Show HN: iFixit created a new USB-C, repairable soldering system

Post by chipsrafferty » Sat, Sep 14, 2024, 3:10 PM UTC

Larrikin wrote: post #181

dpedu wrote: post #167

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I am completely confused by your example. Buying a better knife doesn't make you a better chef. Buying a faster car doesn't make you a better driver. Buying a more powerful laptop doesn't make you a better developer.

Do you cook? There are dozens of obvious examples. A crappy knife will tear instead of cut. You'll ruin tomatoes, have uneven dices, crush and smear delicate herbs, have ripped apart meat and fish that you'll destroy more trying to get rid of the trim. That's not counting the downtime you'll have when the knife slips instead of cuts and you can't cook at all due to injury. Giving an expensive knife to a new cook that…

Post by chipsrafferty » Sat, Sep 14, 2024, 3:14 PM UTC

willcipriano wrote: post #280

bigstrat2003 wrote: post #275

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I cook, and I disagree with the assertion that a better knife makes you a better cook. Good knives are useful, but ultimately you're still going to produce crappy results if you're a bad cook with a good knife.

A bad dull knife bruises and smashes more than it cuts. If a first time cook was making a salsa, the one made with the good knife would be better as the tomatoes would be juicer and not all smushed.

Post by kurthr » Sat, Sep 14, 2024, 10:59 PM UTC

jyxent wrote: post #386

kurthr wrote: post #357

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Well, like I said I'm no doctor, but I don't know that I'd use quora to make medical decisions. Here's an environmental safety article from MIT. It mentions lead oxide fumes from soldering. What do I know other than the required lab safety training. https://ehs.mit.edu/wp-content/uploads/EHS-0167.pdf

It says that lead fumes are unlikely to be generated: Based on standard soldering iron temperatures of 620°F-700°F and the melting point of lead (621°F), it is unlikely that lead fume will be generated during electronic soldering, unless the solder is heated to lead’s vaporization temperature of 3182°F.

   "During the soldering process in the form of lead filler metals, lead oxide
   fumes are formed and excessive exposure to lead oxide fumes can result in
   lead poisoning."

Post by m463 » Sun, Sep 15, 2024, 5:58 AM UTC

lostlogin wrote: post #321

_pigpen__ wrote: post #283

Earlier quoted context omitted.

>a $40 roll of thin gauge solder (which will last the rest of your life) I dunno, I'm 56 and I'm about to finish the roll I bought as a teenager. (Albeit bought in pre-RoHS times.)

Hopefully your affairs are in order…

Post by omgtehlion » Sun, Sep 15, 2024, 12:58 PM UTC

ssl-3 wrote: post #406

omgtehlion wrote: post #397

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Sure, P=I²R but only when you control the current. And P=U²/R when you control voltage. But USB-C can only give you 9V, 12V, 15V or 20V (depending on source, several of these steps might be missing), or 28/48V with EPR. Given that resistance is mostly fixed you cannot reach the maximum rated power, unless your tip is precisely matched for any of these fixed steps. And PWM does not work with some power sources because…

So you're saying that the iFixit iron can reach maximum rated power (100w) from 9v, 12v, 15v, and 20v, and 28v/48v? Or some subset of these? Or what, exactly? What function does a buck converter serve in this application? You'll have to spell it out for me, because right now using a buck converter in a portable USB-powered soldering iron sounds like a solution looking for a problem to solve.