How to solder to these round lugs?

I am finished my lunch so I am offline until supper. Good luck. I think you got it figured out though.
 
Yup, it's a 3.5mm or 1/8" and it is tiny. They make smaller ones, even.

The photos I posted are very much enlarged macro shots.
 
Franko said:
I need to replace the 3.5mm Jack on my headphones. I ordered this repair jack but I'm not sure how to go about soldering the wires to the cylindrical lugs. I guess just tin the wires and press them flat onto the lugs, but I fear enough heat will damage the plastic insulation around and isolating the lugs. Is there an official way to make this connection? the small lug is not hollow.

The lugs in question are marked with red arrows. I think I can handle the ground connection. I've repaired lots of stereo and mono jacks, but have not encountered lugs like these before.

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You will spend more time dressing and sizing the wires than soldering. Tinning the conductors beforehand is key. Needing a heatsink is not needed, nor likely to help much. A reliable hot iron with a clean chisel tip will make the job easier so you can get in and get out quick. Having a solid soldering vice to hold the work securely will help. I would work from inside out - that is, solder the tip, ring, and sleeve in that order.
 
I use a 60 watt controlled temperature pencil for delicate work but turn the temperature up for maximum heat transfer. Another trick is to make an adapter for a larger iron. I have a 200 watt iron for the really big stuff but had a need for heating a small area but large thermal mass. A wrap of 10AWG solid wire around the tip of the iron and terminating in a short stub allowed me to get enough heat into the work to make the connection.

63/37 tin/lead solder is the lowest melting point of the straight solders. There are also low melting point solders available.
 
I've done similar. Usually I use a scribe to pry up the center electrode so it is off of the plastic a bit.
 
I was concerned that stripping the little wires would be difficult. It was, but not impossible. I have some wire strippers for very fine wire that worked nicely.

I'll probably use my 45 watt pencil soldering iron. It is the hottest one I have. I used a 100--140 watt pistol grip soldering gun to tin the wires. I agree that using a higher watt iron is good idea, so the parts will heat up fast and hopefully keep the heat local.

I'd like to thank all you guys. I know this wasn't a machining issue, but I was desparate and I figured ya'll were the best source I know of for such input. We are the sort of people who would be doing this sort of thing. I love this place.
 
I've seen the 4 conductor jacks used on some phone earbuds to add a control switch to the cord.
The plastic is usually a high temperature type and takes the heat OK as long as you do the work quickly.
The best advice I can offer is "make sure you put the cover on the cable first" before you do anything else. I'll bet there's quite a few reading this thinking "forgot it once and won't do it again" but won't admit it.
 
Jim, I've forgotten it more than once. Hooking up those jacks in order can be more demanding than plumbing.
I freely admit it. I am fallible, and every day that passes, more so. I think my smarts peaked about 20 years ago.
 
One additional trick. When stripping fine wire, I score the insulation by melting with the soldering iron and pulling with my finger nails. It prevents nicking the wire which can lead to future breaks.
 
As an audio tech for years running sound and lights in venues, I've repaired hundreds of cables. If the wires are single strand coated wires, a light lick of a flame and use your finger nail to get the costing off. tin both the wire and the lug, don't worry about heat too much. The plastic will ment slightly no matter what you do. A 40 or under watt iron is all that's needed. Put a blob on the iron, push the wire against the lug and heat with the iron. It's better If you orient yourself so gravity will let the solder fall into the connection. The thing to worry about is making sure the connection is flat enough so the cap will screw back on. Make sure you place a little bit of slack in the wire between the crimp and the solder connection or it will rip off. Not a loop or a twist, just a bit of slack.
 
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