Build Your Own Clone Message Board

It is currently Wed Apr 10, 2024 12:26 am

All times are UTC - 6 hours




Post new topic Reply to topic  [ 18 posts ] 
Author Message
PostPosted: Wed Oct 21, 2015 10:21 am 
Offline
Moderator
User avatar

Joined: Tue Jan 02, 2007 1:24 pm
Posts: 16205
Location: Albany, NY
Let me start by saying that this is my personal opinion as a DIY electronics enthusiast and should in no way be construed as the position of BYOC on the subject. With that said....

My opinion can be summarized in two words: AVOID IT! The reasons are multiple: it's harder to work with, has a higher & narrower useful working temperature range, has poorer flow characteristics than tin-lead solder, is intrinsically more brittle in the solid state, and is also prone to growth of tin "whiskers" over time which can potentially lead to shorting problems. It is particularly problematic in the hands of novice DIY'ers with little or no soldering experience because it is far less forgiving of poor soldering technique than the tin-lead variety.

I understand that some people like to use it, primarily because of the perceived environmental benefit. But think about it--are a few grams of leaded solder in your pedals or amps really going to have any significant environmental impact? The amounts involved are tiny and the potential environmental exposure is miniscule. So if you want to save the planet, do something that will make a real difference, like driving a hybrid vehicle or installing solar panels on your roof....

_________________
“My favorite programming language is SOLDER” - Bob Pease (RIP)

My Website * My Musical Gear * My DIY Pedals: Pg.1 - Pg.2


Top
 Profile  
 
PostPosted: Wed Oct 21, 2015 10:45 am 
Offline
Moderator
User avatar

Joined: Sat Mar 11, 2006 12:49 am
Posts: 8993
Location: New Yawk, NY
Agreed

_________________
Everyone likes sausage. Nobody wants to see how it's made.


Top
 Profile  
 
PostPosted: Wed Oct 21, 2015 11:16 am 
Offline
User avatar

Joined: Tue Feb 21, 2012 1:02 am
Posts: 3225
Lead free should be used only if required for regulatory reasons.

Everything I've read shows the actual environmental impact of leaded solders used on PCBs to be minimal. With small scale DIY building it makes even less sense.

A lot of the RoHS laws (and REACH and soon RoHS 2) caused a ton of problems. There are benefits in there, but many are of marginal or no improvement.


Top
 Profile  
 
PostPosted: Wed Oct 21, 2015 11:54 am 
Offline
Moderator
User avatar

Joined: Tue Feb 09, 2010 4:45 pm
Posts: 4688
Location: Rochester, NY
Yep, that stuff is awful.

_________________
Scott

My band, Austin Hollow


Top
 Profile  
 
PostPosted: Wed Oct 21, 2015 2:24 pm 
Offline
User avatar

Joined: Sun Oct 12, 2008 5:18 pm
Posts: 3845
Location: Byron Bay, Australia
Absolutely agree, and I'm about as "green" as they come.
Lead free solder is simply awful.
If you really want to do something about reducing lead in our world, ban bullets. :P

_________________
"Spud knows tone"

codtone.com


Top
 Profile  
 
PostPosted: Wed Oct 21, 2015 9:05 pm 
Offline
User avatar

Joined: Tue Feb 21, 2012 1:02 am
Posts: 3225
guitarmageddon wrote:
Absolutely agree, and I'm about as "green" as they come.
Lead free solder is simply awful.
If you really want to do something about reducing lead in our world, ban bullets. :P


FYI, the RoHS compliant bullets are terrible. :mrgreen:


Top
 Profile  
 
PostPosted: Thu Oct 22, 2015 10:47 am 
Offline

Joined: Tue Jan 17, 2012 12:43 pm
Posts: 643
Location: Between sjaustin and duvoodooman
I put in a new water heater last year and had to solder about 12 copper pipe joints. The only torch solder available for water systems today is lead-free (arguably a good thing in water supply pipes). I went to solder the first joint using my "old school" techniques and it was a disaster. After an hour or so of watching you tube videos I was able to adapt my technique and finished the job OK. It's different stuff. I wouldn't use it for electronics soldering unless I absolutely had to.

