Photoetch question?

[bigdave]

I have never worked with this stuff before.
I would like to know if you are building a box with it do you solder or glue it?? Curious minds would like to know.
I have sent an email to Jeff (Mr Photoetch) but I thought I would pose the question in case others do not know. BD.

[Guest]

If it's brass I'd solder

If it's brass I'd solder it. You can use a jewellers technique of fluxing the joint then placing small bits of solder along the line you wish to join together then heating with a torch.

[ricknelson]

I don't know about using

I don't know about using a torch but I solder all my photoetch parts. Tin individual pieces by applying flux and then add small shavings of solder (flux will hold solder) and heat. I use a 12w soldering iron, more than enough heat and good control. After tinning join pieces by re-heating tinned parts.

[davinci]

Build a Box http://www.subcommittee.com/forum/icon_question.gif http://www.subcommittee.com/forum/icon_question.gif

Build a Box
The only type photo-etch parts I've worked with are thin delicate detailing parts for ship models and I don't see how any of those could be soldered on.
I CA glue them on and then seal the glue with paint.
You must be talking about 'Something Completely Different'?
Click pic:

Photo-etch parts on Revell type VII U-boat][/url]
Photo-etch parts for Revell Gato:

[davinci]

Are you talking about, making

Are you talking about, making a Tank to do Photo-etching in???

[bigdave]

Thanks for all the good

Thanks for all the good answers.
I should have said box structure. There are 4 sides and a bottom.
They all have to be connected to form an open box.
It goes up in the sail of my 212A.
I kind of figured soldering was the way to go but having never worked with the photoetch I chose to ask.
The hardest part was holding it all together without burning the fingers.
It would have been much easier if it did not have the radius curve at the front.
It turned out OK though. Here is a photo of the part. BD.

[davinci]

Okay thanks, I now see

Okay thanks, I now see what you are working on but I still don't understand what the box has got to do with Photo-etching or photo-etched parts???
Were the box bend lines made by photo-etching a flat sheet?

That certainly looks like a Solder job, Tho.

[ricknelson]

I use clay or putty

I use clay or putty to hold pieces together while soldering.

[bigdave]

The parts of the box

The parts of the box were supplied protoetched and had to be soldered into the box shape. BD.

[JWLaRue]

...silver solder is the best

...silver solder is the best way to go (IMHO). I use Stay-Brite, which is available through Micro-Mark. This stuff will also solder stainless steel! The description can be found here: http://www.micromark.com/STAY-BRITE-...EACH,7556.html

I use one of the Solder-It 'torches'. It's one of those butane gas torches, but the flame is used to heat the soldering tip. Excellent control over the amount of heat and very quick to come up to temperature. You can find them listed here]http://www.solder-it.com/[/url]. The one I have is the SolderPro 120.

I hadn't considered using clay to hold the parts together....good tip. To date, I've used clothes pins and/or blue masking tape.

As I mentioned to BD, for butt joints I also try to reinforce the joints with additional material where possible.

-enjoy,

Jeff

[davinci]

The parts of the box

The parts of the box were supplied protoetched and had to be soldered into the box shape. BD.

Okay, I think I 'm starting to translate 'The Big Picture'.

[JWLaRue]

...does seem like an odd

...does seem like an odd thing to make from photo-etch parts. There doesn't appear to eb any surface detail etched into it and the individual pieces look quite simple. Sheet plastic would server just as well?

-Jeff

[don prince]

In my experience, the 12

In my experience, the 12 to 15 Watt soldering iron works well for small objects or mounting components on a circuit board. A heavier soldering iron can damage the circuit board or the electronic components. Get a good quality multi-core rosin solder. Note* when removing components from a circuit board; use a solder sucker (it looks like a big spring loaded hypodermic syringe), the brass or copper weave do not work nearly as well.

When I built the OTW Type VIIc brass tower, I had to use a Weller butane torch (purchased at Home Depot). As I added more components to the brass tower, it took longer torch time to bond the pieces together. I was using a fairly heavy brass plate, much heavier than the brass deck that came with the OTW kit.

The torch could be used to quickly assemble brass components but they must NOT be in contact with any of the plastic components because of the rapid heat transfer. I believe some testing may be needed to determine if the torch applies too much heat. In my case, the Weller butane torch was the best tool for my OTW brass tower project.

Regards,
Don_

[Guest]

A soldering iron is fine

A soldering iron is fine and preferable for small jobs. But if you're working with jobs with lots of area/metal, then it just won't get the work hot enough.

Anyone that takes a blowtorch to a plastic part needs their head testing.

I find a set of 'helping hands is very useful for quick and dirty jigging of parts. If the designer of the photoetch tool is a bit cute, the parts can be made largely self-jigging.

Personally I only use silver solder if I need a really strong i.e. load bearing joint.

Soft solder is very strong if the work is done right, and has the advantage that the low level of heat doesn't anneal the brass and make it too soft, which is what tend to happen with silver solder (when working with brass or copper).

[bigdave]

Jeff,
I thought it was

Jeff,
I thought it was strange that they used photoetch for this assembly too but it actually worked very well.
The brass has been etched to the shape of the sail and installed with no fitting. BD.