beautypg.com

Erica Synths DIY Eurorack Case and Power Supply Kit for EDU Modular System (84 HP) User Manual

Page 11

background image

11

DIY electronics is a great (and quite addictive) hobby, therefore we highly recommend you

invest in good tools. In order to really enjoy soldering, you’ll need:

A decent soldering station. Top-of-the-line

soldering stations (brands like Weller) will cost

200€ and above, but cheaper alternatives

around 50€ are often good enough. Make

sure your soldering station of choice comes

with multiple differently-sized soldering iron

tips. The most useful ones for DIY electronics

are flat, 2mm wide tips.

When heated up, the tips of soldering irons

tend to oxidize. As a result, solder won’t

stick to them, so you’ll need to clean your

tip frequently. Most soldering stations

come with a damp sponge for cleaning the

iron tips – but there are also professional

solder tip cleaners with golden curls (not

really gold, so not as expensive as it

sounds). These work much better because

they do not cool down the iron.

Solder wire with flux. I find 0,7mm solder

wire works best for DIY projects.

Some soldering flux paste or pen will be

useful as well.

Cutting pliers. Use them to cut off excess

component leads after soldering.