G`day Folks, And welcome to Gormo`s Shed. This episode we are looking at building a home made soldering station. Now this is not the Mickey Mouse temperature controlled Shmick type of classy soldering station that you will see in your tool suppliers catalogue.......it`s not all bells and whistles with integrated circuits and logic circuits that they use to make the toast on the International Space Station. No folks......this is a purpose built common or garden stable base / platform to hold your soldering iron that will take the worry out of sitting your iron on the bench. This also won`t cost you the Earth. I have used a panel out of a filing cabinet.......laminated particle board. You could use particle board, MDF, Timber or Plywood.....in other words whatever you have to hand. I think this sort of construction can easily be done by people with even the most basic skills and tool box. The soldering station is capable of being clamped to a desk or to a bench. It can be sat on the floor or can even be used as a mobile work station, in that it could be clamped to the top of a Workmate or a pair of saw horses. The design and measurements are optional to suit your own personal needs. Go for it lads and enjoy the video. Gormo
I actually made something similar earlier this year but after a couple of uses I decided that I needed to have some low side pieces to stop stuff falling off when moving from storage to work area ie solder reel etc. Later I knocked up a low sided box to carry a tool or two with the work station and so far it has kept me sane, having all that I need for the job in hand. Nice one, though, Gormo, I like your lateral thinking...
I'll get a swatch at the video later tonight. It's munch you time right now. Thanks for posting it up as always Gormo. Cheers Toto
Just watched the video. very practical and easy peasy to build. All things that we would have around the home as well. Anything that makes soldering a bit safer has got to be good. Toto
yes and only last week I threw out a couple of those flexi lamps fitted with croc grips as junk... bah
Thanks Beetleton, I like the low sides idea.........I feel a further improvement in the wings...... Gormo
Thanks Toto, Yes that`s the general idea........it`s been annoying me for some time now and thought it was time to do something about it. Gormo
Ah.????......ain`t it always the way...???? You throw something out, and 5 minutes later you`ve found a use for it....... Gormo
Tell me about it Gormo... I chucked out a load of paint from my store shed recently and yesterday SWMBO asked me for the can to "touch up" walls in the kitchen to spruce up in time for Christmas...
How about a dowel coming out from the lighting block to store the reel of solder on, maybe with a stop on the end to stop the reel falling off during transport. Nice simple and useful idea. Paul
Thanks Paul........that`s a good suggestion.............I can see Soldering Station MkII coming along soon with the improvement suggestions flowing in. Gormo
Thanks Pete, Well mate........you could always make a smaller version........I reckon that at even half the size, it would still be practical and very stable. A removal stand for the light and also a removable spring for the iron would break it down into a flat pack system for storage...........whata ya reckon..???? Gormo
G`day Folks, Based on some suggestions that have flowed through this thread, I have embarked on some improvements to the soldering station. Paul suggested fitting the solder rolls to some system off the light post. I have not literally set the solder up in this way, but the suggestion got me thinking, based on what I had available. So what I`ve come up with is some conduit posts set up vertically on the side of the board. The solder rolls are a snug fit on them and they are a little easier to reach than they would be on the post......Thanks for the idea Paul... The conduit is 20mm diameter and I used a Forstner bit to drill a 20mm hole 3/4`s of the way through the board. The conduit is a perfect fit and had to be hammered into place. Pressure fit.....no glue required and can be removed if required. And this is what I mean about a snug fit So they won`t slide off when moving the board about. The other idea that came to mind was a method of fixing my helping hands securely to the board, with the ability to remove them if not required. I used a standard fencing plate, a couple of bolts and nuts and washers. The hexagonal nut on the left is fitted first, finger tight. Then the wing nut is tightened, which applies pressure through the plate and holds the helping hands securely on the board. The bolts heads are reasonably flush under the board for on the floor work. And the whole lot can be removed fairly easily by hand. The plate can also be used to hold an item in place for soldering, which is a bonus and may come in handy. I am looking for a suitable cradle / container to hold the flux container......maybe a jar lid.????.....haven`t found the right one yet. Also I`ll be working on a low raised side / fence around the perimeter as suggested by Beetleton MPD. All in good time and when the appropriate parts present themselves. They`re out the in the shed somewhere.....I`ve just got to work it out...... Gormo