very basic soldering question

[Sonic Idiot]

Greetings!

I'm a newbie. I've got a question about soldering.

On some circuit boards I examine, I see clean peaks of solder on both sides of the circuit board. After poking around here, I've seen this referred to as "bleed." I take it this is a good thing.

My practice joints on crappy Radio Shack boards do not achieve this bleed.

A: Is this bad?
B: If so, am I not using enough solder?
C: If you dip the Hakko in your coffee, your coffee gets reheated QUICK.

[tpryan]

On a board with plated-through holes, capillary action will draw the molten solder completely through the hole. If the joint is heated thoroughly and quickly, as in wave or dip soldering, perfect fillets will form on the component side of the board as well as the solder side. It is sometimes hard to achieve perfectly formed fillets on the component side when soldering by hand. You should use enough heat and solder so that solder flows well into the joint and is at least visible on the component side of the board.