_________________
Twisting and tinning is for chumps.


Top
 Profile  
 
PostPosted: Thu Oct 22, 2015 10:52 am 
Offline
Moderator

Joined: Thu Nov 15, 2007 10:57 pm
Posts: 3546
Location: San Diego
Just to pile on: I hate it. Ruined beyond repair two good projects because I bought it by mistake. Total crap.


Top
 Profile  
 
PostPosted: Wed Jan 13, 2016 9:57 am 
Offline

Joined: Sat Jan 09, 2016 2:37 pm
Posts: 15
Location: NW Arkansas
So not to hijack (proceeds to hijack)

In the event I'm impatient and have started a kit with the lead free stuff...

I now have some good Kester 60/40 .031" rosin core....

Should I go back and add some of the w/ lead solder to the solder joints still there?

On the overdrive 2, I've soldered everthing up to the transistors...

I feel that my soldering has come a long way, and aside from not being "shiny" because of it being lead free, I feel they look good.

Thanks in advance


Top
 Profile  
 
PostPosted: Wed Jan 13, 2016 11:03 am 
Offline
Moderator
User avatar

Joined: Tue Jan 02, 2007 1:24 pm
Posts: 16205
Location: Albany, NY
I wouldn't mess around with the solder joints you've already made, unless you run into connectivity issues with the build. I'm not sure that the two solder types are compatible when mixed.

_________________
“My favorite programming language is SOLDER” - Bob Pease (RIP)

My Website * My Musical Gear * My DIY Pedals: Pg.1 - Pg.2


Top
 Profile  
 
PostPosted: Wed Jan 13, 2016 12:27 pm 
Offline

Joined: Sat Jan 09, 2016 2:37 pm
Posts: 15
Location: NW Arkansas
10-4

Thanks for pointing a noob further!


Top
 Profile  
 
PostPosted: Wed Jan 13, 2016 4:58 pm 
Offline

Joined: Sun Nov 18, 2012 7:55 pm
Posts: 100
Location: Red Oak, TX (Dallas)
Curiosity about this got me googling. Got to this site and blew water out my nose.
A purveyor of lead free solder whose name reads like "Shit All Metals."

Google it yourself, but put your drink down first. Sometimes the truth is just amazing. :shock:

http://www.shitalmetals.com/lead-free-solder.html

_________________
Marek - rhymes with "car wreck"

When I get a little money I buy books; and if any is left I buy food and clothes. Desiderius Erasmus


Top
 Profile  
 
PostPosted: Fri Jan 22, 2016 1:57 pm 
Offline
Moderator
User avatar

Joined: Tue Jan 02, 2007 1:24 pm
Posts: 16205
Location: Albany, NY
From the "technical Q&A" page of Randall Aiken's excellent website:

"Q: Is there any advantage to using solder with a 2% silver content?
A: Yes. Silver solder keeps werewolves away from your amp."


:lol: :lol: :lol:

_________________
“My favorite programming language is SOLDER” - Bob Pease (RIP)

My Website * My Musical Gear * My DIY Pedals: Pg.1 - Pg.2


Top
 Profile  
 
PostPosted: Tue Mar 19, 2019 4:58 am 
Offline

Joined: Sat Apr 10, 2010 4:29 am
Posts: 194
Location: Belgium
Hi everyone
Are there new developments on this subject?
I was ordering another spool of solder. The type I usually buy (because it was advised to me the first time in the shop) is STANNOL HS10 0,80mm S-Sn60Pb40.
It surprised me that I could find this type anymore online. All the STANNOL HS10 type are now lead-free and basically come in 2types of alloys: Sn95Ag4Cu1, Sn99.3Cu0.7. And different versions: "flowtin", "green", ...

