DIY soldering iron tip tinning/ cleaning pad

[Basement_Modder]

Alright, so we are all aware that the wet sponge thing is bad for your iron, amirite? It cools the tip and allows it to oxidize. Now, they make those mesh things that look like a copper/ silver ball of steel woll that are made to clean your tip, but they can cost up to $10 for a good one, unless you go the DX route, and get it in the mail by next year.

Well, these pads are basiclly steel woll that has flux in it, so it absorbs the solder. This is exactly what I did-coated a ball of steel woll with flux!

I took one of those "Brillo" pads (also called SOS) and ran it under hot water while scubbing off the blue cleaner coating on the outside. After that was (mostly) gone, I stretched it out, bunched it up into a ball, and rubbed the outside of it with paste flux. It made my flaxty old ratshack iron work like my weller station did, even with a sanded tip!

I shall take pics later tonight, when I have time. I plugged my ratshack iron into a dimmer switch I used with my old dremel before it died, and it's like I have my station back! I think I'll just buy a cheap weller and call it good now. Woot!

Edit- pics for great justice!

my flaxty iron tip:

 

[XCVG]

You know, you can buy plain steel wool. It's actually pretty easy to find.

Anyway, I suspect this might not be a good idea in the long run. Commercial tip cleaners are made of brass, and for a reason. The steel will probably invite corrosion and rust, and that stuff is pretty abrasive too. On the other hand, most people would destrol their tips before it becomes a problem. But I've done some much worse things trying to fix my tips. Like the 600 grit sandpaper, which actually worked but I'm not doing that again.

 

[bentomo]

Actually I've used a dremel on mine and grind it down to a find point so I could do the jumper pak relocation, that tip was pretty much flat.

 

[Tchay]

sponges are bad?

 

[J.D]