Tinning the Wire

I set the wooden bobbin with the stripped copper wire across my green cutting mat. Before wiring it into any components, the bare strands needed a coating of solder to prevent fraying. I switched on the compact soldering iron and waited for the heating element to reach temperature. Holding the thin spool of rosin-core solder in my left glove and the wooden bobbin steady with my foot, I lightly pressed the hot iron tip against the exposed ten-millimeter copper tip. A tiny puff of smoke rose, and molten silver flowed smoothly over the bright copper, coating it in a solid, shiny layer. After letting it cool on the ceramic rest, I verified the tinned lead was completely rigid.