Good to know. I just ordered a couple of practice kits. I'm also eyeballing an Arduino starter kit, but I'll hold off on that for now. XDAbsolutely! Those little DIY kits are a perfect learning tool. The basic ones tend to have fairly big solder pads and use components that are fairly heat-resistant, so they're beginner friendly. You can find all kinds of fun little projects like little radio transmitters, IR blasters, flashing LED displays. From there you can move on to more elaborate kits that involve some tidier soldiering and using heatsinks etc.
Here in Australia we have a magazine called "Silicon Chip" which is full of fun little projects, and stores like JayCar or Altronics that stock kits on the shelf. There are kits you can buy off cheap Chinese sites which are OK I guess. Just be sure to test each component with a multimeter as you go and use your own solder. I'm thinking of grabbing one of the cheaper valve headphone amp kits for a lark.
I went to school for circuit card repair quite some time ago, and I can tell you with certainty that the jobs as appearing above are very easy...provided you have the right equipment and a bit of practice.Let's be more specific, does something like this look doable to people here:
How about this instead:
Update: So, I completed one of the two practice soldering kits that I purchased last night. Earlier today, I did a battery mod on my Dreamcast so I don't have to deal with a soldered-in LIR 2032 battery anymore. I plan on installing a self-healing fuse for the controller ports when the parts arrive, too. I have to say, despite the practice kit's instructions not being all that great, the repetitive nature of it has made me already pretty comfortable with soldering. Thanks for recommending the practice kits!Absolutely! Those little DIY kits are a perfect learning tool. The basic ones tend to have fairly big solder pads and use components that are fairly heat-resistant, so they're beginner friendly. You can find all kinds of fun little projects like little radio transmitters, IR blasters, flashing LED displays. From there you can move on to more elaborate kits that involve some tidier soldiering and using heatsinks etc.
Here in Australia we have a magazine called "Silicon Chip" which is full of fun little projects, and stores like JayCar or Altronics that stock kits on the shelf. There are kits you can buy off cheap Chinese sites which are OK I guess. Just be sure to test each component with a multimeter as you go and use your own solder. I'm thinking of grabbing one of the cheaper valve headphone amp kits for a lark.
Funny this has been bumped because a week later and I have a small soldering project. Headphone repair.I actually learnt how to solder at school. Haven't used that skill in years but definitely would not be put off by the idea
Good news, I'm glad it worked out well.Update: So, I completed one of the two practice soldering kits that I purchased last night. Earlier today, I did a battery mod on my Dreamcast so I don't have to deal with a soldered-in LIR 2032 battery anymore. I plan on installing a self-healing fuse for the controller ports when the parts arrive, too. I have to say, despite the practice kit's instructions not being all that great, the repetitive nature of it has made me already pretty comfortable with soldering. Thanks for recommending the practice kits!
Oh, yeah, that would've been a nice little bundle, even if the Dreamcast didn't work. A lot of Dreamcasts also have dead controller ports, which is another simple fix. Dreamcasts aren't terribly expensive, in either case, depending on where you are, though I'm obviously thinking much more about the possibility of buying "for parts or repair" systems to practice my soldering at this point.Good news, I'm glad it worked out well.
A few years ago I turned down a free Dreamcast with two controllers, arcade sticks, VMUs and a spindle of games because it had the dead battery issue and I didn't realise how easy it was to fix. I'm still kicking myself.
Let's be more specific, does something like this look doable to people here:
How about this instead: