Good flux, high quality solder, and the right (i.e. enough) heat are critical.

 

Hi Triki,
I just Googled "heathkit" as they were one of the starters waaay back in my days. It appears there are both vintage kits and apparently Heath has gotten back into the kit business. So there is one idea.

Another would be to practice salvaging components from discarded electronics. Free components will make practice projects much more affordable, especially with today's internet where you can research many components to see what they are.

Third would be a basic electronic text book. Probably a bunch on ebay as the basics haven't changed.

For projects, solar is the current buzz word and something you would enjoy building and using. Just a solar powered cell phone charger would have a use.

Good luck,
Bud

 

For electrical circuits you want rosin core solder not plain solder and separate flux like for plumbing.

 

Bud, I just found Heathkit also!! There is a bunch of great ones there. And solar your correct about that! I want to make a solar charger too!! Need to get as big of a Solar panel as I can afford!

Alright, books. Now I know there are hundreds of books, but how do I know which ones are worth a dam. I need a good Reference book, not an A-Z how to book.

Lets say I knew a man, who knows a man that works at the landfill and he's willing to turn a blind eye to me Dumpster diving. Which appliances are good for parts. Computers appear to be good, but is that the case?

And in regards to Solder, I currently have:
http://www.amazon.com/Alpha-AT-3160...ces/dp/B00030AP48/ref=sr_1_3?s=hi&ie=UTF8&qid=1449682321&sr=1-3&keywords=solder

but are you saying I should consider:
http://www.amazon.com/Kester-Rosin-...ool/dp/B00068IJPO/ref=sr_1_5?s=hi&ie=UTF8&qid=1449682321&sr=1-5&keywords=solder

I just know, stick with 60-40.

 

The one you have is 60/40 rosin core and will do just fine. I have both .062 and .031 diameter solder, as the .031 is occasionally needed for very fine soldering. I've always used Kester but probably no difference.

Our transfer station has a separate location for the electroni8cs as it contains lead and must be handled differently. Anything will do for a start. Chips are hard to salvage, but junk is a good place to practice. Power supplies have larger components and ultimately, building a variable dc power supply is handy.

As for books, start with what you can get for free. If you have any trade schools near you they may have some outdated books they would give you. Libraries often get donations which they cannot keep, potential bugs, and once the owner is gone, so are the books, into the dumpster. I used to service equipment at our local library and got to know the caretaker. He said, you want books, I can get you all you can haul away.

Bud

 

Bud, I told you a lie. I hadn't found Heathkit till you said so, and yup, Thats what I need. I just filled in the survey. Who knows where it will take me, but something about radio interests me but I don't know anything. A few years ago a natural disaster took my home and took down the cell towers. Since then I have had interest, just no $.

Thanks for the nudge!

Oh, and I just thought of something. I have an old Bug Light in the barn that is no longer working. I need to pull it out and look at it!!

 

Not sure if you can handle what might arrive, but an internet request for books might get a ton of results.

Part of my energy auditing work involves seniors and often the male half of the marriage has passed on. That leaves mama with no idea as to what he left behind. I've seen garages that look like a craftsman's work shop where the tools haven't been touched for years and there are probably a lot of books that go along with that collection. A good home with someone who is enthusiastic would make them feel good.

Bud

 

I don't solder much so my solder will surface oxidize between uses. I clean the oxidization off with sand paper. Good or a waste of time i duno, but it makes me happy and when PaPa is happy everybody is happy.

 

I'm a little confused by, "throwing money at projects". What do you mean?
Learning a new task(soldering) requires a little guidance and practice. Once you're proficient, you can chose the projects you want and will find useful when you're finished. In actuality, you don't need to do projects at all. Once you learn how to solder you can just do what most people do, use it when you need to.

 

Ron, what I meant by 'Throwing money' was buying those 'DIY' projects back to back hoping to improve my skill level. Those projects start at $15, if I'm going to be spending that money, I would like to use it. For example, there is a 'Water sensor' kit at Radioshack on sale for $15. If I bought that kit, I would install it on my AC unit, to sense when the drain pan gets clogged up and rather than burn out the contactor it warns me there is water being backed up.

There is a amateur radio guy who lives close to me, maybe I need to stop by his house and ask questions. You just don't know unless you ask.

 

You can buy specialty ones, but, for holding small components in place to solder, I still use my 60's era Vacu-Vise with a couple of alligator clips clamped in it. I have a couple of clips soldered or screwed, can't remember right now how they are attached, to a short length of 14 or 12 gauge solid wire, so that I can clamp the wires into the vise and twist them into whatever angle I need. As for Heathkit, don't know if they returned as an image of their old selves, but were great back then. I still use a clock and a calculator that must be about 45 years old. Built other things too, from scratch, such as a motor speed controller that still maintains a spot on my bench, but never used now that variable speed drill motors, etc. became the norm. But, alas, time marches on, rough past year, got grumpy and all of that, but getting everything back in order now and still can't keep up with what needs doing most of the time, so sorry to say that just within the past couple of months I pitched literally shoe boxes full of resistors, capacitors, transistors, tubes, chassis', breadboard, stakes, etc. Used to be so easy to come by, not so much today, but still did not find anyone interested locally so off that stuff went. It is a lot of fun though, so stick with it and enjoy.

 

NOOOOOO!!!!!! You Pitched it!! I went to Radio shack the other week and they had NOTHING! I was really disappointed! I guess I just need to find another way of acquiring this stuff. I'm not going to get big into it, but I'm not saying I won't! Maybe there is someone else on here that would like to ship it to NC!!

