Ask Helena & Leo

Question: I am an IPC Certified J-STD-001 Instructor. We solder our wires straight up from the via, then bend them to where we need them to go. We had some assemblies built outside and they tinned and bent them at a right angle, then soldered them into the printed circuit board. My question is, can I just move these wires (cold, not reheat) to the position we want and not damage the wire in the area of the solder joint?

Answer: Great question. The method used by your supplier is the correct way to install wires into printed circuit boards, install, fold over and solder in place. This process does not put any stresses on the solder joint. If the flexibility of the wire is still there, then the wire can be moved from where it is flexible to its termination at the opposite end of the wire.

I would not recommend moving the wire from the solder joint as you asked as this will impact major stresses on the solder joint and wire and this will impact the reliability of the connection. I would recommend reheating the solder joint and realigning the wire in the correct direction if the above method is not feasible.