sweetbeats
Reel deep thoughts...
Silly little thing to share, but not many people would understand...so here it is:
I’m too cheap or fiscally challenged (probably both) to buy one of those fancy electric desoldering tools. So all these years I’ve been using one of those $4 spring-loaded desoldering tools...like for nearly 3 decades I’ve been using the same tool I got at Radio Shack when I *first* started doing anything with electronics and soldering...building custom subwoofer boxes with my brother for our cars...anyway...serious...I’ve been using the same solder-sucker tool since high school back in the 80s...I don’t know *how* many solder joints I’ve cleared with that thing, but with all the repairs on dozens of devices and thousands of caps and who knows how many ICs I’ve pulled...anyway...thousands and thousands of click...*pop!*...the plastic tip is so deformed. I’ve trimmed it with a hobby knife and smushed it back into some shape with pliers several times...I’ve looked at replacing it a number of times in recent years or at least trying to find a new tip for it. I know...some of you are going to read this and be like “‘Beats, WTH...! Just get a real tool!” I’m weird this way...like see just how much I can get out of something. I dunno...a lot of stuff I’m totally like “must...have...the...proper...tool...!”, but other things? Like my desoldering tool? It’s like “Nah...it works...I’m familiar with it...I’m good.”
Well, I finally pulled the trigger and bought a new tool. Still a spring-loaded manual type tool...I splurged a little...cost me $20...geeeez what a dummy. I should have done this a long time ago...WAY more suction, easier plunger actuation, soft silicon rubber tip so it doesn’t hop on the work when you release the plunger and it even comes with a length of tube so you can renew the tip like...I don’t know...maybe 8 times? And it’s even more portable than what I’ve been using all these years...all metal, no plastic...It does such a nice job of pulling the solder off the joint. So I’m really excited, like I’m not dreading pending desoldering work now. But...how silly to feel kind of bad for reaching this point of getting rid of this old cheap worn out tool...an old friend of sorts.
I can’t keep everything...I’ll never use it again...but it feels sort of wrong to throw it away. We’ve done a lot of work together...even used it to repair my brother’s MicroMoog that never worked right when he got it used in...1977 I think it was...we made music on it anyway, but here a couple three years ago I had gained enough knowledge I was like “Hey what’s the deal with the Moog again? What is it that doesn’t work?” I knew enough about electronics to be able to troubleshoot and diagnose a failed transistor and find a suitable replacement part and, for the first time since he bought it, we were able to make the sample-and-hold circuit work (that was the specific feature he bought it for...and it didn’t work)...we did it together and I just really love my brother and all those memories tied up in that MicroMoog...all those *years*, and this little POS desoldering tool was used in that process...there are not enough moments in life where you really yell out a real “yahoo!” and connect a solid high-five due to true triumph, but we sure did when we powered the Moog up and that feature actually worked...anyway...memories...and old friends. My toolbox is only so big...and I’ve got the memories and a picture. The dog is clearly very concerned about all of this hahah...here’s the new tool next to the old friend...on to the next several decades of repairs and projects...thanks for letting me share...
I’m too cheap or fiscally challenged (probably both) to buy one of those fancy electric desoldering tools. So all these years I’ve been using one of those $4 spring-loaded desoldering tools...like for nearly 3 decades I’ve been using the same tool I got at Radio Shack when I *first* started doing anything with electronics and soldering...building custom subwoofer boxes with my brother for our cars...anyway...serious...I’ve been using the same solder-sucker tool since high school back in the 80s...I don’t know *how* many solder joints I’ve cleared with that thing, but with all the repairs on dozens of devices and thousands of caps and who knows how many ICs I’ve pulled...anyway...thousands and thousands of click...*pop!*...the plastic tip is so deformed. I’ve trimmed it with a hobby knife and smushed it back into some shape with pliers several times...I’ve looked at replacing it a number of times in recent years or at least trying to find a new tip for it. I know...some of you are going to read this and be like “‘Beats, WTH...! Just get a real tool!” I’m weird this way...like see just how much I can get out of something. I dunno...a lot of stuff I’m totally like “must...have...the...proper...tool...!”, but other things? Like my desoldering tool? It’s like “Nah...it works...I’m familiar with it...I’m good.”
Well, I finally pulled the trigger and bought a new tool. Still a spring-loaded manual type tool...I splurged a little...cost me $20...geeeez what a dummy. I should have done this a long time ago...WAY more suction, easier plunger actuation, soft silicon rubber tip so it doesn’t hop on the work when you release the plunger and it even comes with a length of tube so you can renew the tip like...I don’t know...maybe 8 times? And it’s even more portable than what I’ve been using all these years...all metal, no plastic...It does such a nice job of pulling the solder off the joint. So I’m really excited, like I’m not dreading pending desoldering work now. But...how silly to feel kind of bad for reaching this point of getting rid of this old cheap worn out tool...an old friend of sorts.
I can’t keep everything...I’ll never use it again...but it feels sort of wrong to throw it away. We’ve done a lot of work together...even used it to repair my brother’s MicroMoog that never worked right when he got it used in...1977 I think it was...we made music on it anyway, but here a couple three years ago I had gained enough knowledge I was like “Hey what’s the deal with the Moog again? What is it that doesn’t work?” I knew enough about electronics to be able to troubleshoot and diagnose a failed transistor and find a suitable replacement part and, for the first time since he bought it, we were able to make the sample-and-hold circuit work (that was the specific feature he bought it for...and it didn’t work)...we did it together and I just really love my brother and all those memories tied up in that MicroMoog...all those *years*, and this little POS desoldering tool was used in that process...there are not enough moments in life where you really yell out a real “yahoo!” and connect a solid high-five due to true triumph, but we sure did when we powered the Moog up and that feature actually worked...anyway...memories...and old friends. My toolbox is only so big...and I’ve got the memories and a picture. The dog is clearly very concerned about all of this hahah...here’s the new tool next to the old friend...on to the next several decades of repairs and projects...thanks for letting me share...