How to clean, tin, and maintain soldering iron tip

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Hand Soldering Guidelines for Tip Longevity

Use quality solder iron with adjustable temperature, making sure the tip is tight before use. Adjust the temperature of the iron just above the melting temperature of the solder being used. Using excess heat can damage the circuit board, oxidize and damage the tip, and render flux useless in flux cored solder. Flux cored solder reduces tip oxidation and promotes quicker more solid solders, minimizing heat damage to parts on the board. Additional flux can also be used (pens, paste etc). …