problem soldering the shield on cables

[javier pintos]

Hello everyone, i looked up but i think there is no conversation around this and i tried to look it up on the internet (yes there should be some info but i can´t find it).

I have some experience soldering, but whenever i have to solder the braided shield of "audio" cables including mic and guitar cables i just have no luck soldering the shield, there is always a blackish finish on the shield, no problem at all soldering the conductors, just the shield, i was told that the shield some times (would be an always in my experience) comes with a coating that makes soldering a challenge, i have tried different solders, diff soldering irons with soldering paste withous soldering paste you name it i just cannot make the shield to solder, does anyopne have a known trick for that, i´m not talking about "name" caboles but i have at least use like 6 different cables and they all do the same thing, this are bulk cable sold for this puspose

edit: forgot to say that i have been told to "burn" the braided shield so the "coating" burns and the it solders good, well no good, clieaned the braides shielding with solvents, no good, use a real hot iron no good, medium hot iron no good


Best regards

 

[ThreeChordWonder]

Have you checked the shielding is copper?

If it's aluminum, or pretty much anything other than copper or tin, it won't solder with regular solder.

 

[javier pintos]

why din´t i think of that... tkx fro bringing that out, the "color" suggest cooper but now that you mention it i would assume that´s it, i do know the cabelcomes from china,any particular type and brand of solder you would suggest in your experience?

best regards

 

[Purgasound]

What's your iron temp? I run about 700° to 750° on a Weller. Keep your tips clean. Don't buy cheap solder. Use rosin core. It's expensive but it works. I don't use flux paste for anything soldered with an iron. Cheers

 

[PelliX]

why din´t i think of that... tkx fro bringing that out, the "color" suggest cooper but now that you mention it i would assume that´s it, i do know the cabelcomes from china,any particular type and brand of solder you would suggest in your experience?

best regards

Colour doesn't say everything, could easily be CCA (copper clad aluminium). Scratch it a bit and if it turns to 'silver' then it's probably that. If there's some kind of coating on the shielding, a lighter will often get rid of that quite quickly. Be sure to remove any burned residue, of course.

 

[javier pintos]

Colour doesn't say everything, could easily be CCA (copper clad aluminium). Scratch it a bit and if it turns to 'silver' then it's probably that. If there's some kind of coating on the shielding, a lighter will often get rid of that quite quickly. Be sure to remove any burned residue, of course.

howdy (do people still say that?), well yeap you are right on the spot, turns silverish, does the rosin core solder help with this? or am i just left with a roll of bulk cable that just gives headaches?

 

[PelliX]

howdy (do people still say that?)

I do, almost every morning. It's a long story, but I snagged the line/word from an engineer in the States I was speaking to years ago. Really nice guy, very helpful, but his southern accent and vocabulary seemed so out of place that it stuck in my mind ever since. But that's not important right now...

well yeap you are right on the spot, turns silverish, does the rosin core solder help with this?

Well, rosin core almost always helps when you're using an iron - I'd be hard pressed to recommend anything else for most purposes! If you have a little bottle of flux, a dab of that might help, too.

 

[ThreeChordWonder]

I do, almost every morning. It's a long story, but I snagged the line/word from an engineer in the States I was speaking to years ago. Really nice guy, very helpful, but his southern accent and vocabulary seemed so out of place that it stuck in my mind ever since. But that's not important right now...



Well, rosin core almost always helps when you're using an iron - I'd be hard pressed to recommend anything else for most purposes! If you have a little bottle of flux, a dab of that might help, too.

Ex pat Brit, 24 years in Texas, 13 years in Aberdeen. No prizes for guessing the industry I'm in...

Anyway, after about 10 years here, I started saying "howdy" and got some funny looks from the real Texans, so i continue to refrain. But not half as funny as the ones I got on a trip back to Aberdeen when I used it, where the equivalent is "fit like?".

 

[maico996]

Ex pat Brit, 24 years in Texas, 13 years in Aberdeen. No prizes for guessing the industry I'm in...

Aberdeen, as in Aberdeen Washington?

 

[ThreeChordWonder]

Aberdeen, Scotchland, as in where two Scots invented copper wire arguing over / pulling on a penny.