Hi all,
My soldering skills are, shall we say, subpar. Actually, I blame my equipment. Umm, yeah. o.O
Anyway, I want to solder as few pins as possible, rather than soldering all 40, because I don't want to bridge anything, and the fewer soldered, the lower the odds. The documentation only mentions three active pins:
TXD RXD #4
EEDATA/EECLK
3.3v power
I assume a ground pin is used as well.
If I just solder the relevant pins, will the Ultimate GPS Hat work? It looks like they are pins 1,6,7,8,9,10 and maybe 14,20,25,30,34,39 for additional grounds just in case.
Also, why is it a "hat" rather than, say, a "crust"?
(I'll avoid powering it up until I get confirmation one way or the other, as I don't want to fry it.)
Thanks!
Ultimate GPS Hat active pins?
Moderators: adafruit_support_bill, adafruit
Forum rules
Talk about Adafruit Raspberry Pi® accessories! Please do not ask for Linux support, this is for Adafruit products only! For Raspberry Pi help please visit: http://www.raspberrypi.org/phpBB3/
Talk about Adafruit Raspberry Pi® accessories! Please do not ask for Linux support, this is for Adafruit products only! For Raspberry Pi help please visit: http://www.raspberrypi.org/phpBB3/
- adafruit_support_mike
- Posts: 67485
- Joined: Thu Feb 11, 2010 2:51 pm
Re: Ultimate GPS Hat active pins?
Leaving pins unsoldered can cause other problems, and we really encourage people to get comfortable soldering. With a bit of know-how and some practice you'll get nice, clean joints without too much trouble.
Take a look at our soldering tutorial for suggestions: https://learn.adafruit.com/adafruit-gui ... -soldering
Pin header is great for soldering practice. You don't have to worry about damaging a component. The most important rules are:
1) Clean your tip at least once per minute.
2) Add a small blob of fresh solder just before starting a joint.
3) Use flux.
4) Don't hold the iron to a joint for more than five seconds.
Hot solder oxidizes in air, and the oxide layer doesn't conduct heat very well. Cleaning the tip exposes the metal, which does conduct heat well.
Heat transfer is a function of surface area in contact between the heat source and the thing you want to heat. Pins and holes are irregular shapes, and don't make much surface contact with a dry tip. Liquids are really good at making surface contact with irregular shapes, so a small blob of molten solder will get the heat flow started.
The oxide layer turns into a powder that mixes into the liquid metal, making it pasty and hard to work with. Flux dissolves the oxide and keeps the solder flowing smoothly.
The longer you heat the joint, the farther heat moves through the traces, the board, and the leads or header you're trying so solder. That's what does the most damage, and you get a much larger surface dissipating the heat you're trying to send in through the iron. If you can't get in and out in and out in five seconds, stop and let things cool before trying again.
Take a look at our soldering tutorial for suggestions: https://learn.adafruit.com/adafruit-gui ... -soldering
Pin header is great for soldering practice. You don't have to worry about damaging a component. The most important rules are:
1) Clean your tip at least once per minute.
2) Add a small blob of fresh solder just before starting a joint.
3) Use flux.
4) Don't hold the iron to a joint for more than five seconds.
Hot solder oxidizes in air, and the oxide layer doesn't conduct heat very well. Cleaning the tip exposes the metal, which does conduct heat well.
Heat transfer is a function of surface area in contact between the heat source and the thing you want to heat. Pins and holes are irregular shapes, and don't make much surface contact with a dry tip. Liquids are really good at making surface contact with irregular shapes, so a small blob of molten solder will get the heat flow started.
The oxide layer turns into a powder that mixes into the liquid metal, making it pasty and hard to work with. Flux dissolves the oxide and keeps the solder flowing smoothly.
The longer you heat the joint, the farther heat moves through the traces, the board, and the leads or header you're trying so solder. That's what does the most damage, and you get a much larger surface dissipating the heat you're trying to send in through the iron. If you can't get in and out in and out in five seconds, stop and let things cool before trying again.
Forum rules
Talk about Adafruit Raspberry Pi® accessories! Please do not ask for Linux support, this is for Adafruit products only! For Raspberry Pi help please visit: http://www.raspberrypi.org/phpBB3/
Talk about Adafruit Raspberry Pi® accessories! Please do not ask for Linux support, this is for Adafruit products only! For Raspberry Pi help please visit: http://www.raspberrypi.org/phpBB3/