How to make Cheap Soldering Iron Tips (including SMD version)
Here is how you can make new tips for your soldering iron for literally only a few cents each! Including a special, bifurcated tip for desoldering SMD components without needing special soldering tweezers.
Since so many of you have asked me where to get copper wire, here's an affiliate link to some appropriate copper wire on eBay. Make sure to check the diameter of your current soldering tip and convert it into the right wire gauge using a lookup table before ordering:
ebay.us/M8WU4s
The lookup table I use:
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/America...
This is the first video I made entirely for KZhead, it's less than perfect but it's also the first video I ever made featuring narration, music and action all at the same time.
Actually I might have overdone the music part of it...
Please like, comment, share... to keep me motivated on my KZhead journey!
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Nice to see a young man with hands from the right place.
Smd bit is awesome. Happy to see so young a person teaching. God bless you.
Whoa thanks!
@@ChronicMechatronic AWESOME ... now you need to do some nickel electroplating on them... so the copper do not get eat away by the tin.... or they will last a couple of hours to you >> kzhead.info/sun/dpyhm5V6nGeNZJ8/bejne.html
Instablaster...
That is a good idea to share. I can share a idea too. I use a cheap soldering iron connected to an cheap outlet with light dimmer (potentiometer/triac type). I check the temperature with an multimeter. Know I have a temperature controlled soldering iron for 25€, since I need the multimeter for other work's too.
I just love your passion making the soldering tips. May I make a suggestion, when sanding metal with a belt sander, make sure the spacing between the sand paper and the holding surface be slid as close to the moving sand paper as possible. Reason, if you slip the fingers have a less of a chance of getting "SUCKED IN" and injured. Just a friendly suggestion to you young man. One more thing fella, one can use steel copper plated which seems to last a longer. Also, monel metal really last long, but expensive. Thanks for the show Sir, too.
I never would have thought to do this. Without the plating they would break down faster but, it’s wire which means each of those minus the work put in costs next to nothing… I gotta try it now. Thanks for sharing!
Yep, they erode quickly, but I've had the plated ones and they break down as well. Just takes a bit longer for it to start. Actually, (since I'm not always doing a whole lot to soldering), I'm only now getting to a point where I'd have to reshape the tip I've been using ever since making this video. That's almost a year later. And since I made them quite a bit longer than necessairy, I just need to file it down somewhat to be back in business...
A copper sting forged with a hammer at a temperature no higher than 300 degrees will live for a VERY long time.
This is actually such a great idea! Thanks for sharing your method. Now I know what my next trip to the hardware shop will be for! :D PS: Your video editing and teaching skills are fantastic. Keep up the great work! Looking forward to seeing what the future holds for you!
Perfect. Just what I was looking for. I had the same ideas - more or less - but seeing it done cuts out experimental side of things. Much thanks
You're such an inspiration to me!! Keep up the good work!!!
You have a nice workbench and machines to work with. Good diy soldering tips. Thanks for uploading.
Nice work, keep it up. God bless you young man.
Thanks!
Wow!!! Thanks for the great tips!!! I’m definitely trying this!!!!!
Great.. Awesome tutorial. Thank you, Sir
What a great video! I can't wait to make custom tips!
Very good
This is just what i needed, thanks for the video bro!
Excellent. I'm going to get some 7 AWG wire. I still like to keep the tip coated with fresh solder.
Jestem pod wrażeniem twoich umiejętności i zdolności. Gratuluję pomysłu z drutem miedzianym z przewodów elektrycznych.Też ostatnio zastanawiałem się z czego zrobić nowe groty do lutownicy. Dzięki za pomysł, teraz będę szukał odpowiedniego grubego drutu!! Pozdrawiam i życzę następnych kreatywnych pomysłów.
Pytanie czy sie oplaci tak gruby kawal miedzi nie kosztuje 5zl i zabawy co nie miara
Great Idea. Looks like it would work very nicely. Thanks.
Great Idea! I have been searching for a surface smoothing tip for some post processing on my 3D prints. This is a great idea to get exactly what I want!
This project is very good!
It is Wonderful to see a young Man so creative and capable of thinking outside the box! I love it! Not a criticism, but rather an FYI, your files will work better if you only use them on the push stroke rather than the return one. Someone had to tell me before and I am so glad they did. It keeps them sharp so they can do your magic better.
