[300SLR]

What sort of repairs do you want to do?

Here's a starter for the iron. solder and flux to use. (Don't neglect the flux, it's important to getting a good joint, particularly in the more difficult to solder materials)

Soldering the lead wires back on only needs a smaller iron - say 25 watt.
Soldering heavy brass chassis together needs a larger iron - say 75 watt.

60/40 solder is fine for everything.

The rosin core in solder is OK for tinned copper wires, for brass and copper Fluxite flux is good, for steel an acid flux is needed.

 

[300SLR]

Hi StuBeeDoo
For that sort of use you don't need to bother with high power irons or separate flux
60/40 rosin cored solder and irons like Bigbird suggests are fine.

 

[300SLR]

Using different melting point solders in a chassis is something of a mixed blessing.
If a high melting point joint does fail, its more difficult to repair without melting the other joints that were done with lower melting point solder.
That's one reason a lot of chassis builders use the same type of solder throughout.

 

[300SLR]

QUOTE (StuBeeDoo @ 30 Apr 2012, 18:43) <{POST_SNAPBACK}>Thanks, but I'm talking about electrical repairs here, not building chassis. I thought I'd said that already, My apologies if I haven't.
Indeed you did, so no apology needed!

Threads often move on to a wider discussion than the originator asked for.
Once somebody starts posting about wider topics (in this case chassis soldering) it's only to be expected that replies will also appear on the thread.
Maybe it would be better if all the chassis soldering stuff was moved to a new thread.

 

[300SLR]

QUOTE (StuBeeDoo @ 19 May 2012, 19:07) <{POST_SNAPBACK}>However, I've noticed today that somehow my iron tip (I haven't got 'round to getting another iron yet) is eroding. Is this usual? When I do get a new iron, how do I make sure the tip on it doesn't suffer the same fate?
Yes tip erosion is normal, replacement tips are available for most irons.
The better quality iron plated tips that some irons come with last much longer
Plain copper tips erode fairly quickly - it is common practice to redress them with a file.