UK potentiometers

[owenjames]

Hi,

I bought some pots from maplin and they suck, if you solder them for more then 20-30 seconds they brake. Where do you UK poeple get your pots? I cant have this heppen every time I build a pedal, it's is really annoying.

Alternatively, does anyone have any tips to stop me destroying pots?

thanks

Owen.

[jacobyjd]

20-30 seconds?

[Andi]

3 seconds should surely be long enough?

There's not many (if any) pots that'll survive 20-30 seconds at over 300C.

[thereverend]

20-30 seconds is way too long. pots and pretty much any component wont handle that much heat for that long an amount of time.

do yourself a favor and practice soldering wires over and over again until you get the hang of it. i used to take a whole bunch of solid core wire, cut it up into 3 inch lengths and soldered up these little copper cages to teach myself how to solder. it's better than destroying components while learning how to solder.

[owenjames]

So is it just they heat that has been F-ing up these babies then  ?  I find on other pots a couple of seconds is enough, these ones just seem very resistant to being soldered.

[jacobyjd]

you may need to scuff up the contacts a bit, especially if they've been sitting around for awhile.

Also, try flux paste

[StephenGiles]

you may need to scuff up the contacts a bit, especially if they've been sitting around for awhile.

Also, try flux paste

Exactly, I'm sure they have been sitting around as nobody in their right mind buys from Maplin

However, I do  - the plastic green ones and they have always been OK. You just need to check they have sold you the correct value which is embossed on the pot.

[frequencycentral]

Maplin's Alpha pots are a good deal, and cheaper than Rapid, Bardwell or Banzai. Just don't use the store - buy online, their shipping is utra fast. There seems to be a lot of Maplin-bashing about, but for some parts they are the best price. To me, they are just another supplier. I recently put orders in to four suppliers (no single supplier had all the parts I wanted), the Maplin stuff arrived first, the order was correct.

[Andi]

Eh? The Maplin pots are almost double the price of the Rapid ones. 

[jacobyjd]

you may need to scuff up the contacts a bit, especially if they've been sitting around for awhile.

Also, try flux paste

Exactly, I'm sure they have been sitting around as nobody in their right mind buys from Maplin

However, I do  - the plastic green ones and they have always been OK. You just need to check they have sold you the correct value which is embossed on the pot.

Not sure if you're being sarcastic or not--just to be clear, I wasn't Maplin-bashing...I'm in the US, so I'd have no reference point to do so.

However, I know how pots can sit around either on a store shelf (which is not that likely) or on my workbench, and over time, anything will oxidize enough to make solder say 'no!'. 

[rackham]

Not wanting to big-up Maplins particularly either, but they seem to be cheaper than most places for Eddystone enclosures.

The pots get cheaper the more you buy too, they just don't list the price breaks on their site.

[ringworm]

Still on pots from Maplin - which would be best to buy, I had gone in-store previously and the only ones they had were the solid spindle (the spindle was to long for my knobs - moog style knobs with grub screw) so I ended up ordering elsewhere. Can I trim the spindle on the standard pots with the black plastic spindle? these ones:
http://www.maplin.co.uk/Module.aspx?ModuleNo=2205
or are people trimming the spindle on these:
http://www.maplin.co.uk/Module.aspx?ModuleNo=2203
And if so with what?

[Andi]

I "trim" spindles with a set of these:

http://www.tooled-up.com/Product.asp?PID=128372

And then file/polish with a Dremel. Very quick, very easy, quite neat.

[owenjames]

The reason i get them from maplin is that they are the cheapest UK place I have seen, Also they have those plastic shaft ones which you can just clip off with some side cutters.  I spent about 3 hours hack-sawing though 6 of the metal ones once and ever since I have Refused to get metal shaft pots. Also they do next day delivery which is free if you spend over £35 and cheap eddystones. I see no problem with them, they are rubbish for actuall components though, I go farnell for Resistors and Caps etc.

[col]

Rapid, Maplin etc. all do cheaper the more you buy but Rapid seem to have more values than Maplin, I might be wrong though. They also have a bigger choice of makes, eg they do the green ones. For pots, tin the contact and the wire (ie. put solder on them beforehand) and when you put them together and add the iron they join almost immediately. If there is a problem give the surface of the contact a quick rub with a file or emery paper and you shouldn't have a problem.

[Andi]

The reason i get them from maplin is that they are the cheapest UK place I have seen

Rapid are far cheaper.

Also they have those plastic shaft ones which you can just clip off with some side cutters.  I spent about 3 hours hack-sawing though 6 of the metal ones once and ever since I have Refused to get metal shaft pots.

Pot shafts should only take a minute or so to hacksaw. Even quicker to use bolt croppers.

[gez]

What wattage is your iron?  You might need a bigger beast (yuk yuk!)

Flux (as mentioned) is a godsend.  I use the liquid stuff in pen form. 

If you're still finding yourself soldering for more than a few seconds per joint, stick a crock clip on the contacts close to the body of the pot, to act as a heatsink (helps avoid damage).

Omeg pots at rapid are nice (the 'noiseless' ones).  PCB mount, but possible to solder wires to if you're canny.