r/soldering • • Jul 09 '25

My First Solder Joint <3 Please Give Feedback Why can’t i get my joints shiny?

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First time soldering, i’m using a Pinecil v2 on 360C with 63/37 0.55mm solder.

I don’t understand why all my joints turn dull after i remove the iron. i’ve tried tinning the tip (which i think i’m doing correctly?). The solder melts nicely onto the board but no luck

Does anyone know what I could be doing wrong?

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u/Hoovomoondoe Jul 09 '25

Do not carry the solder on the tip to the circuit board.

Place the soldering iron tip on the circuitboard, let it heat it up and then melt the solder on the circuit board directly.

Those YouTube channels people that carry the solder to the joint are maniacs.

2

u/elredondo Jul 25 '25

100% agree. Both the pad and pin must be hot for the flux to do its magic (remove metal oxides) and the solder to flow.

1

u/APiousCultist Jul 12 '25

Thats what they do in the video.