Thanks for the big compliment 😄
Appreciate that, learned something new today ✌️
Actually Fireball Tool disproved the file theory so I won't bother to comply 😁
Bro you are really successfull, I wish you good luck in your YT life 👏👏👏
Thanks! 🤗 Yeah the subs are climbing faster than I expected.
It's wonderful, awesome idea and nice tips.
Very good lesson.
thank you so for good tutorial sr..
Excellent. Thank you. 👍
Nice work keep it up dude
Your vids are amazing!
Hey man it’s so great to see your creativity inspire us all, I am looking to make some tips for my soldering iron but I was wondering what the measurements for the width of the cable you used is (in mm) thanks
3.5mm But you need to measure your existing soldering tip to make sure it's right
I think # 7 solid tw and #8 solid tw wire
This was fun to watch, have you thought about trying to nickel plate the tips for longer life? Geoffrey Croaker has a great low cost plating video that might work within your budget constraints.
Valuable information thanks
tanks a lot , few people have access to soldering iron tips replacement , because sometimes you can't find them in your local stores , or they are too expensive
Very nice. You're the guy. God bless you.
That is awesome! Good job!
Keep it up, nice video clip, thank you for sharing it :)
I'm totally making the smd one. I'm also going to make a 4 way design that can be used to remove bipolar transistors from rf amplifiers without having to get them so hot soldering one pin at a time
Awesome 👍🏽👌
wow this is great for smd capacitors
Superb boss, amazing 💡ideas 👏👏👏👏👏👏
Thanks
Wellcome you boss
Gracias por compartir tus conocimientos. Bendiciones
Hey bro. I become a big fan of you after watching this great job because you solved my sliding iron issue... It's really amazing and appreciatefull.. so keep it up bro.. Greetings from Pakistan.
Hi! Glad to have you aboard!
Excellent job
I like your post 👌👍💯
Great well made tips 🇬🇧👍❕
The last tips are the good ones thanks
Great work kid👍keep it up
Awesome DIY.. thanks bro. Done subcribe.. i really hard to search single core wire like u..
Great idea if you're in a pinch. Good luck on the channel too, you have one more viewer here.
Thanks!
Very nice and useful video good job 👍
Well done
An excellent idea and easy to make. Difficult to find pure copper with the diameter which I need for my soldering iron here. I did find brass rod of the correct diameter. What's your opinion? Better than iron for sure.
Yeah, brass is certainly better than iron. It's third-best at conducting heat (just checked) I think for most electronics soldering jobs it should do fine, tho it could pose problems when trying tin thicker copper wires. What's the wattage of your soldering iron?
@@ChronicMechatronic Thanks for your opinion. I will make a tip using brass rod 4.75mm diameter for my old but very reliable Weller 25W and let you know. Its ideal for small soldering jobs on pcb board but tips are unobtainable so I will make a tip using your post. I have another 60W soldering iron for tougher jobs (but not Weller!!)
@@carmelsaliba7710 yeah, thx for letting me know, that'll be interesting.
Typical tips are copper for thermal conductivity iron plated to reduce corrosion, chrome plated body to prevent solder wicking and solder plated at the end for wetting. Keep the iron at a reasonable lower temp. Clean and retin constantly to prevent wear/oxidation. Avoid lead free solder. Your tips will last. Filing a mistreated tip will expose the copper core and rapidly disolve in the solder and or oxidize. How did the brass work out?
Dear .. Very nice works
brilliant!!!
Awesome ideas and tips, I mean, tips! 😉 How do the tips cope with the oxidation, as copper is quite prone to it?
Takes about a year to degrade with moderate use. After that it's just reshaping, and you're good to go again
I like your soldering prybar, it's really nice
Nice bro
Very good and inexpensive!
love watching your videos what types of solder do you use
I'm glad to know people enjoy my vids... I use regular 60/40 lead solder with rosin core; 0.5 & 1.0mm diameter
Thanks, very useful
Good work
Muy buen aporte excelente contenido like x mas videos !!! Saludos de Argentina Bs As
The specialized SMD tip may actually be a good idea. Maybe I can should convert a knife tip for that.
