So you mean I should get two of these:
Yes, but only if you're absolutely sure that you will never be able to learn to solder.
If you decide to go the expensive route, be careful not to cut any of the 16bit side traces with your hacksaw! Then you'll need to start soldering for sure. :-)
Soldering tips:
- Be sure that the iron is hot before you start, if it only just started to melt the solder then wait for a little longer.
- Heat the components a bit before applying the solder, otherwise it'll just stick to your iron's tip or roll of as balls, splashing on your desk and in your lap (I still have nice round scars on my lap for soldering in shorts and not being careful ;-)
- Don't use a lot of solder! If you seem to be using a lot and are not accomplishing much, your component isn't hot enough for the solder to melt on it's surface!
- Practice on some scrap pcbs and components first.
And this is meant to be an encouragement: I got my first soldering iron when I was 10, and yet somehow I managed to connect components together with only a basic understanding of how it should be done. The first joints I made weren't that pretty, but I got better with practice. (I didn't realise you need to heat the components too in order for the solder to stick ;-)
Don't be scared, it doesn't take much practice. :-)