I was just curious if there had ben some developments. I do sell my pedals, so they need to last :-)

Best regards
Tom

_________________
My Facebook Page - StringsAttached - Pedals and more


Top
 Profile  
 
PostPosted: Tue Mar 19, 2019 11:32 am 
Offline
Moderator
User avatar

Joined: Tue Jan 02, 2007 1:24 pm
Posts: 16205
Location: Albany, NY
Don't know if they sell this brand in Belgium, but I swear by it: https://www.amazon.com/Kester-24-6337-0 ... ref=sr_1_3

_________________
“My favorite programming language is SOLDER” - Bob Pease (RIP)

My Website * My Musical Gear * My DIY Pedals: Pg.1 - Pg.2


Top
 Profile  
 
PostPosted: Wed Mar 20, 2019 8:56 am 
Offline
User avatar

Joined: Tue Feb 07, 2012 3:18 pm
Posts: 7326
Location: Nashville, TN
duhvoodooman wrote:
Don't know if they sell this brand in Belgium, but I swear by it: https://www.amazon.com/Kester-24-6337-0 ... ref=sr_1_3


I'll +1 to this as I got a roll last year just like it. Great stuff if you can get it Tom.

_________________
powerpopguy wrote:
warm places theory sounds plausible. Occasionally, I wake up and think my snake is missing too, but it turns out it's just a chilly morning. :P


Top
 Profile  
 
PostPosted: Wed Mar 20, 2019 9:30 am 
Offline
Moderator
User avatar

Joined: Tue Jan 02, 2007 1:24 pm
Posts: 16205
Location: Albany, NY
duhvoodooman wrote:
Don't know if they sell this brand in Belgium, but I swear by it: https://www.amazon.com/Kester-24-6337-0 ... ref=sr_1_3

Do the REACH regulations now forbid the sale of tin-lead solder within the EU countries?

_________________
“My favorite programming language is SOLDER” - Bob Pease (RIP)

My Website * My Musical Gear * My DIY Pedals: Pg.1 - Pg.2


Top
 Profile  
 
PostPosted: Wed Mar 20, 2019 12:23 pm 
Offline
Site Admin
User avatar

Joined: Sun Jan 22, 2006 1:39 pm
Posts: 5987
Location: Richland, WA
The environmental impact from the end user of leaded solder is non-existent, since, save for the occasional desoldering, none of the solder we use is discarded. This statement pertains only to DIY and hobbyists. Low end consumer electronics end up in the landfill, so for production use, I do support the use of lead-free solder and ROHS compliant components. The only real argument against hobbyists using leaded solder is that they are financially supporting the manufacturing of leaded solder, which does have an environmental impact.

So if you feel using your power as a consumer is important for making a change, then I would say you should use lead-free solder. We as hobbyists, make up such a minuscule portion of the market, that I don't think it matters. And pretty much ALL components have switched to ROHS anyways. They only way you can use non-ROHS components now is if you are using NOS, which if you think about it, you are actually helping the environment by using NOS components -- you are keeping toxic materials out of the landfill.

I personally will continue to use leaded solder, sell leaded solder, recommend leaded solder, and recommend against the use of lead-free solder to our customers. I would estimate that 90% of the tech support problems we see are due to poor soldering. I can only imagine how bad it would be if everyone was using lead-free solder.

_________________
*patience is a virtue*

Please do not PM me. email is prefered. keith@buildyourownclone.com


Top
 Profile  
 
Display posts from previous:  Sort by  
Post new topic Reply to topic  [ 18 posts ] 

All times are UTC - 6 hours


Who is online

Users browsing this forum: No registered users and 3 guests


You cannot post new topics in this forum
You cannot reply to topics in this forum
You cannot edit your posts in this forum
You cannot delete your posts in this forum
You cannot post attachments in this forum

Search for:
Jump to:  
cron
Powered by phpBB® Forum Software © phpBB Group