I have a number of HL tanks and most of mine seem to have lousey solder jobs. Wires just break off at the solder joints easily. Is anyone else experiencing this, or is it just me? It seems like the vibration from just running them around is enough to knock a wire loose. It appears to be a case of "cold solder" joints mostly, but in a few cases the wire actually broke at the end of the insulating sleeve leaving the stripped part of the wire on the circuit board.

[]

I'd give their soldering a C- .

Cheap solder. High lead and low silver content probably. The C- was generous....LOL Bob

I have five HL's, listed in order of purchase over the past 8 months;

Panther G
Panzer IV F2
Stug III
Tiger I
Jagdpanther

Soldering is a bit hit and miss but it has held up well for me.

I had a few problems with the Panther G but I fixed them, everything else is working well for me.

The C- was graded on a curve.  We have other Chinese stuff.

I hope their real tanks are built by the same guys.

well i blamed mine on taking it apart so many times just theplugfor the rear lights came off atthe board just behind the motor for the turret i only have a soldering iron but want to know what type of soldering gun do you guys use
to do your wiring or in my case fixing of wires i don't want to fry any board with too much heat plus i'm new at this

<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt"><span style="font-size: 9pt">I use a common Weller 15/30 watt switchable soldering iron for my small scale projects.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>Learning how to properly clean, tin, and &ldquo;whet&rdquo; a solder joint using the proper soldering tip for the taskis always a handy skill set to develop.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>Stay away from the high power soldering guns unless you&rsquo;re making 00 gauge power cables (lol).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>Practice, practice, practice makes perfect, though having good instruction is always a plus.</span></p>

thanks HondoBob i have a switchable 15/30w also it's a smart 2 anyway to show a pic of the type of tip you use on yours maybe the tip on mine is not the right type to use

Oh solder! That's what that is supposed to be. the HL electronics are usually the first thing to get thrown out when i start on a tank.
Bad prep, cold joints and bad materials do not begin to add up to a "C-".

I have to say that the later KVs, and Panthers are much improved over the soldering work used with the RX-13/14 ESC tanks like the Early Tigers, Pan Tigers, PZ3/4s. I might offer up a "C" nominal. for them

HL, quality aren’t words you'd normally find in the same sentence without a poor or bad in between.

To all you soldering pros out there - is the advice in this guide any good?

http://www.teamnovak.com/tech_info/h...der/index.html

I'm not a pro but I like to look at "how to" instructions because there is always something I forgot, was unsure of, or didn't know to begin with. My solder tip preference is a 1/8 inch diameter needle point and a chisel point of the same diameter on my ancient soldering pen. I also like the Coleman Cold Heat battery operated soldering pen (when it decides to work right for me).

That guide was interesting. Thanks.

For common electronic component soldering I just use 15 watts anda pointed tip for controlled application of heat to the small solder joint. For larger diameter power wires I set the iron to 30 watts and use a chisle tip to ensure rapid transfer of heat to the larger area. Be very careful not to apply too much heat, or for too long, to semiconductors or motor windings because they can be easily damaged by prolonged high tempuratures. A goodsolder joint is made by applying a sufficient amount of heat for the minimum amount of time to ensure both mechanical and electrical bonding between the component and contact pad. If the solder flows well and remains shiny after cooling the joint is probably good. If the solder clumps or is dull after cooling the joint is probably bad and the component may be damaged.

glen, it is time.Get your self a nice Tamiya kit of your choosing and enjoy the high life. Yes one of my favorite beers also. LOL.