gc-forever - Gamecube/Wii Forums

I installed the PicoBoot Modchip. I'm not an expert at soldering, but I did my best. I followed the video just like it said:
[youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qwL4ZSa0xMo[/youtube]
When I was finished soldering the PicoBoot Modchip and placing the software on it, I tested the console with just the power brick to see if it would turn on. It turned on, so I thought I was good to go. I also installed a new CR2032 battery. After I put everything back together, I now see that the fan spins, the LED flashes for a second then goes away, but the fan keeps spinning, the disc inside doesn't spin, and no display shows up, even though the console stays powered on. Based on the description and the images, what do you guys think is wrong with my console? Any help would be appreciated. Thank you.

If the LED goes off it means there is a short somewhere. No offence but your soldering looks really bad, the exposed parts of the wires are way too long and there are loose strands that can touch nearby points.

Agreed bare wire ends far too long u only need enough to touch the pin and take solder


And too heavy with the solder blobs too.

Id take all that off retrim and start again.

Also try thinner gauge cable

webhdx wrote: ↑

Thu Jul 28, 2022 11:26 am

If the LED goes off it means there is a short somewhere. No offence but your soldering looks really bad, the exposed parts of the wires are way too long and there are loose strands that can touch nearby points.

I'm very new to this. When you say there's a short, does that mean I have to find the exact thing that shorted and repair it? How would I go about finding it? I have a multimeter.

Ikduncan wrote: ↑

Thu Jul 28, 2022 5:36 pm

Agreed bare wire ends far too long u only need enough to touch the pin and take solder


And too heavy with the solder blobs too.

Id take all that off retrim and start again.

Also try thinner gauge cable

How do you remove sodder? I'm using this sodder wick made of copper. I also have a sodder sucker, but I'm a little hesitant to use it. I was using 26 gauge wires, would you recommend 18 gauge by any chance?

I removed all the wires and tried to clean it with 99% isopropyl alcohol and a cotton swab as best I can. Does that pin look broken by any chance, because it's not resoldering? I'm having trouble with the globs of solder too.

Yeah you did a huge mess on that board. There are multiple shorts on Serial Port pins and you ripped a pad on U10. I'd recommend giving the console to someone who knows how to fix it. I'm afraid you'll do even more damage and make it unfixable.

webhdx wrote: ↑

Thu Jul 28, 2022 9:38 pm

Yeah you did a huge mess on that board. There are multiple shorts on Serial Port pins and you ripped a pad on U10. I'd recommend giving the console to someone who knows how to fix it. I'm afraid you'll do even more damage and make it unfixable.

I will send it to a mod servicer. I have to ask for future reference, do you think it had anything to do with me using a very high temperature. I went 480°F.

After I removed the PicoBoot, I tested the GameCube again, and it's alive and well. It has display, sound, led full time, game plays fine, and everything is working great. Should I make another attempt at the PicoBoot installation, or take this as a warning. I'm so happy and relieved that it's not dead.

480 degrees
you overcame a little...
your Gamecube was lucky it was still working...
you left the wires in contact between the points on the board...

480°F is only 250°C, which is very low.

Hi, I sent the GC to a professional, but I wanted to clarify a mistake that I made in this post. I said that I set my soldering iron to 480°F. I just checked and it was in fact 480°C, which is about 896°F. Is that too hot for what I was doing? Please let me know, because I do want to know for future reference. Thanks.

That's pretty hot even for lead-free solder.

Extrems wrote: ↑

Wed Aug 03, 2022 6:03 pm

That's pretty hot even for lead-free solder.

Thanks for responding. What temperature would you recommend, Extrems?

300-350C is a reasonable range for leaded solder. Tin the pad and the wire then you can make a connection very quickly. Using flux will help a lot.