.
Flux doesn't "corode" PCBs, it cleans them so the solder will stick. Throw away all your soldering equipment and buy a Weller WP35 iron.
( it's just an iron , not a temp controlled station)
Order different size tips for it. Buy Kester 44 60/40 Rosen Core Solder in the diameter you need and buy some solder paste and a flux pen or a bottle of liquid flux. The flux needs to be cleaned off with Spray on flux remover and a flux brush after soldering.
Unremoved flux can remain on the PCB forever with effecting anything.
Weller fan boy are you It might be a bit of an older station but it is an Esra, nothing wrong with that. Tips might not be in mint condition but I would say they're not terrible. I've used worst without a problem when I was to lazy to buy a new one.
You can use flux (as long as you use the right flux, not plumbers flux) but I must say I never use it. I would say enough heat (better a bit to high then to low) and solder with flux is key. Although I must say I never look any further then to look for 60/40 solder with flux. The one on my desk now is HQ 0,7m 60/40 with 2% flux, just the grab and buy solder of my local shop. Works just fine.
Ok, maybe the soldering iron can stay but everything else should go. I think it's time he bought some new tips. One thing I noticed is he had the temp rather low. This is a common mistake made by beginners who don't know how to judge when a connection is hot enough to solder. Typically they apply the solder and the tip at the SAME time instead of heating the joint up for a few seconds at the right temp and then applying the solder. My guess is his problem is a combination of temp setting too low, not heating joint up long enough and removing iron before solder flows. With my weller , it's always the right temp.
raschemmel:
One thing I noticed is he had the temp rather low. This is a common mistake made by beginners who don't know how to judge when a connection is hot enough to solder. Typically they apply the solder and the tip at the SAME time instead of heating the joint up for a few seconds at the right temp and then applying the solder. My guess is his problem is a combination of temp setting too low, not heating joint up long enough and removing iron before solder flows. With my weller , it's always the right temp.
Thanks for the Weller sales pitch But I am surprised that you'd consider a temp of close to 400°C (see photo) as "rather low" - but it is true that I am sometimes afraid to heat stuff up for too long (not the pin headers obviously, but for example when soldering a 1.27mm header onto some tiny PCB - like the SI4432 thing on the previous photo - for fear of damaging it.. though I don't see how to heat up a 2.54mm pin "for a few seconds" without having the black plastic run all over the place - but probably that's the difference of having a low powered Weller ;P).
The trick to good solder joints is using a hotter tip but holding on the point of contact for a SHORTER period of time , as opposed to using a LOWER temp for a LONGER period of time. Either way, you need the paste to tin the tip and the flux to make the solder flow and stick and the flux remover and brush tro remove the flux. The rest of us have been doing this for about 20 to 30 years.
And to solder the female part it can help to plug in a male part to stabilize them (leave them in until cooled).
