[GreenKeys] Re: Miracles by RF CONNECTIONS...

[Don Robert House]

> Gosh Jeffery --- I thank you very much for writing this all out for  
> me.
A lot of this is way back in my head from days long gone by.  I really  
appreciate the help.
The sources are also well thought out.  I will send you some images as  
I get going on this.

Good night and may God bless,

Don
K9TTY

A few things on the bench makes this go a LOT smoother.
1. Panavise with the large flat base.   http://www.acradiosupply.com/350.jpg
Either the jaws shown, (which you can reverse to close together) or  
the regular vise head.

2. Magnifying lens on a head band. Or eye loupes.
http://www.closeoutsupply.com/Merchant2/graphics/00000001/vmwl.jpg
But the Circline fluorescent light magnifier tends to get in the way  
of the soldering iron.

3. If you choose to get a decent soldering iron: Weller WES-51
http://www.acradiosupply.com/wes51.jpg
I've seen them on sale for as little a $99.00
Make sure you get an assortment of tips from 1/16" to 3/16"
And keep a wet sponge, constantly wipe the tip before and after use.  
Put a spot of
solder on it to "wet" it to make it work quicker heating the conector  
pins.

However, you can "cheat" with the cheap Chinese iron using a regular  
incandescent
light dimmer feeding the soldering iron. Experiment with the  
temperature needed to
melt the solder without the melted solder turning colors or grainy  
looking after a couple
of minutes.

4. A good sharp (and surprisingly cheap) pair of diagonal cutters.
http://studiosoundelectronics.com/170m.jpg
Our local parts store has a bucket full of them at $6 each. Buy  
several. When you mess
it up, it's still good for toenails etc. And it doesn't feel as bad as  
breaking a $28 pair.

5. Needle nose pliers. Expect to pay $15-20 for them (it's worth it.)
http://www.altex.com/Assets/ProductImages/Standard/ln55v.jpg
Make sure you get serrated jaws, NOT smooth.

6. Kester 63/37 RMA rosin core solder 0.031"
http://us.st12.yimg.com/us.st.yimg.com/I/yhst-8476489043850_2025_31421763
NOT 60/40, this stuff doesn't have a plastic (cold solder joint) stage  
between melted
and solid.

7. Rosin Flux RMA (Rosin, mildly activated) And get a plastic need tip  
dispenser.
http://alldav.com/images/medium/kester959T979_2oz_FS_MED.JPG

8. An 8-1/2" x 11" pad of paper. VERY important. Draw a picture of the  
back of
the connectors. Both ends of the cable. Make sure you clearly state  
which end is
which, make, female etc. one TWO separate pieces of paper. Add either  
lines with
arrows or colored pencil dots and assign which color wire goes to  
which pin.
Double check your work several times before you actually start on the  
cable.

9. Put a hook in the ceiling over your work bench (and maybe another  
one 3-4 feet
away from it. Hang the cable that you want to put the connector on  
from the hook.
Put the connector solder side up in the bench vise.  Strip the cable  
jacket back, then
cut, strip and tin all the wires first. This way if you mess one up,  
yeah, you have to
start over, but you don't have to unsolder any wires first.

10. Pre tin all of the connector pins before trying to solder the  
wires to them.

I'm sure I left something out, and I suspect Randy will be happy to  
come over to my
corner and steal my chips and salsa while he tells me what I left  
out. ;-)

Jeff-1.0
wa6fwi