SolderFest at KansasFest
If you’re going to carry a torch for the Apple II computer,
you’d better know how to control its heat and melt a little
solder. Although the Apple II has been around for more
than 40 years, many of these seminal machines can still
light up like new, thanks to a community of people who
have to be their own Genius Bar. This is why KansasFest
always sets one night aside for SolderFest, where Apple II
devotees learn how to solder RAM cards and power sup-
ply boards. Fans who know how to solder can take care
of their own machines, replacing broken keyswitch posts
and capacitors on logic boards and power supplies.
“This is the last of the home-brew world right here,”
said Anthony Martino, a Brooklyn, New York, resident who
runs the Ultimate Apple II website and store (
) and helped facilitate a solder ses-
sion. “Back in the day, there used to be user groups where
you would learn things like this. You can watch YouTube or
[surf] the internet, but
this
is using a computer.”
Martino and his colleague, Henry Courbis of
Spring Hill, Florida, tended to their students. Some were
soldering for the first time, while others used the session
to work on recently acquired machines.
Across the room, John Lane of Sullivan, Illinois,
slowly melted beads of solder onto a RAM card. He
expressed little confidence in his ability to solder, but his
wife, Rachele, sat at his side and assured him his work
looked good. She chose not to solder, opting instead to
take pictures while her husband worked. “I don’t mess
with hot stuff,” Rachele Lane said. “It’s bad enough I
have to use a hot stove.”
When SolderFest ran late and got interrupted by
happy hour, Martino called out to his students: “Remember,
don’t drink and solder!”
There are no prizes for the best work at SolderFest,
but learning more about how to care for their Apple II
machines is enough for these fans.
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