Soldering to the back of pots

[benoit]

Something I'm finding I can't do for CRAP! I've read 4 or 5 tutorials. Everything from get a bigger iron (40W weller, 40W rat shack is what I have) to use flux paste to don't use flux paste to tin the pot (not happening for me) to tin the iron and rub it on the back of the pot.

Stumped here.

[Blindog]

What works for me is moving the iron around in a small circular motion on the area of the pot that I'm going to solder to. Touch the solder to that area every so often until you have a shiny blob. Then I heat that blob up and solder the component/wire. I usually heat it and press down on the lead with something and then remove the heat. Hope that helps.

Mark

[drz400]

Something I'm finding I can't do for CRAP! I've read 4 or 5 tutorials. Everything from get a bigger iron (40W weller, 40W rat shack is what I have) to use flux paste to don't use flux paste to tin the pot (not happening for me) to tin the iron and rub it on the back of the pot.

Stumped here.

You trying to solder to the gold ano type Alpha pots?
IF so you have to grind that coating off but it really isnt the best thing to do, soldering to pots, things get hot in there and can fail easier. CTS are OK with it but you shouldnt solder to the back of military or Alpha pots (plastic inside the Alpha).

[Structo]

Sand the surface to be soldered.
Use rosin flux.

[Firestorm]

I prefer not to solder to the backs of pots at all. The grounds formed that way are too random. Give me a big chunk of wire I can connect where I want it anyday.

[Andy Le Blanc]

its nice to have parts that are pre tinned...... but unless its a matter of
extreme convienience........ your better off treating anything attached to the
chassis as part of a separated ground plane...... and plan ahead for it
IE: copper buss......... better conductor and YOU control where and how the
grounds are placed......

[sliberty]

I use my Dremel with a sanding stone tip to rough up a small area on the back of the pot. It only takes 2 seconds to do this, and then the solder adheres very easily.

[rfgordon]

OK, this is gonna sound barbaric, but here goes...

1. Sand the back of the pot.
2. Clean with alcohol
3. Arrange the pot or pots so the backs are up, but slightly sloped.
4. Clean the bus wire (I use 16 guage from inside romex) wtih alcohol
5. Lay the bus wire across the backs of the pots, taping in place on a couple.
6. Cut half or 3\4 inch pieces of thick solder and lay them along the bus wire on the uphill side of the pot back.
7. (here's the barbaric part) Using an aim-n-flame long stem butane grill ligher (gotta find one that shoots out the flame) heat the solder/bus/pot interface.

The solder will melt into a perfect fillet.