I may be the only person this happens to, but why does the foil sticky-back goop squish out onto the glass when I solder?
Nice description. The sticky-back goop is the adhesive that holds the copper foil to the glass. The reason that it squishes out is because it is melting from getting too hot. This is a common problem for people just learning to solder. It takes practice to lay a nice bead of solder. Beginners usually need to go back over the bead several times to make it neat. In this case, the entire area that you are soldering is getting heated up which may be causing the adhesive to melt. Try letting the area cool down before you fix up the solder bead. If you are lucky enough to lay a perfect bead of solder on the first try (good for you!), the melting problem may be caused by the temperature of your soldering iron. If you are using a rheostat with your iron, turn it down a little bit. If you arent, maybe you should be. Ask your supplier to help you decide on the best approach for your type of iron. If none of this helps, you may want to try moving your iron along a little more quickly when you solder.
Reprinted with permission from Stained Glass News. All rights reserved.
What to do About Foil Sticky Back Goop
