aende Posted June 13, 2013 Share Posted June 13, 2013 So, I have diagnosed the explosion of my Ashdown Little Giant 1000 amp. It is down to 2 capacitors that have expired, I have bought a better quality of capacitor at the correct values and intended to simply do a replacement job. However, the solder that has been used in the original construction is a special blend and needs a super hot iron to de-solder. My 'hobby' soldering iron is not man enough! Any ideas on how to desolder this or get this work done? It is suuch a simply job, but completely inhibited. **I got hold of Alto and Powersoft, they make the LG power amp, they will sell me one for £254. However, a complete brand new LG 1000 is £211 from Thomann - the caveat being that Ashdown are unable to service it and by definition it makes the warranty worthless. Any ideas anyone? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dincz Posted June 13, 2013 Share Posted June 13, 2013 It's probably lead-free solder, which generally has a higher melting point. If your iron isn't hot enough, then it's time to buy a new one Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alexclaber Posted June 13, 2013 Share Posted June 13, 2013 Lead-free solder plus whatever you're desoldering may be heatsinking off to the board/components too quickly for you to get enough heat in for the required temperature rise. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KingBollock Posted June 13, 2013 Share Posted June 13, 2013 (edited) Give this a try first. It might not work but it's worth giving it a go, assuming you haven't already tried it. While trying to heat the stubborn solder apply some fresh solder. It helps to melt the old solder and has always worked for me, and my soldering iron is only 18w. I don't know what the board looks like but if the legs of the capacitor are showing, you could snip them close to the body of the capacitor and solder the new one to the old legs. Edited June 13, 2013 by KingBollock Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BassTractor Posted June 13, 2013 Share Posted June 13, 2013 It has essentially been said, but with other words: Time is the critical issue here. You need to be very quick so the heat doesn't ruin other components. Start with an iron that is not clean but has a drop of molten solder on it. Also, use solder swamp strip or solder sucking tube to remove the old solder. (Sorry for not knowing the right terms to use, but I trust you still know what I mean.) BTW, a good soldering station with controllable temperature is an investment for life. Good luck! best, bert Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ezbass Posted June 13, 2013 Share Posted June 13, 2013 [quote name='KingBollock' timestamp='1371128349' post='2110157'] Give this a try first. It might not work but it's worth giving it a go, assuming you haven't already tried it. While trying to heat the stubborn solder apply some fresh solder. It helps to melt the old solder and has always worked for me, and my soldering iron is only 18w. [/quote]This is what I do for stubborn solder. I recently had to rewire an old amp that I made with the same iron I was using to remove the components, but the original solder wouldn't melt unless I added a little, newly melted solder. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ghost_Bass Posted June 13, 2013 Share Posted June 13, 2013 I always used 60W soldering irons bought from your equivalent of the pound store. In 15 years only had 3 or 4, now i recently bought a soldering station with controlable temperature, very nice. It's just hard to find tips for it, the ones that came with the unit started to melt early... Use the "melted solder on top of it" aproach, it really works! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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