 

Google around your area for any ham clubs. Those guys always had and I assume a lot still have the right stuff, but even back in the day most of them seemed to have a 6th sense that things were going to change so they weren't going to let go of anything. I have another 8' of loft to cover one of these days, and know what most of it is, so not too hopeful, but will let you know if I run across anything or any quantity worth sending. Would be happier to do that than what I did with a lot of it.

 

Get this:

http://www.toysrus.com/product/inde...LAPPCG-_-PID17052504:TRUS&cagpspn=plat_17052504&eESource=CAPLA_DF:24945786:TRUS

It has all the parts. It comes with instructions to build all kinds of projects. Everything is labeled and organized. And you don't have to learn how to solder. It is gear toward kids, but if you can look past that it is exactly what you need. I had one as a kid and then I bought another one as an adult. They are great fun. You can always add in your own parts if you want to expand it. You can probably find that on ebay if you want to save a few bucks. There are smaller kits too.

The solder on factory circuit boards doesn't have lead. That is good for the environment, but it requires a higher temperature and it is tough to unsolder that stuff with a little consumer grade iron. A little solder sucker is handy. Keep your soldering iron clean and try out some different tips.

You need a multimeter too. You can get one for less than ten bucks. Sometimes Harbor Freight gives them away for free. I have a $100 digital meter, but the cheap one with a needle is much more useful.

 

I just typed in "Electronic project lab" in Amazon and a bunch popped up! Maybe Mathmonger is right!

 

This is where I am heading.

http://www.harborfreight.com/45-watt-solar-panel-kit-68751.html

 

I see those every time I am in Harbor Freight. But what can you do with 45 watts? You would need several. And then you probably want a system for storing the electricity. And you want an inverter. You wind up spending thousands of dollars for cheap solar panels.

Free electricy forever sounds pretty enticing. Unfortunately, solar panels don't last forever. Especially the cheap ones. In a few years, you'll be getting 5 watts instead of 45. These are basically the biggest, lamest, most awkward, least efficient solar panels you can buy. They know you don't know the first thing about solar panels, so they put it in a user friendly package and charge 5 times what it's worth.

 

I haven't visited this site in awhile, but it had a lot of solar projects, perhaps something that might interest you.
http://www.builditsolar.com/

Bud

 

Mathmonger, funny you said that, thats what I have been reading for the last hour. Bottom line, the panel itself breaks down and fails.

I'm watching YouTube vids now on troubleshooting circuit boards. I need to pick up a higher quality multi meter. My $25 craftsman may not be up for the challenge, especially if I don't have a way to compare results. I found three bug lights in the barn that are bad, I may be able to locate the fault and fix it!!

 

Get a couple extra sets of leads for your multimeter. Cut off the regular probes. On one set, solder sewing needles on the ends. That will be more useful for piercing insulation or backprobing connectors. On the other set, solder alligator clips. Then you can clip them on and watch the meter while you futz with something else.

I don't think a more expensive meter will solve anything for you. The more expensive meters have more features. You can graph with them and hook them up to your laptop and measure temperatures and hold them under water. But none of that will help you fix a bug lamp. If you haven't tried a $5 analog meter, I highly recommend it.

 

Why analog an analog meter? I was going today to get a $100 meter, not the $400 kind.

R.

 

Why is your spedometer analog? A picture is worth a thousand words.

The digital meter just gives you a bunch of data points and you have to figure out in your brain what is relevant and kind of come up with a representative value. I'm not that smart. With the analog meter, you can see it right away: "The needle swings to about here."

 

Well, after looking around for a few weeks I have found one thing is for sure, this project isn't very cheap.

Make: is a company that has some really cool ideas. Well, they make a Electronic kit in two parts that comes up to $150! But really, that has everything that will teach you some of the best fundamentals! But seriously over priced!! There is a book in the kit, and I'm going to see if B&N has it next time I'm that way.

Went into Radio shack and they had some stuff in there. But nothing that caught my eye but a little kit for $20 so I bought it. I have been playing with it for a few days and have enjoyed it big time.

So, that's where I am now.

 

Well, the day came today when I need some parts. I have a wireless router that's power is flashing on and off. The research has shown the power supply has a capacitor going bad. I popped open the case to and there is a 25v 1000uF capacitor and it appears to be fine, I just need to test it.

I'm also looking for a ESR meter. ESR meters are the best way of testing capacitors bar none. Bottom line, my search for Soldering Irons has lead me here, and now that I'm here I'm improving my skills and doing lots of reading.

 

TrikiDick:

Phone your local trade school and see if they have a program in electronics. If so, then the instructor of that course will almost certainly have good information on which soldering stations are reliable and work well. I bought a soldering pencil for doing electronic work for a small fraction of it's normal selling price simply because it was used in the school by students, and they were getting new soldering stations. I got one of their old ones for a few dollars. It still works well.

 

Triki Dick, I also recommend checking out David L Jone's Youtube and forum, the EEV Blog. There is a great deal of information regarding electronics there in addition to videos showing the inner workings of a vast variety of products.

Fluke, Agilent, and Gossen are just a small samplings of more professional and from what I've experienced with Fluke, their products are often very well made. None of are dollar store brands, but are worth the investment if you are serious about pursuing this.

Depending on your area, this is entirely possible there is a HAMB radio group that might be willing to provide decent equipment at reasonable prices and or at the very least provide some knowledge. Now this is case by case with each person, but you might even find a retired or otherwise trades person that would be willing to mentor to those that have a genuine interest.

Fry's Electronic's,Tri-Tek Electronics and perhaps even Gray Bar and Grainger are other distributors to seek out other electrical components, among other products as well.