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Soldering copper-clad paxolin with an RSU?


JeffP

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I have some long lengths of 90 degree section to add to my 7mm turntable sides, which are copper-clad paxolin.

 

It looks as if the best way to do it would be to tin both, then use the RSU?

 

Is that OK, or is the RSU, for some reason, a complete no-no with copper-clad?

 

TIA.

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Hi Jeff

 

The only problem I can see is if both pieces to be soldered together are copper clad paxolin, as I can't think of a way to get the probe and the earth into a suitable position to create the circuit. If one piece is single skin brass, copper or ns etc. No problem.

 

SS

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I seem to remember an article in a magazine re soldering rail to rivets by putting the earth clip on the rail some distance away from the.joint and the electrode on the same rail directly above the rivet.

 

The heat will travel through the metal and make the jointa! May be worth a try.

 

Wally

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I have some long lengths of 90 degree section to add to my 7mm turntable sides, which are copper-clad paxolin.

 

It looks as if the best way to do it would be to tin both, then use the RSU?

 

Is that OK, or is the RSU, for some reason, a complete no-no with copper-clad?

 

TIA.

 

With a bit too much heat it is possible to delaminate the paxolin...

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Agreed, but I'd have thought that a soldering iron was more likely to do that?

 

It's a strip of nickel silver onto the copper side of copper-clad.

 

Not necessarily - RSUs are good at generating very localised heat (hence the warnings about blowing holes in etched kits), so are probably capable of delaminating the copper (depending on setting, copper thickness, etc.)

 

Do you have any spare bits of the pcb that you could try the RSU with?

 

Andy

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I tried something like this, & got serious warping, as the metal expanded when heated, but the paxolin didn't;- curled up a treat when it cooled!

Best solution may be to solder the metal to a series of rivets, then drill the copperclad to match, & allow the rivets to make the mechanical & electrical bond...

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Mike Grey, who designed the LRM RSU, wrote a piece that appeared in MRJ on using a RSU to build ply and rivet track. He used two probes, one applied the each side of the rail above the pre tinned rivet. The current flowing between the probes generated enough heat to melt the solder on the rivet head

 

The same approach could be used with copper clad, if you tinned the underside of the rail.

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Mike Grey, who designed the LRM RSU, wrote a piece that appeared in MRJ on using a RSU to build ply and rivet track. He used two probes, one applied the each side of the rail above the pre tinned rivet. The current flowing between the probes generated enough heat to melt the solder on the rivet head

The same approach could be used with copper clad, if you tinned the underside of the rail.

Thanks for the conxfirmation, that's the article I referred to earlier.

 

Wally

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