Nice One Brother ❤️❤❤️
Fantastic!
thank you Brother
BRAVO!!!!!!VERY GOOD VIDEO,,,,,,,GEORGE ATHENS GREECE.
Tips to making tips Thank you
saludos desde mexico city..excelente video de como hacer puntas para cautin....
Good!... Please do a tutorial about soldering smd Leds.
Good job man love u from India Punjab Amritsar
great work. what if a soldering tip for ICs 😉
Cool! I need to try to do the same somehow.
Good idea in making your own tips. The next step is how to do easy budget plating of the tips 🤔😁
Hi mate ... nice video ... but where can i find this cable to make the soldering tipps,please???
Hardware store is the best bet I think.
@@ChronicMechatronic many thanks ..... .
Thanks bud😊
Good idea , but U have not polished plz advice what metal and how can we do, is it silver metal or any other to protect the copper bits .all branded bits are shining,
Good idea 💡👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻
Awesome mate,like a pro, if you make tips like you do isnt wire for new tip to soft for 400 celsias of heat?
Copper melts at 1048°C
If you are in the USA and what a pure copper rod of a smaller diameter - your best bet is Lowes or Homedepot. Get a solid grounding wire. They sell it starting from 4 gauge (5.189 mm for $2.06 per foot presently) and up.
thats ok if you have one of those crappy cheap single heat soldering pencils but is you have a soldering rework station with adjustable heating it wont work and btw brass works much better holds up to flux much better
good job tysm!
Is the metal copper or iron that you use to make the tips.
Thick copper wire
Excelent
this is genius FR..
just stumbled upon your channel yesterday ) it is a nice vid with good and practical idea in it... ...but Chinese sell such 6-piece kit on Ali for less than a dollar... also, dont get discouraged by modest view numbers, once you "struck the gold", a vid can get 1M views so easily these days... you have the charisma to do it, so keep it up!
Please: Can you tell me. Where can I buy this copper wire? Thanks in advance for your answer
Sorry I'm a bit late. This wire is sold by the yard at a hardware store in my area, so I can't tell you the exact one I got. It's 7 AWG (9 SWG) 10.55mm² cross section. Just check the diameter of your old soldering tip with the calipers (mine was ~3.5mm so 7 AWG fits well being 3.67mm in diameter) and look for solid copper wire with roughly the same diameter. Here's the conversion table: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/American_wire_gauge#Tables_of_AWG_wire_sizes Hope that helps, most 15/30W soldering irons should be fine with 7 AWG tho.
Thanks a lot for taking your time, I appreciate
You're welcome!
ruang kerja anda hebat bro 👍
Hi! What type of soldering gun you use brother?
standard 15w solddering iron from the hardware store
Did they got black oxidized after initial uses?
Yeah, they always do, but as long as you keep the tinned part of it clean (and tinned), it doesn't matter.
Thanks.
I have been used this technic, but the problem is the copper got dark so quick and fails to melt the lead causes damage on a pad or components. so do have any idea how to solve this problem like coting the copper or something ?. thanks
You just need to keep the tip tinned at all times
@@ChronicMechatronic thanks for replying
Gracias!!
tips made out of masonry nails last longer. my problem is that the tip i need is like two nails head to head, its like that because it goes through the nut that holds it inthe iron
What is the effect on the solder of the dissolved copper?
None. At least nothing I ever noticed since all the commercial tips I've ever had broke down as well after a short period of time
you need a dremmel, my man, or any brand rotary tool, they are great for jobs like this.
Nice
its only help with small and tiny iron solder station but its marvilous and high qu
Very nice friend From india
And don't forget add solder to all your soldering tips for longevity and cooling them down so you have some tips lifetime and clean between every time you work couse I was lazy and got oxidezed tips 😅 always light cleaned every sessions with wiresponge don't remember the word 😁 I will make mine too couse I don't have good ones 👌💯 keep it awesomeness bro
Well yeah, keeping your soldering tip clean is particularly important when you're using pure copper ones. I use a stainless steel scouring pad stuffed into a tin can for cleaning. Works well, I don't see the need for special tip cleaners. 👌
@@ChronicMechatronic thank you🙏 💙🙏
I usually have those wet sponges next to me and I rub the tip against it which not only cleans the tip but also helps in tinning it and prevents from oxidizing. Brass wool is also a good option.
Can i use steel bit