5 ms·

Soldering by hand is a dying art... I'm not sure. Back in the day we avoided SMD like the plague and it had a reputation of being unapproachable. THT parts wer

Soldering by hand is a dying art... I'm not sure. Back in the day we avoided SMD like the plague and it had a reputation of being unapproachable. THT parts were highly sought after and I would even say that a good deal of the success of AVR was because they offered THT versions of their µs long after most others had stopped. Some of us even engaged in the uphill battle of lead-free soldering only to be disillusioned. We thought hand soldering will die with THT but it didn't. I see a young generation that has mostly overcome these hurdles. With their young steady hands, sharp eyes, high-lead solder, small temperature controlled irons and other modern equipment they just go about. I envy them.

nolist_policy 2y ago
I actually prefer lead-free solder because its more aggressive flux and higher soldering temperature. This allows burning away and tinning enameled wire with the soldering tip. Though there are only two lead-free solders that qualify. I use the Felder Ultra-Clear EL Sn100Ni+. The other one is the Amasan BF32-3.
- jve 2y ago
  I suspect tip oxidation is an issue with leadfree? Or isnt it? At what temperatures you solder mentioned leadfree?
  - lukego 2y ago
    Oxidation is a big problem with the harsh no-clean fluxes in many cheap lead-free solder wires. Switching to a rosin flux (RMA or RA) name brand solder should fix that (did for me.) Metcal have a great big doc on tip care that covers this.
  - jdietrich 2y ago
    Tip life is inevitably worse with lead-free solder. Using a brass wool cleaner rather than a wet sponge will help prolong tip life, as will the regular use of a suitable tinning/cleaning paste (e.g. Hakko FS-100 or JBC TT-A). Keep the tip wetted with solder as much as possible - a completely "clean" tip will oxidise much faster than one with a protective layer of solder. The correct tip temperature for any hand soldering operation is the lowest temperature that will allow the joint to be completed in two to five seconds. In practice, that depends on a host of variables - the composition of the solder alloy, the properties and calibration of your iron, the thermal mass of the joint etc. A usual rule of thumb is the melting point of the solder plus 150°C, but your mileage will vary.
dotancohen 2y ago
High lead solder? Are you sure about that? For what it's worth, I took the time to learn leadless soldering specifically so that I could teach my kids. I like to introduce them to safe hobbies (that why they all went skydiving before their 10th birthday, too).
- jdietrich 2y ago
  Leaded solder is safe to use if you wash your hands afterwards. Leaded solder - particularly 63/37 eutectic solder - is much more forgiving of poor technique. Lead-free isn't a massive inconvenience if you know what you're doing, but it can be absolutely infuriating for novices.
  - dotancohen 2y ago
    What about breathing the fumes? Also, doesn't (long-term) exposure to the fumes severely affect skin? I remember the folks soldering a lot of things for the Gemini and Apollo programs had very wrinkly, obviously damaged skin on their faces.
    - Kirby64 2y ago
      There is no lead in the solder fumes. If anything, lead-free solder is substanially worse, since the flux used for lead-free solder is a lot... harsher. Either way, this can be largely fixed by a small fume fan.
      - dotancohen 2y ago
        Thank you. In fact, I drive a small horizontal quadcopter propeller with a 3.7v LiPo while soldering to pull the fumes away.
pkolaczk 2y ago
Maybe it’s just me but I find SMT easier and faster to prototype with than THT. Apply paste, place all components on the board with tweezers, reflow, done. With THT I have to bend / cut the legs of most components, and solder each point individually. As for “high lead solder” - you won’t buy it in Europe. We had to learn using lead free for rework and you know what - it’s not much different, assuming you have high quality equipment.
- mistaken 2y ago
  As for “high lead solder” - you won’t buy it in Europe. We had to learn using lead free for rework and you know what - it’s not much different, assuming you have high quality equipment. That's bollocks. You can buy leaded solder in Europe just fine. You only need to worry about lead-free if you want to sell a commercial product.
  - pkolaczk 2y ago
    You can’t in Poland if you don’t own a resistered business. I tried and nope, they won’t sell it to individuals. But thanks for letting me know, maybe it was just a local problem of the particular store, but a EU policy.
- pta2002 2y ago
  I have a roll of 38% lead solder on my desk which I bought last year from Leroy Merlin in Portugal, so you can definitely buy it in Europe.
  - atesti 2y ago
    Any idea where I can buy some from Germany? Reichelt stopped to sell it and I did not have chance to stock up
    - weinzierl 2y ago
      Nowadays I don't bother with Reichelt or Conrad and just get must of my stuff from Mouser. They offer leaded solder in all kinds of forms. I have to say that I have not tried out if they will actually deliver it to Germany though.
foldr 2y ago
>Some of us even engaged in the uphill battle of lead-free soldering only to be disillusioned. I've never had any trouble using lead-free solder for through-hole or SMT (and I don't have any expensive or sophisticated equipment).
leoedin 2y ago
What’s strange is that the larger SMD packages are far simpler to solder than THT ones are. Give me an 0805 or SOP any day over a THT package. I guess the real driver towards hobbyists using SMD is cheap and fast PCB design. You can’t really do stripboard or wire wrap with SMD packages.

