Soldering iron

What would I need to look for in a kit? I intend to solder Tamagotchi sound wires.

Try to find a kit that has the smallest tip possible, solder, flux, solder wick (for solder removal), and don't forget safety glasses.

Oh ya, you also want fume extractors

Thanks! ^_^

Oh, and how much solder is required for the average job? I don't know if I should be looking for extra solder.

Just get some metal coil and use as much as you think is needed to do the job and hold it in place, not too much will be needed probabalywont just a bit per what wires you want to attach etc.

Make sure to use protection glasses when soldering, since the melted metal sometimes sends tiny hot drops flying. (Not so that they are painful to get on the hands, but you wouldn't like them in the eyes.)

A 25 watt soldering iron is the highest you should get and if you work over a metal table it would work the best because the drips of solder you drop on the table you can just brush off after they cool. Flux is also important so the solder can attach better and ALWAYS WEAR SAFTEY GOGGLES unless you wanna be blind

You could always use remaining solder from the tama (it is the best option, coz it lowers the risk of damaging the circuit board)

derekq said:

You could always use remaining solder from the tama (it is the best option, coz it lowers the risk of damaging the circuit board)

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Not sure if I agree on this one though... Since if you're using the remaining solder, you'd practically have to put the soldering iron directly on the tama, which means a greater risk of burn damage.

I'd recommend buying a small coil of solder metal, and melt a drop of it on top of, or directly over the wire that needs to be attatched, while you or someone else is holding the wire in place.

No offense

Jokus said:

Not sure if I agree on this one though... Since if you're using the remaining solder, you'd practically have to put the soldering iron directly on the tama, which means a greater risk of burn damage.

I'd recommend buying a small coil of solder metal, and melt a drop of it on top of, or directly over the wire that needs to be attatched, while you or someone else is holding the wire in place.

No offense

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I repair computers so I know but I really enjoy your method, it could be an option

You really wouldn't need much solder for any component on a tama. Just make sure you know what's in the solder, because some types of solder produces pretty harmless fumes and others can cause cancer or worse Just stay safe!

Yeah, it might also just be that the tip of my soldering iron is too large, since it tends to just splat out the solder if I use remaining solder on the tamagotchi.

Eve_Requiem said:

You really wouldn't need much solder for any component on a tama. Just make sure you know what's in the solder, because some types of solder produces pretty harmless fumes and others can cause cancer or worse Just stay safe!

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Theres lead free and lead solder. Btw I recommend using remaining solder just be careful. if you add solder you could accidentally sort it out or add too much.

Be careful and always wear safety goggles

Okay, I bought a sketchy-looking soldering iron on ebay and it works fine. I'll list off some essentials for soldering:

• New solder (usually some included) will be needed. Maybe I'm only inexperienced, but I don't think the existing solder inside Tamagotchi is going to cut it for resoldering sound wires.
• Make sure to use a stand for the soldering iron so it can heat up and cool; it takes a while to heat and quite a long time to cool off.
• Seems to be different with diffferent irons. Mine is low-wattage (at 30), so I found that it was easy to take the solder wire and melt it onto the tip to form a drop. After getting the solder on the iron, I pressed the drop of solder onto the joint. One should be cautious; different irons may splatter, so you might want to use tweezers (for applying the solder in that way), gloves, and safety goggles.
• The amount of solder you'll need for each joint depends on how well you position the wire before soldering it in place. It's intuitive, and a little like melting chocolate.
• Flux isn't all that essential and can cause more of a mess than it's worth if you're doing something as insignificant and small as a simple sound wire job.

Answering my own question, all you need to look for if you're doing sound is a soldering iron and a couple pieces of solder. Anything more is optional.