Using a Soldering Iron for Repairs on Foam

HeavyBird

New member
Hey guys,
I've seen quite a few people using a soldering iron to cut foam so I decided to use it to fix my crashed plane.

I had to cut the nose off, it was pretty bad. I replaced it with the nose of another plane I was building. I was also able to replace one of my control horns by "cutting" it out with the soldering iron.

Cool stuff. I'm thinking of attaching some wire to it soon to make a handy foam cutter.
 

Attachments

  • 20180929_193534.jpg
    20180929_193534.jpg
    601.8 KB · Views: 0
  • 20180929_200243.jpg
    20180929_200243.jpg
    1.3 MB · Views: 0
  • 20180929_202031.jpg
    20180929_202031.jpg
    828.9 KB · Views: 0
  • 20180929_201527.jpg
    20180929_201527.jpg
    1.6 MB · Views: 0

Keno

Well-known member
Hey guys,
I've seen quite a few people using a soldering iron to cut foam so I decided to use it to fix my crashed plane.

I had to cut the nose off, it was pretty bad. I replaced it with the nose of another plane I was building. I was also able to replace one of my control horns by "cutting" it out with the soldering iron.

Cool stuff. I'm thinking of attaching some wire to it soon to make a handy foam cutter.
A Sealing Iron does the job quite well. Use it frequently as you did and I use it to correct misplaced joints or goofs if want to call it that. Mine is always hot to smooth out hot glue goofs. Good advice you give.
 

foamtest

Toothpick glider kid
You can buy tips for your soldering iron to turn it into a hot knife as well. Basically its an adapter that allows your iron to hold an exacto blade. The cheapest place I was able to find one that works with exacto blades is from harbor freight for $8, it comes with that, some soldering tips and some stuff for wood burning as well. Oh yeah and it comes with the part that heats it all up as well but it is complete garbage. I used that for a week then it quit on me so I would not rely on that forever. The stuff that comes with it is more than worth the $8 in my opinion and a hot knife is a great tool to use for repairs and getting glue off of servos and control horns of a scrapped airplane.
 

BS projects inc.

Elite member
I use a soldering iron to fix up broken plastic pieces. Melt them back together. Or I use them to trip down 3d printed pieces.
 

Brett_N

Well-known member
If you are going to use your soldering iron for foam repairs - PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE get some replacement tips at a minimum, or buy a cheap soldering iron. A good soldering iron is a MUST for soldering - it doesn't work so well if the tip is all gunked up with plastic and foam!

Amazon is your friend - just figure out what your soldering iron is and buy some spare tips. I got a 10 pack for like $8

Here's a good $20 option - https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07C7H6W17/?tag=lstir-20


On my bench I've got a hot knife, a foam repair soldering iron, and then a good soldering only station.