I saw these kits on clearance at Jaycar from an email.
I loved electronics kits as a kid and think that its great to get kids into making electronics rather than just using them!
There are a variety available and some discounts if you buy multiples.
Might be worth picking up so I can use my soldering iron thats still wrapped in the box. Bought it for keyboards and got too scared to solder lol
Is it good which one ?
some cheap SH72 too thing from aliexpress - reviews said it was fine.
Thanks
I bought a reasonable one during covid alongside quite a lot of mid-high end cable wires and connectors, even bookmarked a soldering tutorial site as well as having watched numerous YouTube videos.
Three years later, still haven't used the iron or soldered a single item. FML.
They are also currently 'buy 3 for $19.50' or 'buy 5 for $25', according to the product pages.
yeah this works!
very nice deal :-)
Thanks! OP may want to add it in the post description.
Any good soldering iron set?
yeah! Those that prevent you burning your owned fingers preferred ;-//
You've not learned to solder properly until you've briefly picked up your soldering iron by the wrong end.
Thanks OP. Looks very basic, which is exactly what I need.
Can't see me rocking a badge but the dice one is cool.
What else do you need with this? Just the soldering iron set? How much does it cost?
And electricity
Any reccomendations on a cheap soldering iron/kit?
ts100 or pinecil
I would spring the extra for a decent second hand unit on eBay or Gumtree. Anything Hakko would do. You don't want to be trying to learn to solder with a shitty Tradezone unit.
My FX88D was $100 and it's five times better than a $50 cheapie.
That's great to know. I want to get into making guitar effects pedals
I got a Philips since 1987 still perfect.
FWIW I've done a few projects with my Hakko clone.
Far cheaper than some of the ones being mentioned so far if you want the emphasis on "cheap". Still far superior to the basic Jaycar cheapie I started with many years ago.
Thanks, picked up the 4x4x4 LED cube kit as a beginner's challenge - strangely, it's also the only one that had its price bumped back up to $20 (product code was KM1097)
Thanks. Ordered 5 for $25.
Site down for maintenance.
Mabye the site got ozbargained
What a good idea, would buy a few for myself if they included an iron.
I don’t think soldering is good for your kids with the fumes being harmful until they get to year 7-8
I think the hot soldering iron is a more likely hazard
I don’t know the appropriate age to let a child start soldering, probably depends on the kid
Well back on the 90s I started when I was in year seven with dicksmith fun way kits.
I don't think it's appropriate for a primary kid to touch on this stuff can be hazard issues if not the fumes. As a parent you can educate, but accidents can happen
Electronics used to be a thing back then but there no industry here anymore so it's only for hobby or DIY repairs.
Unless you want to be an electrician but then you still don't solder stuff on the job lol. It's wiring and replacing broken stuff. Not fixing any electronics
15 years ago I worked for electronics repair shop. That's gone as well
Solder doesn't have lead in it anymore and hasn't for years. Just do it outside if you're concerned.
Huh? All my solder has lead in it…
where the hell did you even buy it?
@Kikkoman56: Well damn you've proven me wrong. I've always used lead free solder.
I've always just bought a half decent iron, can't say I've had issues with melting when it's up to temp.
@knk: Yeah it's kinda messed up…
Everyone's advice in this thread so far about getting a proper iron even if it's second hand is spot on. Not only do the cheapies struggle to melt but it always seemed like their tips don't last very long either.
@Kikkoman56: Prior to my JBC soldering station I was just using a cheap dick smith one from decades ago. Had to use leaded solder as it never had enough thermal mass to maintain the temps, had to crank it up to 400 deg to get anything done, obviously that just burns the flux and you get nasty brown/black residue as a result.
If you got a good iron with decent thermal mass of the tip it is so easy to solder everything, in fact it becomes addictive to see the solder just perfectly plop onto the metal contacts without things burning. JBC is great though, been soldering 8 and 10 gauge wires onto XT90 connectors in seconds vs minutes.
@knk: Soldering produces fumes and pm2.5 particulates even without lead. And lead free can sometimes be worse due to the higher temperatures required. http://canada.newark.com/pdfs/techarticles/cooper/SF.pdf
A good fume extractor can help (Jaycar sells those as well).
@bargainshooter: I did not know fume extractor exist. Don't think they had it in the 90s. I hardly do any soldering these days
Lead-free solder is crap anyway. Yes I wanted to use the other profanity instead lol. Besides I read it was the flux that was the main hazard with the fumes not the lead.
Either way a fan is recommended.
@dufflover: And for all the claims of "its better for the environment" it directly leads to the earlier failure of huge amounts of electrical goods. It is far less ductile than lead solder so when electronics go through normal thermal cycling (warm up when on then cool down when off) the expansion and contraction is far more likely to lead to the solder joints cracking.
So thanks to RoHS (that little "green" sticker on PCs, TVs etc.) we've got landfills full of what would probably still be working if they'd used lead based solder, harming the environment and forcing costly renewals on people.
Same and I kept all the good stuff with lead in it. You cannot even buy good quality solder anymore
Thanks for pointing it out. Yet I get negs for nothing.
