General Techniques

Soft Soldering

This guide introduces the essentials of soft soldering for modelmakers, covering suitable metals, recommended solders, fluxes and soldering irons. It explains how to prepare joint surfaces, tin the iron, and apply solder correctly for clean, reliable bonds. Practical steps outline how to pre-tin both parts, assemble the joint, and reheat to fuse the solder layers, with guidance on working along longer seams and cleaning off corrosive flux residues. The guide helps beginners achieve strong, neat soldered joints on materials such as brass, copper, steel, tinplate and nickel silver.