Soldering...

[yclo]

Has anyone tried soldering on normal alkaline batteries? (AA, AAA, AAAA, C, D, etc) Is it possible or will it heat up and explode?

 

[vcal]

<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by yclo:
Has anyone tried soldering on normal alkaline batteries? (AA, AAA, AAAA, C, D, etc) Is it possible or will it heat up and explode?<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

Yes, and have had excellent results.
If you do the basics, like thoroughly cleaning and even abrading the surface, and then applying flux, -that's 75% of it.
-But I've done one thing very different from the usual soldering job, (where you are supposed to heat up the work surface and letting the solder flow onto it).
I only heat the battery surface just a little more than enough to melt the flux, and THEN quickly melt my 2% silver solder onto the nipple of the battery.
Done dozens of 'em by now, and have never even hardly warmed up the upper part of the battery!

-This is of course the direct opposite of the usual recommended method to achieve quality connections, but it has worked great for me in this particular application only.
If you (practice) doing this, you'll find that the solder sticks to those battery surfaces like $h•t to a blanket!

Edit-10/16-14:10
The 80 watt iron Pelu suggests is also very important

(see below)

 

[yclo]

Wow, thanks a lot for the info. I've always been paranoid about heat and batteries, so I've never tried it.

What about the small button cells?

Ying

 

[sunspot]

If your worried, be fast and use a heat sink after the connection is made.ie, dunk in water or grab your product with a plier(gently so not to crush). Videocal is spot on target.

 

[PeLu]

<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by yclo:
Has anyone tried soldering on normal alkaline batteries? <HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

I've done it on different occasions with good results. As mentioned by others you have to be fast and prepare well. For that you need a strong soldering iron (at least 80W), a smaller one will be too slow.
I made it for data collectors in a cave when the battery holders tunred out to be unrelyable.

 

[shankus]

I have done it as well. I've done D cell and AA cell. Although, I must say, I didn't do it particularly fast. I used a cheap Craftsman 30 Watt iron, with great results.

 

[JSWrightOC]

Of course you can solder to NiCd cells, but I have some NiMH cells that say "Do NOT solder directly to cell terminals" on them. I know that NiMH cells are more sensitive to excessive heat, is this why?

 

[**DONOTDELETE**]

..and give the connection a good yank when it cools to make sure it's strong.. (not a joke -- /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/cool.gif )

 

[James S]

I've soldered button cells, but it's more challenging since they have less mass and will heat up faster.

In one case I lost control of a small blob of solder that rolled to the edge, making a beautiful connection between the positive and negative terminals. The battery in question began to heat up beyond even the soldering. Almost burned my hand tossing it out the door into the snow where it steamed for a moment before popping...

Key to any decent soldering job is lots of flux. I soldered for years thinking there was flux in the solder. I got myself a pot of the stuff just in the last year or so and my work is SO much more professional. Slather it over everything and then clean it off when you're done. You'll be surprised at how much better it works!

 

[JSWrightOC]

That sounds scary, with the button cell.

The solder I use has a flux core (you can tell it's there) and normal soldering of clean solder-friendly surfaces works great. For soldering very sensitive stuff (like batteries and surface mount components) some flux helps out a lot. I have never needed a terrific amount though, just a thin layer on the surface to be soldered. What brand/alloy solder are you using James? I'm using Kester "44" rosin core, .031 diameter. My iron is a Weller WTCP series with a 700 degree PTA (pencil) tip. I love this iron!!

 

[hyphenated]

The reason for caution with soldering to NiCads is that the vent is secured using a plastic that will melt around the same time as solder. If undisturbed it will probably look Ok but fail later... hence the recommendation to weld to nickel strips, then solder to those.

 

[James S]

JSWrightOC: Perhaps I'm exaggerating with I said slather it all over the place /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif I have had acceptable results with just the rosin core solder, but I always felt that I had to get things too hot or use too much solder to get it to flow properly. I'm using off the shelf radio shack solder and a 20watt disposable iron (the one that came with my compaq computer repair kit) at the moment. When it dies I'll invest in some real soldering gear as I'm using it a lot more lately.

Perhaps I'm just getting better at it, but since I got that pot of rosin and make it a point to put a little on every joint I solder it's been much better. I can control where it flows and it does so faster without my having to hold the iron there for too long.

Oh, and the other tip is to use a wet sponge, or something else to clean your soldering iron tip. And I mean clean it constantly, everytime you finish a joint and go to put it back in the cradle wipe it on the sponge!

 

[JSWrightOC]

Yes! I think we should post some good soldering tips on this forum, it will help out users who are new to it. I always wipe my tip with a wet sponge so that it's nice and shiny, then apply a small amount to the tip, and then head for my joint. The little bit on the tip (especially if there is still some flux boiling off) aids in heating the joint very rapidly so that you can finish it before overheating something. I still apply my solder to the joint itself (or sometimes if it's stubborn, right between the tip and the joint--helps if you have a LARGE pad or heavy-guage wire...when it starts to flow, apply around the joint and at the opposite side). It's primary component is Zinc Chloride...would have rather had rosin paste (smells better) but I think the Zinc Chloride is more reactive and will work better on odd metals or ones that are corroded and cannot be cleaned.

That brings me to my next point, if you are soldering metals that corrode or tarnish easily (i.e. copper or silver) it is best to clean the copper with a pencil eraser or even steel wool. That does wonders for making strong solder joints. On the note of tarnishing, something tells me that nice shiny metal will conduct heat better than corroded metal...I don't know what the slug on LS emitters is made of, but if it's silver-plated I would clean it before applying your favorite heatsink grease or epoxy. It will also bond better (in the case of the epoxy). Wipe it with some alcohol too.

 

[shiftd]

Oh man
i broke my solder joint. I thought by trying to sharpening the solder joint, i would get a better result. The opposite happened. My solder's tip has lost its coating, which in turns makes teh solder, taht was supposed to stick in the metal plate, stuck in it. Man, i am really devastated. What should i do? I think the quickest way was to change the joint with a new one, rite?
this brings a new tip: don't clean your solder tip using sharp objects /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif