How to solder

[KeithsTV]

While clearing up my garage I found this booklet that came with an Antex soldering iron I bought in the early 70s.

Keith

[Electronpusher0]

Interesting that it discusses soldering temperature in deg C and not F.
When did we switch from F to C?

Peter

[barrymagrec]

Late sixties, IIRC.

[Craig Sawyers]

I had an ANTEX (15 Watts?) iron from the early to the late 70's. Yellow handled tiny thing. So I must have had that insert at that time I bought it aged about fifteen.

It was fairly good as a hobby iron, the main disadvantage that it did not have a stand. So the lead would pull it off the bench. The grab reflex when something falls meant that I of course used to always grab the hot end. Must have done that several times.

Eventually replaced it with a Weller; I'm on my third of those in around forty years.

Craig

[Dave Moll]

I too acquired a 15W Antex soldering iron early on*, and it was still in regular use until it recently died - it would appear that the heating element has gone O/C. The Antex which I acquired later, and still use, declares itself to be 15-18W.

*I was going to say "started with" until I remembered that my first soldering iron was a 60W one - which I still use for chassis work where the smaller irons can't deliver enough heat.

[The Philpott]

Thankyou for the pdf document, it's almost as detailed as the booklet that came with my 1970's arc welder! I was lucky enough to be given a yellow Antex 15w which is used for everything apart from big jobs where a 30W Dee Gee gets used. The black sleeving at the cold end of the Antex iron suddenly started to crumble last year- a common problem now i understand. I don't fancy my chances of replacing it like for like.

Dave

[Reelman]

Originally Posted by The Philpott

.......for everything apart from big jobs where a 30W Dee Gee gets used.....

Dave

Is that one like this...

That was my first iron (bought by me rather than borrowed) sold by Heathkit as an introduction to their kits in 1972. Lovely long red cable and used it for years, in the garage now and still works, nothing ever replaced.

Thanks to tacoventure for the picture.

Peter

[M0TGX Terry]

I too have a 15watt Antex which is useful for small jobs. Some years ago it needed a new element which I got from Maplins. Problem was the new element had to be soldered in! Fortunately I was able to borrow a friend's iron to complete the job.

[The Philpott]

That's the one Peter- it came from a bloke who was heavily into hoarding and was boxed, had never had a plug fitted, and had the paper label threaded onto the cable telling you how to wire a plug!. As is the way of things the box was too small to be practical once the plug was fitted, and i either folded it flat and filed it away, or binned it. I think the colour scheme was orange and blue. It seems to me it must already have been 30yr old NOS when i got it. I really need to make a stand for this iron, but the Antex has it's clip so i can usually find somewhere to hang it.

Dave

[Reelman]

Yours is in much better condition than mine Dave, mine has not had a “silvery” shaft for 40 years. When it was in regular use I used a metal waste paper bin as a stand, it was a good fit and far less liable to get pulled off by the cable than putting on a bench. Of course the handle shape did mean that it could be placed on any flat surface, if you wanted to risk it.
Indeed have recently bought a new metal bin for the workshop with an eye on using it for this purpose again although too big for the Antex my old Remploy will fit.
Suitable metal bins are available cheaply from Poundstretcher.

Peter

[govjohn]

Wasn't the larger of the two irons shown a Solon made by Henly?
John.

[G6Tanuki]

I used to have one of those Dee-gees with the red cable.

Problem with mine was that the copper bit seized into the alloy element-holder thingy and wouldn't come out; the retaining grubscrew also sheared when I tried removing it.

My desperate arrempt was to saw the remains of the bit off right up close to the alloy then I tried drilling the copper out with a hand-drill - but the drill inevitably wandered and chewed up the softer alloy.

A new temperature-controlled Weller was its replacement. I had an "Enthoven Superspeed" iron too, which heated from cold in seconds and was really high-powered so great for soldering the braid on reansmitter-grade coax!

[G4XWDJim]

I always used an old loudspeaker magnet to keep my mains driven non thermostatic iron on safely. It also acted as a heat sink to stop the gradual temperature increase.

Jim

[barrymagrec]

Originally Posted by G6Tanuki

Problem with mine was that the copper bit seized into the alloy element-holder thingy and wouldn't come out; the retaining grubscrew also sheared when I tried removing it.

My desperate arrempt was to saw the remains of the bit off right up close to the alloy then I tried drilling the copper out with a hand-drill - but the drill inevitably wandered and chewed up the softer alloy.

Leevers used to use Adcola irons that suffered from the same problem - the machine shop chaps made a special jig to hold the element so that the bit could be drilled out on a pillar drill.

Then they too moved over to Weller.

[Vintage Engr]

My first soldering iron was a Henley Solon. It was o.k. until transistors were introduced, the leakage from the mains was awful. True it was meant to be earthed, but we used to disconnect the earth to enable use on live chassis!!

I also remember a booklet entitled 'How to solder'. A friend & I had both bought identical early transistor radio kits from Henry's Radio, a 3 - transistor reflex design.
Mine worked, his didn't. Very disgruntled he returned it to Henry's. It was duly returned to him, working, but together with a booklet, - yes, you've guessed it, "How to solder" My friend was not amused. He left the industry, I didn't.

Great days!

David.

[thermionic]

There was also the S R. Brewster soldering iron which looked very much like the Antex, but usually had a red handle.

Brewsters were also based in Plymouth, so I’m wondering if they were in fact made by Antex?


SimonT .

[Nickthedentist]

Goodness, I had one of those DeeGees too, which I'd forgotten about until I saw this.

Bought in Clapham Junction by my mum for my dad to build me some simple bulb+battery circuits when I was about 4 (so c. 1977), used by me when I was older, and replaced in when it failed in about 1985 with an Antex C15.

N.

[The Philpott]

Post #15 reminds me that on occasion whilst soldering inside an analogue meter i have noticed the needle deflecting!

Dave

[Outrun_uk]

My first experience soldering was with a black-handled Weller IIRC, long barrel and tip secured by a screw - this was my brother's which was purchased from Woolworths in Liverpool. Next was a cheap nasty Altai thing from the local electronics shop. Then progressed to Antex irons. Fast forward a couple of years when I landed a Saturday job in the local TV repair shop where the owner gave me an old Weller TCP station which I had for years. After this I started working for a national mobile phone retailer where, during my training, I was introduced to SMD rework and Metcal systems. Never looked back since - pricey yes but worth every penny!!!

Kev

[Herald1360]

Dee Gee 30W...... first soldering iron I bought. Not the first I used, that was a 60W ish black beast that was my father's and a bit OTT for Germanium transistors.


ISTR the DG may have been sold by Woolworths. When the grubscrew bit retainer stripped its thread it was replaced by a Meccano screw (5/32 BSW).


No idea where it is now- I passed it on maybe 35 years since.