On 06/04/2018 10:01 PM, Thomas Fuchs via vcf-midatlantic wrote:

While I’ve been collecting (and using!) old computers for a while, and can do some repairs, I never learned to solder. Obviously that would be a useful skill… :)

What are your recommendations? I’m thinking this is something that you can probably learn best directly with another person but if there’s a good online tutorial or course, I’d be happy to hear about that as well.

I do have the equipment, but I don’t really know where to start, and I don’t want to mess with old hardware until I have somewhat of a grip on it. What’s a good beginner project? Maybe an arduino or something like that?

Good thinking. I would suggest looking at http://www.banggood.com and search for simply the word "kit". Banggood is a crazy Chinese company that sells an amazingly huge variety of electronic kits (along with everything else you can think of) that are very, very cheap. Get some starting at a basic skill level and build up from there. Their stuff is cheap Chinese crap, of course, but some of it really isn't bad, and most all of it looks like great fun...and great soldering practice.

My main interests area is late 70s to early 90s, and I’d love to be able to identify and properly fix broken connections, weak solder points and (eventually) to recap boards; I’m located in Bucks county, PA.

Hmm. Maybe troubleshoot them first, and replace capacitors if they've actually failed? -Dave -- Dave McGuire, AK4HZ New Kensington, PA

In person training is best, but I have identified two superb YouTube videos that get all the facts right. I’ll forward the links when I am on a real computer. We can also arrange to get together sometime, I probably don’t live too far from you. Chris On Jun 4, 2018, at 10:01 PM, Thomas Fuchs via vcf-midatlantic <vcf-midatlantic@lists.vintagecomputerfederation.org> wrote: Hi everyone, While I’ve been collecting (and using!) old computers for a while, and can do some repairs, I never learned to solder. Obviously that would be a useful skill… :) What are your recommendations? I’m thinking this is something that you can probably learn best directly with another person but if there’s a good online tutorial or course, I’d be happy to hear about that as well. I do have the equipment, but I don’t really know where to start, and I don’t want to mess with old hardware until I have somewhat of a grip on it. What’s a good beginner project? Maybe an arduino or something like that? My main interests area is late 70s to early 90s, and I’d love to be able to identify and properly fix broken connections, weak solder points and (eventually) to recap boards; I’m located in Bucks county, PA. Thanks for any suggestions! Best, Thomas F.

Also if you come to the workshop, there are two kits that can be bought from IXR that are specifically designed to teach soldering. Let me know if you want me to pick them up. One makes blinking lights. Another is a remote control. On Mon, Jun 4, 2018 at 10:01 PM Thomas Fuchs via vcf-midatlantic < vcf-midatlantic@lists.vintagecomputerfederation.org> wrote:

Hi everyone,

While I’ve been collecting (and using!) old computers for a while, and can do some repairs, I never learned to solder. Obviously that would be a useful skill… :)

What are your recommendations? I’m thinking this is something that you can probably learn best directly with another person but if there’s a good online tutorial or course, I’d be happy to hear about that as well.

I do have the equipment, but I don’t really know where to start, and I don’t want to mess with old hardware until I have somewhat of a grip on it. What’s a good beginner project? Maybe an arduino or something like that?

My main interests area is late 70s to early 90s, and I’d love to be able to identify and properly fix broken connections, weak solder points and (eventually) to recap boards; I’m located in Bucks county, PA.

Thanks for any suggestions!

Best, Thomas F.

-- ========================================= Jeff Brace Vice President Vintage Computer Federation