I just bought a soldering-iron to wire up some speakers with spade connectors and I suck at soldering. How do I practice to get good? I only made one clean joint after about an hour at it.

>>2929750 (OP)
Pace soldering guide on youtube.

Tin the wire, crimp the spade on it, then add solder. It's not really necessary if you crimped it but whatever.

>>2929753
The wires were too thin to be crimped onto. They managed to work, but the joints look like vomit.

>>2929755
Strip 2x the wire you need, fold it in half back on itself

>>2929750 (OP)
get quality solder and flux
no seriously the super cheap shit is some kind of chink industrial waste and doesnt wet out or even stick like solder is supposed to

>>2929764
What do you consider quality solder?

>>2929765
I use Alpha Fry 60/40 sn/pb from the auto parts store and whatever flux and it’s far better than the crap that comes with the irons or any cheap “lead free” stuff. They have recommended better stuff but the rolls last forever.

Load the connections with flux, tin the soldering iron tip, get enough heat going for the flux to start bubbling a little and feed appropriate amount of solder,

>>2929765
kester 44

>>2929771
I keep wanting to get this stuff, but it’s like either a small bag of wire, or a lifetime supply for a DIYer, and I’m not sure I’m ready for a lifetime commitment to solder.

>>2929750 (OP)
Im not a solder-pro, but when I started out I would take some shitty half broken electronics and unsolder/resolder stuff onto them.

>>2929765
i recommend chipquick's sn42/bi57/ag1 solder.

https://eu.mouser.com/ProductDetail/Chip-Quik/SMDSWLT.047-8OZ?qs=Wj%2FVkw3K%252BMBivQ2Imf8Z0A%3D%3D

Flows really well for a lead-free solder, relatively clean and doesnt increase the probability of chronic retardation like the lead based ones.

>>2929812
also despite being bismuth rich the end solder is not brittle, if you want low melt solder that's not brittle look for bismuth with silver

>>2929750 (OP)
You'd certainly benefit from a soldering iron with temperature control and replacable tips. The cheapest one has the temp dial on the body itself and can be gotten for the equivalent of $5, though how it works exactly is a mystery, it's certainly better than the one you put on your pic.

Other than that remember that solder is attracted to the heat so you'd do goodto heat the target surface as opposed to solder itself. Use flux and clean the tip - scrub it by force then cover it with solder again if need be, I still have to do that sometimes.

>>2929753
>Pace soldering guide on youtube.
no joke.
those videos are the real deal.
should be required viewing before anyone picks up the old 'ring iron.

Slide connector on wire
Put hot iron on connector barrel
Touch solder to wire at connector junction
Watch solder wick into connector
Let cool….it’s child play Cletus

You just didn't get the spade hot enough. Apply a bit of solder to the tip to improve the heat transfer, then once it suddenly flows and wets the piece it's hot enough. You don't need flux or a temp controlled iron for this stuff. If the tip has shitty geometry, as in a long cone, use the side of the cone instead of the tip as it's hotter. You are using parts that don't get damaged by heat (until the insulation starts fuming) so be patient.
t. microsoldering pro

>>2929764
this guy is on the money

i didn't bother with flux for years and just found out recently im a fucking retard for doing so

FLUX FLUX FLUX FLUX

>>2929812
isnt that melting point way too low?
138ºC seems too low for anything that produces heat

>>2929750 (OP)
Go to a thrift store and pick up some random cheap electronic for like $5 that has a bunch of soldering inside it and just start practising on that

>>2929773
What's wrong with never having to go find more?
They keep trying to ban good solder, get a big roll of leaded while you can and never worry again.

>>2929750 (OP)
Cheap soldering irons suck for heat. Normally they're very underpowered.

You want to flow the solder into the parts you're joining, not into the iron. Manipulate the wiring and parts so they have a good mechanical connection to start, and this frees your hands. Flux, heat, flow is all there is.

Watch the old school tutorials until you get really going. https://youtu.be/vIT4ra6Mo0s

>>2929764
rosin core has always served me fine, but I only do hobby stuff and not any integrated circuits

>>2929753
>soldering
>crimp
choose one.
Not trying to be a dick or nothing. Also for OP's use case it'll be fine hes gonna end up soldering anyways. But a few pointers:
Soldering before crimping is moronic because crimping exists to replace soldering and avoid it's drawbacks. A Crimped connection on a tinned wire wont be as good long term as on bare wire.
It's the same as not twisting wire before crimping. Keep it neat. But dont twist it. Twisting it i creases it's cross section. No problem if it was really crimped properly following that, which leads to cold welding of the strands and connector, but that is rare outside la factoria. So if crimped relatively weak one could later twist the connector so that it undoes the twist in the wire, after which they slide right out.
Best is to just get connectors meant to be soldered, like with a soldering cup or flag and use that.
Also don't get lead free solder if you're doing things for yourself. It sucks.

just use flux and a toothpick