nolist_policy 2y ago

I actually prefer lead-free solder because its more aggressive flux and higher soldering temperature. This allows burning away and tinning enameled wire with the soldering tip. Though there are only two lead-free solders that qualify. I use the Felder Ultra-Clear EL Sn100Ni+. The other one is the Amasan BF32-3.

jve 2y ago
I suspect tip oxidation is an issue with leadfree? Or isnt it? At what temperatures you solder mentioned leadfree?
- lukego 2y ago
  Oxidation is a big problem with the harsh no-clean fluxes in many cheap lead-free solder wires. Switching to a rosin flux (RMA or RA) name brand solder should fix that (did for me.) Metcal have a great big doc on tip care that covers this.
- jdietrich 2y ago
  Tip life is inevitably worse with lead-free solder. Using a brass wool cleaner rather than a wet sponge will help prolong tip life, as will the regular use of a suitable tinning/cleaning paste (e.g. Hakko FS-100 or JBC TT-A). Keep the tip wetted with solder as much as possible - a completely "clean" tip will oxidise much faster than one with a protective layer of solder. The correct tip temperature for any hand soldering operation is the lowest temperature that will allow the joint to be completed in two to five seconds. In practice, that depends on a host of variables - the composition of the solder alloy, the properties and calibration of your iron, the thermal mass of the joint etc. A usual rule of thumb is the melting point of the solder plus 150°C, but your mileage will vary.

dotancohen 2y ago

High lead solder? Are you sure about that? For what it's worth, I took the time to learn leadless soldering specifically so that I could teach my kids. I like to introduce them to safe hobbies (that why they all went skydiving before their 10th birthday, too).

jdietrich 2y ago
Leaded solder is safe to use if you wash your hands afterwards. Leaded solder - particularly 63/37 eutectic solder - is much more forgiving of poor technique. Lead-free isn't a massive inconvenience if you know what you're doing, but it can be absolutely infuriating for novices.
- dotancohen 2y ago
  What about breathing the fumes? Also, doesn't (long-term) exposure to the fumes severely affect skin? I remember the folks soldering a lot of things for the Gemini and Apollo programs had very wrinkly, obviously damaged skin on their faces.
  - Kirby64 2y ago
    There is no lead in the solder fumes. If anything, lead-free solder is substanially worse, since the flux used for lead-free solder is a lot... harsher. Either way, this can be largely fixed by a small fume fan.
    - dotancohen 2y ago
      Thank you. In fact, I drive a small horizontal quadcopter propeller with a 3.7v LiPo while soldering to pull the fumes away.

pkolaczk 2y ago

Maybe it’s just me but I find SMT easier and faster to prototype with than THT. Apply paste, place all components on the board with tweezers, reflow, done. With THT I have to bend / cut the legs of most components, and solder each point individually. As for “high lead solder” - you won’t buy it in Europe. We had to learn using lead free for rework and you know what - it’s not much different, assuming you have high quality equipment.

mistaken 2y ago
As for “high lead solder” - you won’t buy it in Europe. We had to learn using lead free for rework and you know what - it’s not much different, assuming you have high quality equipment. That's bollocks. You can buy leaded solder in Europe just fine. You only need to worry about lead-free if you want to sell a commercial product.
- pkolaczk 2y ago
  You can’t in Poland if you don’t own a resistered business. I tried and nope, they won’t sell it to individuals. But thanks for letting me know, maybe it was just a local problem of the particular store, but a EU policy.
pta2002 2y ago
I have a roll of 38% lead solder on my desk which I bought last year from Leroy Merlin in Portugal, so you can definitely buy it in Europe.
- atesti 2y ago
  Any idea where I can buy some from Germany? Reichelt stopped to sell it and I did not have chance to stock up
  - weinzierl 2y ago
    Nowadays I don't bother with Reichelt or Conrad and just get must of my stuff from Mouser. They offer leaded solder in all kinds of forms. I have to say that I have not tried out if they will actually deliver it to Germany though.

foldr 2y ago

>Some of us even engaged in the uphill battle of lead-free soldering only to be disillusioned. I've never had any trouble using lead-free solder for through-hole or SMT (and I don't have any expensive or sophisticated equipment).

leoedin 2y ago

What’s strange is that the larger SMD packages are far simpler to solder than THT ones are. Give me an 0805 or SOP any day over a THT package. I guess the real driver towards hobbyists using SMD is cheap and fast PCB design. You can’t really do stripboard or wire wrap with SMD packages.