The community is toxic these days
I didn't plus since I think it's fine for kids with proper instruction (and I started doing it when I was less than ten with zero instruction or care and am still alive) but yes, you are right. It's not the lead, it's the fumes from the burning flux.
@fantombloo: Yeah you probably don't feel anything. But I can tell you I seem to have prolong coughing issues every time I get cold/flu symptoms that typically people last a week or two. Me up to 4-5 weeks.
I have no asthma, chest and lungs are fine. All tests xray MRI you name it all clear
My parents did not know what soldering is. I was exploring on my own. I did expose to a lot of this fume
I'm still alive but now in 40s and can see its a health issue arise from it
I strongly believe when you are young and your body still developing and you got exposure to chemicals it can later affect your life down the track
@neonlight: Yes you are right. My own good health / luck is not an indicator of the wider risks. But I must say I do not know anyone that has suffered immediately tangible damage from soldering and I know a lot of people who have been doing it for years. I let my young son solder regularly - I ensure the place is ventilated but that's about it.
I think this is more about workers than you when hobbyist.
eBay soldering irons good?
I use the Ryobi 18v soldering iron. I always wanted to get a TS100 but It's just convenient and less hassle not having to worry about chargers and where I'm going to plug the cable into because I use the soldering iron for car stuff as well. Much easier being portable.
Plus the Ryobi 18v range is an OB staple afaik ☺️
You can use TS100 with a powerbank (if they supply the cable) or if you have lipos from RCs. 6s lipo will provide the 20v for max wattage.
The only problem with Ryobi soldering iron is the cable to the handle isn't silicone so if you manage to touch it with the tip you will melt it. (Granted TS100 with the USB C cable isnt rated for high temps either)
I have a TS100, they are great. As for power, I just use any ole notebook power adaptor or even a 12v adaptor. The TS100 are flexible and take any power supply from 12-24V.
Any existing deals or 'in stock's places for recommended soldering kits?
Update: is this any good? Limited stock.
https://sydneytools.com.au/product/hot-devil-hd1960k-10in1-p…
I bought a similar, cheap butane soldering iron and it broke on first use. Then I did what I should have done in the first place and bought a TS100. It has been fantastic.
There seems many versions or replicas. Do you mind telling us where you got yours or link.
Thanks.
I got mine from this AliExpress seller: https://www.aliexpress.com/item/32860309312.html
They've had plenty of orders, and the one I received is a genuine TS100.
Thanks! Bought two.
If you want that iron, firstly you will need a stand, secondly I have even used decent 40w irons and they were by now means great, I can only imagine how bad a 25w is
I'm using the KSGER T12 iron from Aliexpress: https://www.aliexpress.com/item/32971888371.html
It's compact, has lots of features and the tips are easy to swap (my most used tip is the BC2).
For extra safety I've modded it to connect the ground pin to the metal case, as recommended by some Youtubers.
After using a t12 tip style iron where the heating element and temp sensor is integrated into the tip, i will not go back to the older ones. Heats up fast enough i can turn it off between joints.
I got the dice one i thought that was pretty cool
This reminds me of the Dick Smith Funway into Electronics kits I had in the 90s. Oh the memories…….
And be honest those are still better than Jaycars
Ordered at midday and delievered within a couple of hours…. that's service!
Omg me too!
I'm an adult and bought some of these kind of kits 18 months ago.
Now I fix/mod broken game consoles for fun.
Recent build one of these for my original xbox: https://github.com/Ryzee119/ogx360 and recapped a dead PS3.
What I'm saying is, if you're an adult wants to learn to solder, these are great!
What soldering irons would you recommend? I'm an adult wanting to try!
I recommend getting a temperature controlled one. Doesn't have to be an expensive Hakko, the Chinese clones are pretty good.
I've settled on a Yihua 853D. It's got a reflow station (heat gun) and soldering iron in the one unit, both temperature controlled. Soldering is much, much easier now than when I was using USB irons or the ones you plug directly into the wall.
From what I've read, all these Chinese clones are more or less the same, eg this would be similar: https://www.amazon.com.au/Horusdy-Soldering-Station-Digital-…
Don't forget a fume extractor fan, I use a cheap one from Amazon. And they recommend eye protection when you're using wire cutters to snip component legs (eg. capacitor legs).
You probably watch these already.
https://www.youtube.com/c/Mymatevince
https://www.youtube.com/c/StezStixFix
https://www.youtube.com/c/Tronicsfix
Have been getting the website broken page for at least 4 hours, can't even go to their homepage :/
I was hoping that they would have been of the same quality as the old Dick Smith Funway kits.
It's a shame that the Funway kits, or alternates of similar quality, are no longer available.
I remember those, wouldn't mind finding something like that.
If you have the book you can probably pick up all the bits yourself can't you? Someone above posted a decent link
Handy skill to learn
$8.00 to Melbourne Metro.
Guys, I bought it as soon as I saw this posts (this Arvo), and it just got delivered to my door an hour ago!!!!!!
These went down to $5 a couple of weeks ago and are now down to $2… some stock still left. I managed to get 1 of each.
Nice mate - actually look pretty cool