Wiikey Install - Halp?

[Spanky2k5]

Alright guys,
basically I'm having a nightmare installing the Wiikey and was wondering if anyones got any tips for me.

I've got the GC2-D2B chipset with the cut legs and missing contact point, so really couldn't be worse for installing the wiikey.

I'm not too bad at soldering but I'm not the greatest either and I've ended up spednign more than I can really afford on Irons, kynar wire, flux dispensing pens, magnifiers etc...

I managed to grind away the top of the chip to expose the contact points and make the whole job 'easier'. I'm just having trouble sodlering the wire to the contact points, I seem to be using either too much or too little solder.

Also I bought a new soldering iron yesterday, the packaging said it was 15w (as I was worried about damaging the board) but it turns out its 12w anyway. The tip isn't ideal either as its around 1mm in diameter and I can't seem to find any smaller - eitehr way the iron didn't get hot enough to even begin melting the solder at the tip.

I've sunk a fair bit of money into this already so there's no way I'm giving up, but I don't really wanna have to spend more either. Is there a way to increase the wattage of a soldering iron? I figure if I can increase the 12w to around 25w I may have a slightly better chance?
Other than that any advice (other than 'give up') you guys can offer would be much appreciated.

 

[rabbit]

You can't increase the wattage of an iron. But either way, the griding is the most nerve-wracking part. The soldering is just tedious. What gauge is your solder? A 12W iron will have trouble melting something that isn't REALLY thin (which is what you want for the cut pins anyway). Solder is cheap anyways, so that's fine. What I suggest is using a pocket knife or something. Stick it between the contacts and then solder one at a time so that you don't get crosses (which would short), and you can be a little bit less precise since you've got a wall there.

As for the pads, just prime them with a little solder and prime the Wiikey too, then when you put it on just heat and connect.

 

[Spanky2k5]

Ah, cheers mate.
The solder I'm using is fairly thick, probably about 1mm if not just under - its Lead free too if that makes any difference. Just generic stuff from maplins really.

If I'm using thinner solder does that not run the risk of it melting when the systems in use?
Also, I like the idea of using a pocket knife under each individual trace on the chip, I just dunno If I could get a blade under each one individually as they are so close together

 

[rabbit]

:O

Are you in Europe? Because that will hurt. Lead-free solder melts at a higher temperature, so you need a hotter iron, which is riskier. And 1mm is pretty thick, considering the size of the contacts.

Which, by the way, I mean knife between adjacent contacts, not underneath them.

 

[Spanky2k5]

yeah I'm in the UK. I'll bet some 'non-lead free' solder at a smaller gauge then, hopefully a 12w iron should be ok with that as I don't really wanna pay for yet another - also tips are fairly expensive for my budget so I gotta use what I'm given.

Oh...and the knife thing makes more sense now...

 

[Spanky2k5]

Ok I got myself some new stuff,

25w Soldering Iron
0.4mm Tip
0.5mm Lead Free Solder (Couldn't find any non-lead free stuff anywhere)

The solder is still pretty hard to melt at the tip which is proving a problem, but the jobs going much easier.

The attachment shows a pic of my board I took last night. It looks quite messy but isn't as bad as it appears here, I intend to disconnect the one wire I managed to solder on and clean it all up a bit - I don't seem to be able to get just the right amount of solder to attach the wire, the little I do get on seems like too little and any more seems like too much.

One problem I've come across involves the 2 legs to the left of the cut pins. As the pic shows they seem to have become joined, I've no idea how this happens but I'm having a bitch of a time seperating them as the tip doesn't get hot enough to melt the solder.

Anyone know what I can do about this, or just how badly may have fucked the Wii up?

 

[rabbit]

For removal I suggest getting a much hotter iron (60W) and desolder braid.

What I did when I installed my Wiikey is that I used nail clippers to cut VERY small pieces of solder (IIRC I used 0.65mm, but I can't find it right now) and just placed them with tweezers, then I melted them once I was sure they were in place.

Either way, your camera is a lot better than mine :\

 

[Spanky2k5]

Thanks for your help, I'll give it a try later today with the tweezers....seems like everytime I get the courage up to work on the Wii, once I start I regret it.
The two legs binded together is my concern at the minute cos I'm presuming the Wii's bricked if I can't remove the solder.
I'll pick up some braid later today, and maybe a desolder pump...

 

[rabbit]

You have 0% chance of bricking your Wii, even with joined legs, if you don't power it on (even plug it in, since it has a soft "off" state)

 

[Spanky2k5]

I think I may have done it.

It's all soldered up and turns on.....original games still work too.
I tried it with a backup though and I get 'Unauthroized device detected'

I don't really know what this means, do I have to flash it or something?
I haven't done anything except solder it in and am not sure how to update the chip,
I've done some searching on the net but keep finding conflicting guides about padding(??)
and what disc to burn to...

 

[Spanky2k5]

Okay to update.....

I burnt the update file to a DVD-R then put it in the drive
...showed up as a Gamecube game
....Ran game
....Hit reset when told to
....Hit reset again when told to
....Rebooted console
....Backups work!!!!!


Didn't have to do any padding or anything, just burnt the image
Haven't tried the config disc yet...will give it a go later

Thanks for all your help rabbit!!!

EDIT: Ok...some backups work....a few I've burnt with DVD+R's (as I ran out of -R's) have eitehr thrown up errors or taken me back to the Channel Guide??!?!

 

[rabbit]

Yeah, +R sucks. I've had great success with Sony DVD-R and Verbatim DVD-R. The config disc you'll need to disable region checking so you can play imports.