Solder

roaringgirl said:
The dreadful solder I have on board won't melt with my trusty iron. Can anyone recommend some good solder (preferably with a link to buy in the UK)?

Thanks!
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It's all much of a muchness - lead free solder requires higher temperatures to melt than lead-based and that means you need to be more careful in isolating components.

Lead-based solder is no longer legally available for general use.
 
Lead Free solder is pretty much a fact of life these days.
There is plenty of 60:40 Tin/Lead solder on ebay, but if you're working on anything made in the last 15 years, it will almost certainly be lead free. Buy a new iron?
If you are soldering wires etc I would get something containing a 'no clean flux'.
Ordinary rosin flux needs cleaning off with solvents.

Buy a suitable size wire for what you are doing, I have really fine stuff for small work and 1.5mm or so for 'power' work.
Some people will sell really fine stuff by the metre and it doesn't go far.

I'd look at CPC, RS, Rapid Electronics, Farnell etc
 
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Just having a solder versus crimp connections discussion on a car forum.
I find solder connections on cars (usually older looms) are prone to cracking and breaking. This extra heat and crap solder may help explain this.
 
60/40 solder is still common for electrical work in the US. Lead-free for plumbing. And there are even lower melting compounds, though at some point that's not a good idea.

Maybe it's not the solder, but the iron or some use factor. Check the MP spec.

Better yet, a good pair of ratchet crimpers.
 
I pointed out to some forum members in the US (it's a mainly US forum) that F1 use crimped connections as vibration makes solder connections less durable.
They didn't seem to accept that.
 
I struggled to solder on board because I was working outside in some wind so the iron could not provide enough heat. Down below it worked fine. Were you working outside? David Morgan
 
It is my understanding that the supply and use of leaded solder is permitted for repair work where it was used originally. Still available from suppliers as listed by TernVI above.
 
CPC have a good selection of 60/40 lead solder.
it has a lower melting point and stays liquid much longer than lead free, but lead free is just as good if you are a confident solderer.
a good clean iron helps, as does having an iron that gets hot enough and stays hot when in contact with the work surface.
i use gas and 230v irons daily, up ladders, in the open air and in confined spaces, and if they are good quality they all work.
as said before, drafts make soldering harder, especially lead free, keep the iron sheltered.
 
Leaded solder is much better than lead free. 60/40 is good but the newer 63/37 has some advantages, such its eutectic nature, but it more expensive.

Kester is very good brand for important projects. It available in a range of sizes and flux options. A good option is to buy a solder with an inbuilt mild flux, but also have some separate tins of more aggressive flux for joints or wire that has seen better days.
 
st599 said:
It's all much of a muchness - lead free solder requires higher temperatures to melt than lead-based and that means you need to be more careful in isolating components.

Lead-based solder is no longer legally available for general use.
Click to expand...

Tin / lead solder is still legally available as it's the solder really suitable for old electronics made using the stuff. It's use is banned in most manufacturing though, I think it's use in military hardware and other safety critical applications is still allowed.

Tin / lead solder can still be bought from the likes of RS and Farnell.
 
Tin / Lead solder is perfectly legal for amateur use

It's use professionally / commercially is more complex as it is covered by significant safety restrictions (which i suspect are even more restrictive than they were when i was last involved in manufacturing) due to the very real health issues caused by regular long term exposure to lead

In a manufacturing context, there is in any case simply no need to use lead based solder so it's use is virtually nonexistent. And whilst it offers advantages when carrying out repairs and reworks (making good manufacturing faults) the need for protective safety measures such as fume cabinets &c usually make it's use more trouble than it's worth

I try not to think about the amount of time i spent in my younger days inhaling fumes from lead solder! Even so, i still use it for the occasional personal project
 
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