Saber Forum

So as the subject says, I'm interested in building my own saber, but I've never soldered anything in my life.  I realize that no one can really tell me if I'd be able to solder or not, so I guess the question I have is this: being a complete soldering noob, how big is the risk of totally screwing up my saber if I make that my first soldering project?  Any suggestions, tips, etc. on this general topic would be appreciated.  Thanks much!

I had never soldered before owning a saber, and needing to make many repairs necessited learning. It's not super difficult, but definitely practice on scrap wires to get your technique down. Then build your way up to stunt sabers. Once you're comfortable with those, then try adding extra bits like sound or lit switches.

I would recommend going to your local dollar store and getting those AV cables for VCRs and TVs (the ones with red, white, and yellow plugs). I did that, separated the three cords and cut one in half. I tried soldering that, and then hooking it up to the VCR and TV to see if the connection was being made. It's a pretty safe way to test your skills and also to learn.

You can also go to Radio Shack....they have a beginners soldering kit that includes components like a circuitry board, small speaker, and other misc. parts to practice on...not very expensive and you get a solder iron with it to boot.  I too am a newbie.....I am in the process of upgrading my old Prophecy V2 :)   Good Luck on your journey!

Cheers

I would get a set of helping hands they are a necessity in my book when soldering. Get at least one big set of tweezers. When soldering what works best for me is to keep my tip very hot so i can solder a joint very quickly. make sure u let it cool u will see the solder change color and harden always check your joint before you heatshrink over it make sure it is strong and wont break.  Make sure u keep your tip clean I cant stress that enough it will make soldering easier and cleaner plus prolong the life of your tip. If u want i can post u link to a soldering iron and tip cleaner its about 30$ altogether I think, and it will do a great job on saber building its what I use 95 percent of the time.  Last but not least if you are having problems getting solder to stick to a solder pad u will prob need to buy flux ran into this on LED ENGINS.  If soldering on a soundboard or pcb board never keep your tip on it to long their may be componets on there that will get damaged from being to hot usually happens when trying to solder something  too many times or having problems get solder to adhere.  Any ways thats all I can think of now lol just got off work

stunt or sound?    If you are building a stunt it will mainly be just wires and the LED to to solder so a cheap solder iron will work just fine.   and actually not trying to plug the Obsidian but if going with Obsidian sound there is no onboard soldering so that is what I would recommend for beginners.  because it uses a wire harness on board u can solder the wires with any old solder iron. 

There are several soldering guides online that explain how to solder decently and safely.
I think one of the most important steps is pre-tinning the wire and making sure your iron isn't too hot.
Too much heat results in lifting the pads on boards and melting back insulation on the wire.
Both which aren't desirable effects. In almost all the soldering classes, I've giving, I've always let the students practice on junk
Boards out off old electronic equipment to make sure they have a good feel for it.
If you have any other questions feel free to pm me. If I happen to stumble over one of those guides, I'll pm you the link if you like.
P.S. Always treat solderspots and the soldering iron as if they were still hot. Saves you a couple of burns.  ;)

I'm not that good at soldering but it's not difficult. My only advice is spend the money on a decent soldering tool. Many of the cheap one's tips dont heat well and you have to use the sides. Something to keep it clean would help too.

Thanks so much for all the responses!  I plan to be deliberate in my pacing with trying to learn this so I don't try to over-do things, and I'll definitely keep all this advice in front of me as well.  Thanks much all!