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Comment by tylerjwilk00 | Hacker News Reader

If you're looking for another Zen like hobby, try soldering. You can get a Hakko iron [1] for $100 and fun kits [2] for under $20.

Few activities put me in a state of peaceful tranquility like soldering in quiet solitude. Summer nights soldering with the window open listening to crickets in the background. Heaven on Earth.

[1] https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00ANZRT4M/

[2] Elenco FM Radio Kit https://www.amazon.com/dp/B004YHZE0G/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_i_Fq...

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What a throwback to my childhood! I spent countless late nights as a teenager in my parents garage soldering away doing exactly that. To this day, I love any chance I get to solder something. I don't get to do it as much as I used to with everything I work on being surface mount, but it makes the moments even better when I get to.

Thanks for the memory!

This is awesome! Thank you for the suggestion. I’ve wanted to get into old PCs, Macs, and consoles from the 80’s and 90’s but a lot of these machines have capacitors that need to be replaced lest they leak electrolytes all over the boards. Getting an iron and some kits is a great way to practice before attempting to fix an old computer!

I've never learned to solder and I bet my 10 year old would love to learn with me. I'm gonna get those kits. Thanks!

IKEA furniture assembly is also an option.

aren't the fumes bad for your health and can lead to MS and other nerve related disease?

Yep! As-such a lot of people like myself only solder in well-ventilated areas and/or use fume extractors, ie: https://www.amazon.com/Hakko-FA400-04-Bench-ESD-Safe-Absorbe...

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